My grandmother, Narmada Lakhani, passed away earlier this year aged 92. Well, we think she was 92, but no one recorded her birth date, so we can only estimate. What we do know about her, though, is that she had a very cheeky laugh, and that she loved lager tops, penny slot machines and tucking £10 notes down her bra, ready to hand out to an unsuspecting grandchild as a gift. She never asked if I was happy, only if I’d eaten well, which I assume to her were the same thing. At this time of year, eating well for her meant tucking into sweetcorn, so, in her memory, I’m going to do the same.
Kidney bean and sweetcorn curry
Prep 10 min
Cook 40 min
Serves 4
3 tbsp rapeseed oil
25 fresh curry leaves (ie, from about 2 sprigs)
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 brown onion, peeled and chopped
2cm x 2cm piece fresh ginger, peeled and finely grated
4 garlic cloves, peeled and minced
1-2 green finger chillies, or 1 tsp kashmiri chilli powder
400g tin finely chopped tomatoes, or passata
1½ tsp garam masala
2 400g tins kidney beans in water, drained and rinsed
1¾ tsp fine sea salt
150g frozen sweetcorn, defrosted
Chapatis and greek yoghurt, to serve
Heat the oil in a large, deep-sided frying pan and test it’s up to temperature by dipping in a wooden spoon: if bubbles form around the spoon immediately, the oil is ready. Drop in the curry leaves and cumin seeds, leave them to splutter for a minute, then add the onion. Cook, stirring frequently, for about 10 minutes, until the onion is glossy and soft enough to cut with a wooden spoon; don’t skimp on the time here.
Add the ginger, garlic and chilli to the softened onions and cook, stirring, for a couple of minutes. Tip in the tomatoes and leave to cook for eight or so minutes, until the mix splits and the tomatoes start to release oil back into the pan.
Add the garam masala, stir for a minute, then add the kidney beans, salt, 250ml cold water and the sweetcorn, and bring to a boil. Turn down the heat to a simmer and leave to cook for a further 10 minutes.
Serve with chapatis and thick Greek yoghurt.
