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Chard and New Potato Curry

This hearty curry is fantastic in late summer or early autumn. If you want to make it ahead of time and refrigerate or freeze it, leave out the yogurt and add it at the last minute, just before serving.
20 mins
serves 4

Method

  1. Separate the chard leaves from the stalks. Cut the stalks into 2–3 cm pieces and roughly chop the leaves.
  2. Heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium heat, add the onion, and fry until just golden. Meanwhile, pound the garlic, chili, and ginger together with a pinch of salt to form a paste. Add this to the onion and cook, stirring, for a couple of minutes. Tip in the rest of the spices and stir for a minute or two.
  3. Add the potatoes and chopped chard stalks, frying and stirring frequently for 5 minutes, so they are well coated with the spice mixture. Pour in about 400 ml of water—enough to just cover the vegetables. Bring to a simmer, cover, and cook for 10–12 minutes, until the potatoes are just tender. Add the chard leaves, stir, and cook until just wilted.
  4. In a bowl, whisk together the yogurt, tomato purée, and some of the hot liquid from the curry. Remove the curry from the heat, stir in the yogurt mixture, return to the heat, and warm through very gently (if it gets too hot, the yogurt will curdle). Stir in most of the coriander.
  5. Taste and add salt and pepper if needed. Scatter over the toasted nuts and remaining coriander, then serve with rice and naan or chapattis.

For variations, use 600–700 g of spinach in place of the chard. Remove any tough stalks and add the leaves to the curry once the potatoes are done. Cook for a minute or two before adding the yogurt mixture. For a winter kale and potato curry, use maincrop potatoes, peeled and cut into bite-sized chunks, instead of new potatoes, and replace the chard with kale. Discard the kale stalks, roughly shred the leaves, and add them when the potatoes are nearly done. Simmer for 2–3 minutes or until tender.

Ingredients

  • About 500g Swiss chard
  • 2 tablespoons sunflower oil
  • 1 onion, halved and finely sliced
  • 3 garlic cloves, peeled
  • 1 green chilli, deseeded and finely chopped
  • 3cm piece of ginger, peeled and chopped
  • 1 teaspoon garam masala
  • ½ teaspoon mustard seeds
  • ½ teaspoon ground cumin
  • ¼ teaspoon ground turmeric
  • 3 cardamom pods, bashed
  • 350g new potatoes, quartered
  • 250g plain (full-fat) yoghurt or vegan alternative
  • 1½ tablespoons tomato purée
  • A small bunch of coriander, roughly chopped
  • A small handful of almonds, cashews or pistachios, toasted and chopped
  • Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
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