‘Whatever actions a great man performs, common men follow. And whatever standards he sets by exemplary acts, all the world pursues.’

Bhagavad Gita 3.21

Sweet, crunchy, substantial and delicious. Full of goodness and colour, and a centre-piece for a vegan, Indian meal. Put this simple recipe on your ‘must try’ list for the coming week. It’s so easy, you’ll be setting the standard for many evening dinners to come. Let’s show you how.

The secret is in the papaya. After making your standard curry base of oil, onion, ginger, turmeric, garlic, spices and salt, the blended papaya acts as a naturally, thick and sweet sauce. You can use this principle as the base of many great recipes including sweet curries, soups and stews. We do. Let’s show you how it’s done.

You will need

1 x 9″ saucepan with lid
wooden spoon
good knives
chopping board
colander

Ingredients

For the curry base
sunflower oil/coconut oil/ghee
1 x medium sized onion – diced
1 x good knob of ginger – peeled and finely chopped
1 x good finger of fresh turmeric – scrubbed and finely chopped
4 x cloves garlic – crushed or smashed and then finely chopped
5 x teaspoons fresh (recently made/bought/opened) Indian curry powder (coriander, turmeric, cumin, chilli, mustard, black pepper)
salt

other
800g papaya – peeled, cut into chunks and blended to make 600ml papaya smoothie
1 x whole cauliflower – cut into florets and washed
2 x good sized potatoes – cubed and parboiled
1 x good grab of fresh kale – washed and roughly chopped

Method

For the curry base:

1. Fry the onions in a good covering of oil for 5 minutes.
2. Add the ginger to the onions and oil and fry for a further 5 minutes.
3. Add the turmeric to the oil, ginger and onions and fry for a further 5 minutes. Your onions should now be starting to become golden and more sweet.
4. Add the garlic and fry for 2/3 minutes only to release the flavour.

   

5. Add the Indian curry powder and a good pinch of salt. Heat the whole pan gently to release the flavours of the curry spices. You don’t want to burn anything. There should be no smoking and no sticking to the pan. After 2/3 minutes, switch off the heat, your curry base is complete.

   
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6. Add the blended papaya to the curry base and mix it all together to form a sweet and spicy paste.

   

7. Add the raw cauliflower, parboiled potato and washed kale to the top of the spicy paste. Don’t stir at this stage. Put the lid on the pan and warm it all through gently.

   

8. Carefully stir after 3 minutes. You can add a little water if it’s too dry. Then put the lid on to gently heat for a further 3 minutes.
9. At this point you can serve while the cauliflower is crunchy and the kale still packed with just-cooked goodness. However, if you’re like me. Leave this with the lid on for the whole morning and wait until all the flavours have infused to serve in the afternoon.
10. Enjoy.

    
    This super plate of curry has been served with cold date and beet chutney.

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    Some other related recipes and articles from The Mat Movement

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    Beyond Veganuary: 11 Top Tips for Sticking with a Plant-Based Diet

    Mung Dal

    Himalayan black-eyed bean stew

Try more of our vegan and vegetarian recipes on our yoga retreats.