Duang's inspired carrot and chickpea Makhani

Story from Duang Tengtrirat, Chewton.

It was already mid afternoon when Raj wanted to stop for lunch. Raj is a Tamil refugee from Sri Lanka and we hired him to replace and repave the bricks under our enormous gum trees. Raj had agreed that while he worked at our house he would allow me to provide meals. After finishing the paving Raj continued to work in the garden and then the sheds. We enjoyed each other’s company and I loved it best when he was in my kitchen. 

One day for lunch I served a Moroccan dish made with chickpea and haloumi, one of my favourites. After Raj finished his lunch he told me about how his mother, still back in Sri Lanka, cooked chickpeas. He said that the ingredients were exactly the same as my Moroccan version but the spices were different and therefore became a different kind of a dish.  

A few days later Raj brought his mother’s version of chickpea ‘curry’ to share. It was delicious and nurturing. I must admit that meal times became the highlight of my days when we talked about food and the different ways we prepared similar ingredients. For the past three years whenever I wanted to cook chickpeas, I had options, and deciding which way to prepare them brought back memories of friends and families.

Fast forward to the recent Bendigo Writers Festival. In the midst of this pandemic and strict restrictions, I was fortunate to attend a small gathering where Alice Zaslavsky launched her new cookbook, “In Praise of Veg”. Amongst the many wonderful recipes in this book is one called, Gajah Makhani-Indian-style butter carrots. The list of spices in this recipe is very similar to those Raj told me about how his mother cooked chickpeas. An ah ha moment! Why not combine carrots and chickpeas in this dish to provide both protein from the chickpeas and vitamins from carrots in one dish. I cooked this slowly and the result was better than expected. The carrots became caramelised while the chickpeas had enough time to soak up the flavours of the spices.

This is an example of fusion cooking when it’s a win/win for all, especially for those who eat it. Here is my fusion recipe, thanks to Raj and Alice Zaslavsky.

Carrot and Chickpea Makhani

Serves 8 - 12

 INGREDIENTS

1 kg carrots, washed and cut to big 3-4 cm chunks

2 cups cooked and drained chickpeas

¼ cup cooking oil (or half butter, half oil)

A handful of garlic cloves, peeled, smashed and coarsely chopped

About 3cm long piece of ginger, chopped

1 tbsp mustard seeds

1 tbsp garam masala

1 tbsp turmeric

1 tsp ground cardamom

1 tsp chilli powder

A good handful curry leaves

1 bunch coriander, thoroughly washed and chopped from top to roots 

500g stewed tomatoes or passata or chopped tomatoes

250 ml coconut cream

1 cup cashews (optional)

INSTRUCTIONS

Using a large heavy bottom pot, heat oil ( or butter and oil), add all spices and aromatics and stir over low heat until fragrant. Add curry leaves, chopped coriander, carrots, and chickpeas in that order and mix well. Add coconut cream, tomatoes and cashews. Add more water to cover the carrots and chickpeas. Bring to a boil.

After boiling, turn down the heat to simmer. Cover the pot and stir regularly to avoid sticking and scorching. Taste and add salt if desired. The quantity of carrots should be sweet enough but if not, add a little sugar.

Simmer until carrots are fully cooked, soft or until they reach your preferred texture. Serve this dish over rice or with Nan. It’s a good hearty dish for winter and so easy to prepare.

(Optional: add equal amount of plain yogurt as coconut cream for added moisture and liquid, if desired. OR, substitute coconut cream with yogurt in full if preferred.)

Duang runs AMAZING plant based cooking classes in Chewton and also serves food at Castlemaine’s weekly market. This Story has been reprinted from the Chewton Chat August 2021. Find out more here: https://www.duangscooking.com.au/