Indian spiced potatoes with fried egg

Those of you around here for a while now know about my love for all things sweet, but I like savory dishes, too, and I’m always searching for tasty lunch or dinner ideas.

As a kid, our family lived in a tight budget – especially after my mom got cancer – but food was always something important: she made sure we had fresh veggies and fruits every day, and fish once a week, and would always bake a cake so my father and I would have something to snack on at work and at school, respectively. Eggs were an important staple at home and mom (and years later, my grandmother) would cook them in different ways for our meals – I especially loved her omelets and fried eggs, and those are dishes I still adore eating – to be honest, except for raw I’ll eat eggs in any way possible (I bet that reminds you of something). ;)

That is why this dish, a recipe from this lovely cookbook, caught my eye: the spiced potatoes looked yummy already, but topping them with the fried egg won my heart over. After I made this dish I saw Bill Granger cooking a similar version on TV in which he chopped the potatoes in slightly larger pieces – I’ll be trying that next time.

Indian spiced potatoes with fried egg
slightly adapted from the beautiful and delicious Bill Granger Easy (I bought mine here)

800g Desiree potatoes, peeled and cut into 1cm dice
4 tablespoons canola oil
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 tablespoon curry powder
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
¼ teaspoon freshly ground Sichuan pepper
25g unsalted butter
salt and freshly ground black pepper
handful parsley leaves, chopped
4 large eggs

Bring a large saucepan of salted water to the boil over high heat. Add the potatoes, reduce to a simmer and cook for 13 minutes, or until just tender. Drain in a colander and leave to cool for a few minutes.
Place a non-stick frying pan over medium–high heat. Heat 2 tablespoons of the oil, add the garlic, curry powder, turmeric and Sichuan pepper and cook for 30 seconds, stirring constantly.
Drop the butter into the pan and as soon as it has melted, add another tablespoon of oil and the potatoes. Fry for 5 minutes, turning often. Scatter the salt and black pepper over the potatoes and toss together for a minute more. Remove from the heat, add the parsley and toss to combine. Divide the potatoes among warmed plates.

In a clean large non-stick frying pan, add another tablespoon of oil and place over medium–high heat. Once hot, fry the eggs for 2–3 minutes until cooked. Place the fried eggs on top of the potatoes and serve.

Serves 4

Chickpea curry with roasted cauliflower and tomatoes and a trip that changed things up around here

Those of you around here for a while know that my husband is a classic case of picky eater – there are lots of things that he just won’t eat. That makes me sad because he is missing out on several delicious things, but what can I do? I can’t force him – I hated it when my stepmother forced us to eat her disgusting food and that was the reason why I started cooking. I consider it his loss – I eat all the good food myself and call it a day.

Last year he went to China on a business trip and that was one of the greatest gifts the Universe could have sent me: several days and many spring rolls afterwards he came home a changed man – at least in the food department. Yes, he’s still a bit picky and likes to stick to his usual favorites, but he’s been trying things he hated before and without me pushing. He ate this vegetarian curry – one of Martha’s great recipes – which blew me away because he doesn’t like chickpeas. Or cauliflower, for that matter. Because he was being such a good boy I replaced the cilantro with parsley – baby steps, people, baby steps. One or two more trips to China and I bet he’ll become a real foodie – maybe I should give his boss a call and send him a box of brownies. ;)

Chickpea curry with roasted cauliflower and tomatoes
slightly adapted from the wonderful Meatless: More Than 200 of the Very Best Vegetarian Recipes

½ head cauliflower (about 450g/1lb), trimmed and cut into florets
2 tablespoons + 2 teaspoons olive oil
2 cups cherry tomatoes
salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 large onion, finely diced
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon minced peeled fresh ginger
1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon curry powder
3 cups cooked chickpeas, drained and rinsed
2 ½ cups baby spinach*
1 tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro leaves – I used parsley

Preheat oven to 190°C/375°F. Toss cauliflower with 1 teaspoon olive oil and arrange in a single layer on one side of a rimmed baking sheet. Toss tomatoes with 1 teaspoon olive oil and arrange on other side of sheet. Season with salt and pepper. Roast until florets are browned in spots and tomatoes are soft, about 25 minutes.
In a medium saucepan, heat 2 tablespoons oil over medium-high. Cook onion, stirring occasionally, until golden brown, about 10 minutes. Add garlic, ginger, and curry powder and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 1 minute.
Add chickpeas, tomatoes, and 2 cups water; bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium, cover, and simmer 8 minutes.
Add cauliflower and cook until warmed through and chickpeas are tender, about 8 minutes. Stir in spinach and cilantro and season with salt and pepper. Serve with rice.

* I added about 80g frozen spinach instead of the fresh stuff because that is what I had at home; the curry turned green, which to some people might be unappetizing (for the record, it tasted great); right before serving, I added a handful of fresh baby watercress to the curry.

Serves 4 – I halved the recipe above, we both ate generously and there was still curry left, enough to serve one more person