back in summer... (recipe: eggplant curry and indian-spiced cultured baby squash)

I'm really not trying to make it worse that winter is upon us -- I'm just very backed up on recipes. I have at least ten waiting to be shared. That's why I'm posting an "end of summer" curry in November.

'Course, if you're lucky enough to have a year-round farmer's market, you might still be able to find these ingredients from farmers who use season-extending methods. I didn't make it to the market this week but last week there were plenty of peppers and eggplant hanging around. If you don't have any such market, I'd consider this recipe worthwhile to bookmark until next year -- it's a good way to use up extra summer produce.

I do make my own green curry paste, but I'm too nervous to make a red one. Why? Because I just can't be trusted to take the proper precautions when handling chiles -- and even if I do, I can't trust that they'll work. I made several batches of these peppers this summer and each time I ended up in pain or at least mild discomfort for several hours, no matter how careful I was. So as good as I know homemade red curry paste would be -- as much as I prefer making my own condiments -- I just haven't made my own (yet).

But I hate the flavor of those crappy little jars of "curry paste." So instead of making a paste, I compromised by using all the traditional ingredients of a curry paste in the curry, substituting chile powder for whole, soaked dry chiles. And it totally works. Just make sure to use pure chile powder. Most chile powders are a blend of ingredients, including oregano. What you want instead is roasted and ground chiles.

I used sprouted tofu as the protein in this curry, but you should feel free to substitute a pastured meat or maybe chickpeas if you can't have soy.

I want to say a word about cooking eggplant. First of all, you do not need to salt eggplant. Newer cultivars are not bitter and salting won't do much to tenderize. Second, bigger is not better when it comes to eggplant. Small eggplant have fewer seeds and thinner skin; my favorite varieties are long and thin. (Hey, that rhymes!) Third, everyone complains about eggplant sucking up oil, but if you capture this quality properly, it's actually the best thing about eggplant. Use a good-quality oil or ghee and your eggplant will end up silky-smooth and redolent with whatever spices you've used. The oily, mucky property of eggplant is mostly a problem when you slice it into thin rounds, as with eggplant Parmesan. Use diced or roll-cut eggplant instead.

Traditional Indian dishes are often served with a salty pickle. I thought these Indian-spiced cultured baby squash would work well.

Summer squash is one of the only vegetables that my children do not like, and it's not one of my favorites, either. But I was gifted a whole bunch from a friend and I wanted to be creative with it, so I tried combining it with some wonderful spices and culturing it. And this squash, my children will eat. It's an ideal condiment for curry and also good as a snack, and I think it would be nice in sandwiches in place of pickles.

Indian-spiced Cultured Baby Squash

1 lb. baby summer squash (finger-length), whole or sliced

1 onion, sliced thinly

1 T. cumin seeds

1 T. coriander seeds

1 t. turmeric

1 t. mustard seeds

1/2 t. peppercorns

3 cinnamon sticks

filtered water and unrefined salt, as needed

Layer the squash and onion into a large Mason jar (or other glass vessel). Add the spices. Measure out cups of filtered water to top the squash. (I needed about 3 cups.) For each cup, add 2 teaspoons salt. Cap the jar and culture at room temperature for 3-5 days, until fizzy and flavorful.

End of Summer Curry

1 shallot, minced

3 garlic cloves, minced

3" galangal or ginger, minced

2 T. lemongrass paste

2 long, thin eggplant, roll-cut

2 red bell peppers, halved and sliced

1 handful green beans, sliced into 2" lengths

8 oz. sprouted tofu, cubed

14 oz. coconut milk

1 c. water or vegetable broth

2 T. pure chile powder

1 T. brown sugar

2 t. cumin

1 t. coriander

1 t. cumin

pinch of cinnamon

1 T. fish sauce, or 1 T. fermented soy sauce

juice of 1 lime

Heat 3 T. ghee or olive oil in a large, deep pan. Add the shallot, garlic, ginger, and lemongrass

and cook for about 3 minutes, until fragrant. Add the eggplant and cook over medium-low, stirring regularly, until soft and coated, about 5 minutes. 

Add the peppers, tofu, coconut milk, broth, sugar, spices, and fish sauce. Increase heat to medium-high and cook for about 10 minutes, until the sauce is thickening. Add the green beans and cook for 3 more minutes. Turn off the heat and stir in the lime juice. Taste and salt as needed. Serve with steamed rice.

This curry is perfect with spiced Bombay potatoes (recipe here -- I skipped the tomatoes and used ghee instead of sunflower oil). Enjoy!