Kidney Bean Stew with Cauliflower and Coconut Milk

I was hungry for some good, real, food. Lately I’ve eaten an embarrassing amount of frozen pasta and had several dinners out that I’ll be telling you about soon enough. Sorry for the lack of posting lately; I haven't been in the mood for much interesting food.

I wanted to make good stew or soup, and I adapted this recipe from Fresh from the Vegetarian Slow Cooker. I put it together after work, so naturally I did not use a slow cooker – instead I cooked it on the stovetop.

I started by putting several ingredients in the food processor: onion, jalapeno, garlic, and ginger. It turned into a green slushy mess. I’ll have to say, though, that this was a nice alternative to having chunks of translucent onion like I normally do in the soups I make. I’ll also say that I was worried about the soup being too spicy with the jalapeno and cayenne, but it was not too hot. It was great. The potatoes and coconut milk really mellow it out.

Yes, this stew is spiced with cayenne, as well as mustard, turmeric, allspice, fennel, and cumin.

To this, I added diced gold potatoes, cauliflower, kidney beans, diced tomato, and broth. I simmered on the stovetop while the potatoes and cauliflower cooked. A few minutes before serving (just long enough to warm it through) I added canned, unsweetened, ccoconut milk.

While it cooked, I made naan. I wanted to buy some at the grocery store, but the store I went to only had a mix. This turned out really, really well, though. This was seriously yummy.

I found this Golden Temple mix (it’s actually made or distributed by Smuckers) that includes the flour mix and a yeast packet. It calls for milk, oil, and some water. I actually used soymilk and it came together perfectly.

I mixed everything together, kneaded it, then after it rose I rolled it into eight pieces. Then Alex cooked them in a skillet like pancakes. We spread some melted Earth Balance on them and sprinkled with salt.

I don’t know that I can call this “Indian food”, but it was certainly different from my usual fare. I think we’ll be doing something like this again, though!