Curried Sausages

H has been travelling quite a bit for work and is in need of some comfort food so I decided to make curried snags for dinner tonight. I smashed together a few different recipes I found online and came up with this. Next time I think I'll add in some sultanas to give it a sweet element.

1 kg beef sausages
2 tablespoons white vinegar
2 Tbsp oil
1 large brown onions, cut into wedges
150g celery, chopped
2 Tbsp madras curry powder
2 Tbsp plain flour
200g sweet potato, chopped
150g pumpkin, chopped
450g potato, chopped
200g carrot, chopped
3 cups beef stock
1 cup frozen pas & corn
2 tsp cornflour (optional)

water (optional)

Preheat oven to 180C
Prick sausages and place in saucepan with enough cold water to cover, add vinegar.
Bring to boil and simmer gently for 10 minutes. Drain, cool and remove skins from the sausages.
Chop sausages into 5cm pieces and brown in a frypan. Set aside
Heat oil in a deep oven proof saucepan and sauté onions until soft. Add celery and sauté for 2 minutes.
Add sausages and sprinkle curry powder and flour over the surface and stir to combine.
Add sweet potato, potato, pumpkin and carrot and stir to combine.
Add stock and bring to the boil while stirring.
Cover and bake for 30mins.

If you need to thicken the sauce mix some cornflour and water together and slowly add to curried sausages and stir.
Serve with mashed potato or with white rice.

Serves 6

Red Chicken Curry

Last night I was craving a curry so I raided the fridge, freezer and pantry and found enough elements to whip up a delicious red chicken curry. I have been using coconut flavoured coconut milk lately to save on calories but of course you could substitute coconut milk.



Serves 2

1 Tbsp coconut oil
2-3 Tbsp Thai red curry paste
25g ginger, grated
2 chicken thighs (approx 300g), thinly sliced
250g cauliflower, broken into florets
2 carrots, peeled and thickly sliced
1 stalk lemongrass, halved and bruised
375ml light & creamy coconut flavoured coconut milk
1 Tbps brown sugar (or palm sugar)
1 cup hot chicken stock
1/3 red capsicum, thickly sliced
1/3 green capsicum, thickly sliced
1/3 yellow capsicum, thickly sliced
10 cherry tomatoes
2 dried kaffir lime leaves, sliced and soaked in warm water, drained
1 long red chilli, thinly sliced
100g rice vermicelli noodles, soaked in warm water and drained
1 Tbsp fish sauce
1 Tbsp lime juice
50g bean shoots, trimmed

Heat oil in wok on medium high heat. Add curry paste and ginger and cook, stirring over medium heat, for about 1 minute, or until fragrant.

Add chicken and cook, stirring over high heat for about 5 minutes.

Add cauliflower, carrots, lemongrass, evaporated milk, stock and sugar. Bring to boil. Simmer, uncovered, for about 5 minutes.

Add capsicum, tomatoes, kaffir lime leaves and half of the chilli. Simmer for a further 5 minutes.

Add noodles, fish sauce and lime juice and mix well. Simmer for 2 minutes or until heated through.

Garnish with bean shoots and the remaining chilli. Serve.

Eggplant, pumpkin & zucchini curry

Preparation Time
10 - 15 minutes

Cooking Time
25 minutes

2 tsp vegetable oil
1 medium brown onion, cut into wedges
3 tsp Madras Indian curry paste (medium hot)
450g (about 4 large) baby eggplant, halved, cut into thick chunks
450g medium zucchini, halved, cut into thick chunks
500g Jap pumpkin, deseeded, peeled, cut into chunks
1 x 140ml can coconut milk {Ayam brand)
250mls (1 cup) vegetable stock
3 tsp brown sugar
1/4 cup chopped fresh coriander
Salt & ground black pepper, to taste
300g (1 1/2 cups) Basmati rice

Heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes or until slightly golden. Add the curry paste and cook for a further 2 minutes.

Add the eggplant, zucchini and pumpkin and toss until well coated in the paste. Add the coconut milk and stock, stir to combine and bring to the boil over high heat.

Reduce heat to low and simmer, covered, for 10 minutes. Remove the lid and simmer for a further 5 minutes or until the sauce has thickened slightly and the vegetables are just cooked. Stir in the brown sugar and coriander and season with salt and pepper.

Meanwhile, cook the rice in large saucepan of salted boiling water, according to packet directions, until just tender. Drain.

Serve the vegetable curry with the rice

Notes
Leftovers: use curry paste in vegetable or meat curries. Use stock in soups or casseroles. Use rice to make pilaf. Use coriander in pesto.

For the kids: mild vegie curry - reduce the curry paste to 1 tsp.

Red Duck Curry

1 400ml can lite coconut cream
1/2 Chinese barbecue duck, skin and bones removed, coarsely chopped
1 tbs fish sauce
1 tbs brown sugar
1 565g can lychees, drained
14 cherry tomatoes
1/4 cup firmly packed fresh Thai basil leaves
3 fresh Kaffir lime leaves, deveined, roughly torn
1 fresh red chilli, sliced lengthways
1 fresh green chilli, sliced lengthways
Steamed jasmine rice, to serve

Curry paste
5 dried red chillies, soaked in warm water, drained
1/4 red onion, finely chopped
3 tsp finely chopped fresh lemon grass
1 tsp finely chopped fresh galangal
4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 tsp finely chopped fresh coriander roots
1/2 tsp finely grated Kaffir lime rind
10 whole black peppercorns
3 tsp coriander seeds
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp rock salt
1 tsp shrimp paste

To make curry paste, place chillies, onion, lemon grass and galangal in a mortar and pestle, and pound until crushed. Add garlic, coriander roots and lime rind, and pound until crushed. Add peppercorns, coriander seeds, cumin seeds, salt and shrimp paste, and pound until smooth. (Alternatively, place in a small food processor and process until smooth.)

Place 125ml (1/2 cup) of the coconut cream in a medium wok or medium frying pan over a medium-high heat and bring to the boil. Add 2 tbs of the curry paste and cook, stirring, for 2 minutes or until fragrant.

Add the remaining coconut cream, duck, fish sauce and sugar. Reduce heat to medium and simmer, uncovered, stirring occasionally, for 8-10 minutes or until sauce thickens. Add the lychees, tomatoes, Thai basil, Kaffir lime leaves and red and green chillies, and cook, stirring until heated through. Divide among serving bowls and serve with the rice.

Note: You will need to buy 1/2 a Chinese barbecue duck for the recipe, available from most Chinese barbecue food stores. If unavailable, substitute with 200g duck breasts pan-fried over medium heat for 4 minutes each side. Galangal and Thai basil are available from most supermarkets and Asian grocery stores. Kaffir limes are available from selected greengrocers (substitute with a regular lime if unavailable). You can replace the curry paste with 2 tbs bought red curry paste.

Preparation Time - 20 minutes
Cooking Time - 15 minutes
Serves 2

Special-K 18Apr10
I made this tonight with 1/2 BBQ duck, store bought red curry paste and pineapple instead of lychees - wow! We are already planning on having it again.

Special-K 24Sep11
I made this again for dinner tonight with rambutans stuffed with pineapple which I found in Spicemart at the Aspley Hypermarket