Tomato Curry with Coconut Rice

This Tomato Curry with Coconut Rice recipe is an adaptation of the recipe featured in the Nigella Kitchen recipe book.

In the book, Nigella says that she often has a lack of faith in meatless courses - a common perception amongst meat eaters and I will readily admit that some vegetarian dishes do leave the stomach growling, but definitely not this one. 

This Tomato Curry is very filling and also features a wonderful mixture of colours, textures and flavours to get the palette going.

Nigella uses peas as her main vegetable in the recipe, but I really don't like peas in large quantities, so I added some mixed veg - broccoli, cauliflower and carrots to my version.

The Tomato Curry is set off by a wonderful Coconut and Lime Rice. This rice is so delicious - creamy and coconutty with an added zing of lime. This is my new favourite kind of rice!

Ingredients:

For the Tomato Curry
2 tbsp Olive Oil
2 large Onions
1tsp sea Salt flakes
4 cloves Garlic - peeled & chopped
800g  Cherry Tomatoes - halved
2 tsp Turmeric
1tsp English Mustard powder
1 tsp mild Chilli powder
1 tsp Garam Masala
300g mixed Veg (broccoli, cauliflower,carrots

Method

1. Heat the oil in a large pan with a lids, and add the chopped onions, sprinkling with the salt.  Stir frequently over a low to medium heat for about 7 minutes
2. Stir in the chopped garlic, then add the halved tomatoes, before stirring in the spices.  Cook for 20 minutes with the lid on, over a low heat.
3. Cook the mixed veg in a separate pan, in boiling salted water.  Drain, and add to the tomato curry for the last 5 minutes of cooking time. Serve on a bed of Coconut Rice.

For the Coconut Rice
2 tbsp Olive Oil

4 Spring Onions, finely chopped

2 tsps Mustard Seeds (or even better, Nigella seeds if you have them)

300g Basmati rice

1 x 400ml can of Coconut milk

600ml freshly boiled Water

1tsp Sea Salt Flakes

juice of 1 Lime

Method

1. Warm the oil in a heavy-based pan with a lid.  Add the spring onions and mustard seeds and cook for a minute or so, pushing the mixture around with a wooden spoon.
2. Stir in the rice and allow it to be slicked  with oil and thoroughly mixed with the spring onions and seeds.
3. Pour the coconut milk into a measuring jug and top up to the 1 litre mark with freshly boiled water.  Add this to the rice, stirring it in with the salt
4. Bring the rice to the boil, then turn down the heat to low and cover with a lid. Cook for 15 minutes, by which time the rice should be cooked and the liquid absorbed.
5. Fluff up with a fork as you pour in the lime juice, then add more salt and/or lime juice to taste.
6. Serve immediately with the Tomato Curry