First Homemade Indian Curry = Mastered!

Ashwin and I take turns cooking dinner 1) to share the responsibility and 2) because we both love the fun art of cooking. Last night was my turn and Ashwin challenged me to make an Indian dish. I have (once) made an Indian chaat, or snack, called Bhel Puri, which was mostly just putting a bunch of yummy ingredients together in a semi-dry mix. It's my favorite chaat, actually. It turned out pretty well and I actually made myself sick from eating almost the entire bowl for dinner.

Bhel Puri that I made in February, along with a bottle of Domaine Carneros Chardonnay

Last night I ventured into my first curry with a recipe for Olan, which is a pumpkin curry from the southern Indian state of Kerala. I found the recipe in a cookbook that was given to me as an engagement present by a family friend. The book is huge and full of delicious, incredible recipes. Being that it is fall now, I felt the urge to create a warm, cozy curry and pumpkin was the winner. I, of course, was going to pursue this dish from scratch with bare, raw pumpkins and all.

Carving, gutting, and peeling the pumpkins was the hardest task of all in this process. I was worried I would cut my hand when I was trying to split the pumpkin in half in order to gut it. After a little recon online, I came across a source that helped me out in this time of need and I was able to split the pumpkins open, revealing their fleshy, raw smell and soft, silky flesh. 

One pie pumpkin and one white pumpkin, conquered! 

After the fresh pumpkins were quelled into obedience, I had to peel the suckers. The white pumpkin was fairly easy and its skin came off when I used the potato peeler. I did manage, however, to also peel a bit off of my left thumb, breaking my prep rhythm and putting me in First Aid mode. My newly bandaged thumb and I moved onto the pie pumpkin, which was not able to be dominated by the potato peeler. Thankfully, my gallant husband arrived home from work and was able to help me chop the skin bits off of the pumpkin chunks. In hindsight, I would have baked the pumpkins ahead of time because they were going to be mashed into submission anyway.

While the pumpkins hit the stove to soften, I prepped the remainder of the recipe which was fairly easy. I cut a green chili, which I used instead of the three that were required by the recipe. I decided to go a bit light on the spice side of the recipe, apprehensive of the assault on my tongue that it may cause. Once my coconut oil was hot and the mustard seeds jumping, I threw in the chili and curry leaves, which filled our home with a vibrant, distinctive smell that transported me back to my in-law's home in Bangalore. I then mixed in the now-mashed pumpkin to finish cooking and boy, what an aroma that concoction had. The color of the cooking curry was a vivacious yellow, speckled with the green of the chili and curry leaves.

The Olan is almost complete - we can't wait to devour it!

We decided to serve the luscious curry with chapatis, in lieu of the recommended basmati rice, just in case the dish was too heavy. Nothing is worse than being over stuffed with rice when you have a delightful curry you should be focusing your fork (or fingers) on.

The finished Olan - oh, what a dish!

The Olan was phenomenal, full of flavor, and perfect for a semi-chilly fall evening. The skinned finger and pain in the rear pumpkin domination was completely worth it. The curry tasted velvety, creamy, and a bit zesty. The fresh coconut that was added after it was cooked added a depth of flavor that transported me to a tropical locale. We cleaned every last nibble from the skillet and our plates. Poor Ashwin didn't even have any to take to work with him today...but it was a fantastic evening meal. I plan on preparing this dish to go along with our Thanksgiving dinner this year.

Suggested wine pairing: I recommend a sparkling wine or a dry white wine, like a Sauvignon Blanc. Since it's also a tad sweet, a sweeter, dry white, like a Reisling, would work as well. 

Cheers and happy eating!