Whilst the phrase English Cookery rustles up visions of Toad in the Hole and steamed puddings, fish and chips and roast dinners, food from other countries have been on the British menu for almost as long as these classics.
Italian inspired Spaghetti Bolognese, Mexican influenced Chilli Con Carne and meat stews with wine for the French touch are still served up on a regular basis in English households throughout the country. The most popular of these foreign influenced dishes must be the curry in all of its forms.
Like most kids in the 70s, I grew up on a diet of true British classics and a foreign mish-mash of experimental dishes but my favourite was always the curry. But back then, curry wasn’t really prepared in the same way as they are today. There was no such thing as lemongrass or curry pastes, ginger was strictly in powdered form and people thought that tamarind was a cute breed of monkey.
My mums curry got its flavour purely from generic curry powder (mild!), onions, and garlic (but no more than one clove, mind you), stewed for a long time in the oven with chicken or pork. My grandmothers version, which my mum tweaked (and I in turn tweaked both their recipes), had tinned tomatoes and cauliflower in it.
As supermarkets became more adventurous with what they stocked, my mum added coconut cream and mango chutney to her curries, giving them a special depth of flavour and sweetness. Saturday nights were always a special occasion because she would make one of her curries, beautifully accessorised with a delicious sweet and sour sauce and fried rice with pineapple. We would sit in front of the TV, our overburdened plates balancing on trays,
watching Bullseye and the Generation Game. Classy it wasn't, great fun it was. Good old 80s TV, when I was in love with Tom Selleck’s moustache and thought permed hair, fluro wristbands and frosted lipstick was THE Look. Fridays Nights was always Sara Lee, Twiglets and Challenge Anneka.
When I first left home, I didn’t fiddle with the recipe too much. After all, if it’s not broke, why fix it? And then it sort of fell out of de rigeur. My mum started to toy with vegetarianism, albeit skating non-commitally on the outskirts, and her new curry was a Linda McCartney one with chickpeas and sesame seeds.
I recently got to thinking. What ever happened to that 80s curry that I loved so much? Could I still replicate it, some 10 years since I last made it?
My new veggie recipe still uses the old standby flavourings of coconut and mango chutney, but I've given it a nutritious twist by adding Adzuki beans and mushrooms and I've sharpened up that sweet flavour by adding some Tamarind paste. For a herbaceous hit, how about a handful of fresh coriander? I also used a green masala paste for both the marinated Tofu and the curry itself. This adds a much-needed heat element. However, feel free to use your own favourite paste and make sure to serve with a side order of Magnum P.I.
Adzuki Bean and Red Pepper Masala with Marinated Tofu
serves 4-6
for the Masala
1 tbsp Rapeseed Oil
2 Shallots, peeled, cut longwise
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
2 Red Peppers, diced
1 tbsp Green Masala Paste
1 tsp Vegetable Stock Powder
14oz can (400ml) Coconut Milk
14oz (400g) can Adzuki Beans, drained
4oz (100g) Mushrooms, chopped
2 Tomatoes, cut into eighths
1 tbsp Dried Curry leaves (optional)
1 tbsp Mango Chutney
1 tsp Tamarind Paste (or juice of half a lime)
2 tbsp chopped Coriander
Seasoning
for the Tofu
1 16oz block Firm Tofu, drained
1 tbsp Green Masala Paste
1 tbsp vegan Yogurt
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tsp Vegetable Oil
Oil for frying
For the fried tofu
Firstly whisk together the salt, masala paste, teaspoon of vegetable oil and yogurt. Cut your tofu into cubes about 2cm x 2cm, place in the bowl with the curry paste and leave to marinate whilst your prep the curry, or leave overnight.
To cook, heat oil in a frying pan and fry marinated tofu until golden. Take care dropping the tofu into the oil as the yogurt will make it quite feisty. I use a slotted spoon to gently lower the cubes into the hot oil.
Drain on kitchen paper.
For the curry
To make the masala curry, heat the oil gently then add the shallots, cooking until golden. Then add the masala paste, curry leaves (if using) garlic and red pepper cook for a couple of minutes, until fragrant.
Now add the chopped tomatoes, mushrooms and adzuki beans, stir into the mixture, then add the coconut milk, and 300ml of water, along with the stock stock powder.
Gently turn down to a simmer for about 15 minutes.
Now stir in the tamarind paste and mango chutney, leave to simmer for 5 more minutes before tasting for seasoning.
Serve sprinkled with the fresh coriander.
Try my other spicy vegan dishes: