Gracious Vegan Massaman Curry
By the Gracious Vegan
After pinning down Gracious Vegan Green or Red Curry, I was still having trouble making a good Massaman curry, the scrumptious dish where vegetables swim in a sweet peanut sauce. We have a food cart in town that makes fabulous Massaman curry, so I had a very high standard to reach. Finally I succeeded. But then I had the great idea to eliminate the saturated fat of the coconut milk. Using some raw cashews, I succeeded. If you didn't tell someone about the substitution, they would not likely notice. From 462 calories and 14 grams of saturated fat to 365 calories and 2 grams of saturated fat per serving....that's 12 grams difference in saturated fat per serving--as much as in a Burger King Whopper.
Makes 4 servings
Cashew milk mixture: Soak cashews in cold water at least 2 hours, or pour boiling water over them, cover, and let them soak 20 minutes. (You can skip this step if you have a high-speed blender.)
1/3 cup raw cashews
Drain and rinse the cashews (if you soaked them) and combine with the following ingredients in the blender. Blend until the cashews are dissolved. Set aside.
3 cups water
1 Tablespoon of Thai thin soy sauce (or regular tamari or soy sauce)
1-2 Tablespoons peanut butter
1/2 Tablespoon brown sugar or 2 pitted dates
1/2” piece of fresh ginger, peeled and grated
Vegetables: In a Dutch oven or other large pan, water-saute the following ingredients in 1/4 cup water, until the vegetables start to get tender, about 5 minutes. (What is water-sauté?)
1 red bell pepper, seeds removed and sliced into 1/2 inch wide strips
1/2 white, yellow, or red onion, thinly sliced
1 carrot, thinly sliced
Add the curry paste into the vegetables and stir with a wooden spoon or silicone spatula on low for 3-5 minutes so that the curry paste cooks a bit. Add a little water if it begins to burn.
1/4 cup Massaman curry paste (I like Maesri brand)
Stir in the following ingredients, bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 8 to 10 minutes, uncovered, until vegetables are tender but still have a little bit of firmness to them. Add a little more water if the sauce is too thick; cook a bit longer if the sauce is too thin.
The cashew milk mixture
(optional) 8 ounces baked or fried tofu sliced into 1/4 inch thin strips
1 medium-large potato (any kind), peeled and cut into small cubes
2 Tablespoons chopped roasted peanuts
Sriracha sauce to taste
Remove from heat, taste, and season with more soy sauce if desired and let stand for 5 minutes. Serve with hot rice and garnish with cilantro.
Boiled brown or white jasmine rice
Chopped fresh cilantro
Timing: 25-30 minutes
Nutrition information per serving (including tofu, and with 1/2 cup rice per serving):
365 calories; 16g fat; 2g sat. fat; 42g carbs; 907mg sodium; 6g fiber; 15g protein
Gluten-free