Root Vegetable Curry

Here's a - if I may say so myself - delicious practical example of figuring things out for myself and experimenting in the kitchen. I'd spotted a recipe for a Thai-style curry starring root vegetables in a magazine. However, I didn't much fancy the recipes selection of veggies, cooking methods or some of the flavours. Normally, that's where my interest in the recipe would have ended. With the increased confidence offered by vegetarian cooking (remember, you have to work VERY hard to poison anyone with veggie cooking), I picked the few bits I liked and made up the rest. The outcome, although definitely not the prettiest of dishes I've ever whipped up, proved the wisdom of an open-minded approach.

Ingredients (enough for a meal for two)

For the curry paste

• 1 small onion
• 2 cloves of garlic
• 1 - 2 red chillies (to taste)
• 2- 3 tbs of soy sauce (to taste)
• 1 tbs of toasted sesame oil
• 2 sticks of lemongrass (or 3 tsp of lemongrass paste)
• A thumb-size piece of fresh ginger, peeled and chopped
• A small bunch of fresh coriander, stalks included

For the curry

• 1 large or 2 small sweet potatoes
• 1 small butternut squash
• 1 tin (400ml) coconut milk
• A bunch of fresh coriander, roughly chopped
• Salt, black pepper (to taste)

Start by making your curry paste. Put all the ingredients into a food processor and blend until you have a smooth paste. It might look a bit disgusting - but the flavour will be anything but!

Set the paste aside. Peel your veggies and cut into bite-size chunks. Wash and set aside.

Heat a few tablespoons of vegetable oil in a large pan. Once the oil is hot, spoon in the curry paste. Cook on moderate heat for approximate five minutes, stirring frequently and making sure the paste doesn't stick to the bottom.

Tip your peeled and chopped vegetables into the pan. Cook for a few minutes whilst stirring, until the vegetables and paste are mixed fully. Pour in a tin of coconut milk and bring to the boil. Simmer on low heat until the vegetables are cooked through - this will take approximately 20 minutes. Just before the curry is ready, stir in half of your fresh coriander. Season to taste, and serve with the remaining coriander sprinkled on top with boiled basmati rice.