Lentil, Potato and Pumpkin Curry

There was a day not too long ago where I got this idea in my head to make a curry as a side dish for a baked chicken night. I thought this was a win-win situation, because the kids are not big curry fans, but they like chicken.  I could be totally happy eating just curry, and since the chicken was there, I didn’t have to worry about the kids not having enough to eat.

The recipe I was really having a hankering for was Lentil & Potato Stew, but right from the get-go, I was having trouble with the ingredients.  Meaning, I didn’t have many of them on hand.  Thankfully, though, I think I’ve become quite adept at whipping together a curry from scratch, so using the stew recipe as a guideline I came up with a completely new dish that turned out extremely delicious.  The only thing it needed was a dollop of chutney- which I didn’t have.  When I re-heated this stew later in the week for lunches, I added a handful of raisins to my curry, and that was the perfect touch, minus the chutney.  It just screamed for a hit of sweet with the heat and the tang of the yogurt.  This curry really hit the spot earlier this week when I was suffering with a viral infection and couldn’t taste anything.  I could actually taste a bit of the spice of the curry- that was a great, welcome thing.

My first trouble with the original recipe was definitely unexpected.  I went to the pantry to retrieve the lentils to discover that I was actually out of lentils!  Even Andy was surprised that my lentil supply had been depleted without being replaced.  What I did have though were the tiny green French lentils, and red lentils.  I decided to go with the red lentils, and save the French lentils for a bowl of soup.  The issue with red lentils, though, is that when they cook up, they tend to completely break down, which I was okay with, but it would affect the final texture of the stew.

For the potato part of the stew, I decided to use one large sweet potato and a handful of white potatoes.  In the future, I would totally consider just using the sweets for this variation- those were the tastiest bites!  As I went further down the list, I saw that I also didn’t have tomatoes called for- not even canned ones, and then I was also out of the garam masala.

What on earth was I making this dish for?

Instead of tomatoes, I went to the freezer and pulled out two cups of pumpkin puree, and since I was out of the garam masala (though I could have made my own), I opted to use Penzey’s Sweet Curry powder instead for a totally different flavor.  I have to say, while my changes to the stew made this a completely different stew, boy, did it turn out fantastic.  The only thing I thought it could have used was some greens.  I really thought a few handfuls of spinach tossed in would have added an earthy component to the stew.  But other than that, it was spectacular, and one that I would definitely make again.

Lentil, Potato and Pumpkin Curry

1. In a medium saucepan, combine the lentils, water, salt (if desired0 and bay leaf. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to med-low, and simmer the lentils until they are just soft, about 15 minutes.Do not drain the lentils! Discard the bay leaf, then set the lentils aside.
2. In a large dutch oven or saucepan with a nonstick surface, heat the butter or margarine and oil briefly, and add the potatoes. Sprinkle them with the turmeric, cayenne, salt (if desired), and pepper. Cook the potatoes, tossing them, over medium heat, for about five minutes.
3. Add the pumpkin puree, the reserved lentils and their cooking liquid, the sweet curry powder and the honey to the potatoes.
4. Cook the stew over medium-low heat for about 20 minutes, stirring the mixture from time to time and adding water if the stew seems to be too dry.
5. Serve the stew over hot cooked rice with a nice dollop of plain yogurt.  For an added touch, add a dollop of chutney or a handful of raisins.