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Curry Vegetable Stew Sure To Satisfy Appetites

Steve Petusevsky Fort Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel

It’s time for holiday parties, when Madras Curry Vegetables would make a great vegetarian offering. This richly flavored and brightly colored stew looks especially tempting served in a round casserole dish tucked into a hollowed-out pumpkin.

In this hearty seasonal dish, the vegetables are simmered in a sauce flavored with ginger root, garlic and curry. Although most vegetables may be used for this stew, I always try to incorporate meaty eggplant, sweet onions, carrots and starchy butternut or calabasa squash. This filling ragout may be cooked and kept, covered, in the refrigerator for as long as 5 days or frozen with excellent results for as long as two months.

This dish is not only appealing to look at but also is healthful. Ginger root soothes your stomach. Eggplant is filling but not fattening and contains a good amount of potassium, essential for healthy nerves and muscles; it also helps flush excess sodium from the body. And squash contains considerable amounts of both vitamins A and C.

Madras Curry Vegetables

Serve over basmati or brown rice.

1 tablespoon pure olive oil

1 medium onion, diced

3 large carrots, sliced inch thick

1 large butternut squash, cut in half, seeded, peeled and diced (about 4 cups diced)

1 large eggplant, peeled and diced (about 2 cups diced)

2 tablespoons grated ginger root

4 cloves garlic, minced

1 tablespoon curry powder (preferably Madras)

1 teaspoon turmeric

1 teaspoon cumin

1 (14-ounce) can whole tomatoes in juice, juice reserved, tomatoes chopped

1 (16-ounce) can chickpeas (garbanzo beans), rinsed and drained

1 tablespoon low-sodium soy sauce or tamari

Juice of 1 lemon

Heat the olive oil in a large, heavy-bottomed nonreactive saucepan over medium heat.

Add the onions, carrots and butternut squash; cook 3 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the eggplant, ginger root, garlic and spices. Saute 1 minute longer.

Add the tomatoes with their juices and chickpeas; reduce heat and simmer, lightly covered, 20 minutes or until vegetables are tender and sauce is slightly thickened. Season with soy sauce and lemon juice.

Yield: 6 servings.

Nutrition information per serving: 217 calories, 7 grams protein, 4 grams fat (17 percent fat calories), 44 grams carbohydrate, no cholesterol, 414 milligrams sodium.