Spinach & Cheese Curry Ingredients
1 1/2 lb spinach, fresh
1/2 lb ricotta cheese, fresh (see note)
3 medium brown onions
1 ginger, fresh (1 1/2 inches), chopp, ed fine
1 medium tomato
1 1/2 tsp cumin seeds
1/2 tsp turmeric
1/2 tsp red chile powder (cayenne, more to taste)
2 cloves
1 pinch nutmeg
1 pinch mace
1 tbsp ghee (or use melted butter or oil)
1 salt (to taste)
Spinach & Cheese Curry Directions
Cook the spinach and chop it up. Cut the cheese into about 3/4-inch
cubes and deep fry a few pieces at a time in oil (a wok is good for
this).
Fry the chopped onions in the ghee. When almost brown, add the
finely-chopped ginger. Use a medium to high heat. When the onions are
golden, reduce the heat and add the skinned and chopped tomato, then
the spices and salt. Cover for a few minutes, then add the spinach
and salt. Cover and simmer about 5 minutes to let spices penetrate.
Add the cheese pieces, mix and serve.
NOTES:
* Indian vegetarian spinach and cheese curry -- This is a dish I
learned from an Indian lady, at a cooking class. It's simple to make
and has a beautifully subtle flavor. As per true curries, it uses raw
spices instead of some prepackaged curry powder. Yield: Serves 4 to 6.
* We eat this dish as a meal with rice, although you can use it as
one dish along with others.
* The quantities given for the spinach and cheese are very flexible.
I never measure or weigh them, just putting in what seems right.
Experiment. Similarly, it can be kept hot for a while with no loss in
taste or texture.
* In North America, most Ricotta cheese is packed as a pot cheese.
This recipe calls for a more solid form of the cheese. Specialty
ethnic markets in large cities will carry solid Ricotta. You can make
your own by buying a tub of pot Ricotta and wrapping it in a clean
cloth to wick the moisture out, leaving the whole assembly in the
refrigerator for a week or so, and changing the cloth every day. With
such treatment the cheese will gradually solidify enough that you can
slice and fry it. Buffalo-milk Mozzarella is a fair substitute, and
ordinary Mozzarella is a last-chance substitute.
* Don't fry the cheese too long. It should have a golden exterior
and have a marshmallow texture inside. Frying too long makes it hard
and dry.
* Use whole cumin seeds and cloves, not the ground variety.
* Like most curries, this reheats splendidly.
: Difficulty: easy to moderate.
: Time: 1 hour.
: Precision: Approximate measurement OK.
: Peter C. Maxwell,
: Department of Computer Science,
: University of New South Wales,
: Sydney, AUSTRALIA.
:
: peterm%cadvax.oz@seismo.css.gov
: Copyright (C) 1986 USENET Community Trust
Serves: 4
Spinach & Cheese Curry Recipe
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Food Quotes:
All sorrows are less with bread.
Miguel de Cervantes, Don Quixote
But when the time comes that a man has had his dinner, then the true man comes to the surface.
Mark Twain
