- Serves 3 - Ready in 50 minutes -
*uses up 3 medium stalks of rhubarb*
Gather together…
1 tbsp rapeseed oil or olive oil.
Seeds from 5 Cardamom pods.
1.5 tsp curry powder.
1 onion, thinly sliced and diced (to save time day-to-day, I keep a big box of onions I've chopped ahead-of-time, in the freezer, so I throw in 2 handfuls of those).
1 tsp grated root ginger (I keep a chunk of root ginger in the freezer - if you grate it when frozen then there is no need to peel it).
2 cloves of garlic (peeled and chopped), or 2 tsp lazy garlic.
1 cup (160g equivalent) sultanas.
1 cup red split lentils, dry (these red lentils cook quickly, so don't substitute with other types of lentil unless you also increase the cooking time).
1 stock cube or 4tsp 'Marigold Less Salt Swiss Vegetable Bouillon powder' (available in bulk 1kg tubs).
4 cups (1 litre) boiling water.
250g fresh rhubarb (roughly 3 medium stalks), cut into 1/2 cm (thin) slices.
2 tsp sugar.
1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda (sieved).
3 cups baby spinach leaves.
1 handful chopped Coriander (I grow / buy herbs in bulk and then chop and freeze them, so they are ready to use quickly in recipes).
Serve with...
Naan bread (shop-bought or homemade, see below for Naan recipe).
Plain yoghurt (approx. 3 tbsp per person).
Get cooking…
1. Pre-heat the oven to 180 C (160 C fan) or gas mark 4.
2. Heat 1 tbsp of oil in an oven-proof casserole dish, over a LOW heat on the hob. Add the finely chopped onion, the Cardamom seeds (from inside the 5 pods), the 1.5 tsp of curry powder, the 1 tsp of grated ginger and the 2 cloves of chopped garlic. Cook with the lid on for 2 minutes.
3. Boil a full kettle of water ready to use to make the stock.
4. Turn OFF the heat and to the casserole dish add the 1 cup of sultanas, the 1 cup of dried, red lentils, sieve in the 4 tsp of stock powder (to avoid lumps) and add the 4 cups (1 litre) of boiling water. Stir well.
5. Turn the heat back on, this time to medium-low and bring the casserole dish on the hob to the boil (this will take 3 - 5 minutes), stirring every 30 seconds to stop the lentils sticking to the pan.
6. Put the casserole dish in the oven to bake for 30 minutes, with the lid on.
7. Meanwhile, make the Naan bread dough (optional) - see ingredients and recipe below for 8 small Naan.
8. Remove the curry from the oven (but leave the oven switched on) and add the 3 stems of rhubarb (chopped 1/2 cm bits), the 2 tsp sugar and sieve in the 1/2 tsp of bicarbonate of soda (to avoid unpleasant lumps). Stir well. If needed (if it is looking a bit dry) add a further 1/2 cup (125 ml) of previously-boiled-so-still-warm water. Bring to a simmer on the hob (for circa 2 minutes).
9. Put the curry back into the oven for 10 minutes to soften the rhubarb, with the lid on.
10. Then preheat the grill to medium-high, ready to cook the Naan breads.
11. Add the spinach to the curry pan and cook for 2 minutes on the hob, gently. Sprinkle the curry with Coriander and stir well.
12. Serve with the Naan bread and plain yoghurt.
Adapted from www.vegetariantimes.com/recipes/indian-spiced-lentils-with-spinach-and-rhubarb.
Gather together for the 8 small Naan Breads...
250g plain flour (weighed on the scales or use 1.5 cups).
2 tsp sugar.
½ tsp salt.
A small handful of Nigella seeds.
½ tsp baking powder.
130ml milk.
3 tbsp (36g) vegetable oil, plus extra for greasing tray.
Get cooking the Naan Breads...
1. Put the 250g of plain flour, the 2 tsp of sugar, the ½ tsp salt and the small handful of Nigella seeds into a large-ish, wide based bowl (ideally use the bowl from a food mixer - if you have a dough hook attachment, as you can use it to knead with shortly).
2. Sieve in the ½ tsp of baking powder and mix the dry ingredients together well.
3. Add the 130ml of milk and the 3 tbsp (36g) of oil.
4. With a metal spoon, mix together the dough, for approx. 1 minute, to make a smooth, soft consistency.
5. (a) Either...On a clean, low-ish table, knead well (with cleaned then oiled hands - remove any jewellery first!) for 10 minutes, adding a little flour if the dough is too sticky and adding a little more oil if it is too dry. At first the dough will be inflexible, but persist with the kneading for 10 whole minutes (you can't rush it) and the dough will soften and end up smooth and silky.
5. (b) Or... Use the dough hook on a food mixer to knead the dough for you for 10 minutes.
6. Coat the dough in oil and wrap the oily-dough in grease-proof paper / a beeswax wrap in the fridge (or the freezer if you only have a few minutes before they are needed) as chilling first makes them more likely to puff up during cooking. Ideally chill the naan for at least 30 minutes, as it gives the dough time to 'relax' which makes it much easier to roll out.
7. Ten minutes before your curry finishes cooking, start to roll out your Naan. Wipe down, dry and drizzle oil on your work surface.
8. Also brush 1 tsp oil onto a large baking tray and put the tray into the hot oven (where the curry is still cooking) to heat up.
9. Meanwhile form the chilled Naan dough into 8 balls and roll out, using an oiled rolling pin - each will be approximately the size of an adult's hand.
10. Once the curry comes out of the oven for the last time, switch the oven to medium-high 'GRILL'.
11. Place 4 Naans on the hot baking trays baking tray (careful not to burn yourself) - make sure they are well spaced out.
12. Put the first batch of Naans under a hot grill in the oven and bake for 2 – 3 min per side until (hopefully) risen and lightly browned. Then repeat with the second batch Naans (keep the first batch warm by wrapping them in a clean tea towel and keeping them close to the oven). Even if the Naan bread don't puff up much they luckily still taste delicious.