Spicy Cashews

Rajbhog Foods makes Indian sweets and snacks on the East Coast.  When I lived in New York, a couple of times a year I would head to Jackson Heights for a big grocery shopping trip to buy Indian vegetables and lentils and spices.  There were smaller Indian grocery stores nearer to my apartment, but it was always worth the trek to be surrounded by south Asians and the languages and the smells.  And there was always a good lunch!  I would often bring back sweets, like the cashew katli or the special burfi, and always, always the spicy cashews!  I am not sure what goes into them, but they are the perfect snack, a little spicy, a little salty, so good!

Other versions do not come close to those Rajbhog spicy cashews.  Sometimes you will see spicy nuts that look like Flaming Hot Cheetos, covered in atomic red powder and just wrong. This is a really good approximation, not too spicy, just a little sour, and just a little of that black salt sulfur.  You can buy citric acid in most big grocery stories in the spice aisle. It's also an essential ingredient for preserving tomatoes.  Black salt is harder to find, and I've only bought it in Indian grocery stores.  It goes into all kinds of foods, especially chaats!  And some people sprinkle it on fruits.  Once you try these spicy nuts, you might find a use for the whole bag of black salt...

Cashews are expensive.  You can use raw peanuts or any nut you like, really.  You can adjust the spice blend to your taste.  If this isn't spicy enough for you, lower the amount of salt.  Too spicy!? Substitute paprika for half of the chili powder.  Maybe you want to throw in some black pepper, or cumin, or smoked paprika! 

Spicy Nuts

Takes 15 minutes

Makes enough for a party

1 teaspoon black salt

1 teaspoon chili powder

1/4 teaspoon citric acid

2 cups raw cashews
oil
 

Preheat oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit.

Grind the black salt, chili powder and citric acid in a mortar so that it is a very fine powder.

Coat the cashews in oil, grape seed oil or something else that doesn't have a strong taste. Spread out on baking sheet in a single layer, toast for 5 minutes, mix them around, bake for 2 minutes more, mix them around and bake for a further 2 minutes.  You want them to be evenly browned.

Turn the cashews out onto paper towels.  Coat with half of the spicy powder and toss around so the nuts are evenly coated.  Let cool completely.

Keep the rest of the spice mix until it's time to make spicy nuts again.  The cashews will keep for a few weeks in an air tight container.  But you will eat them before you start to wonder if they are going bad.

Koo koo for Kuku Paka

I've been reading The Settler's Cookbook: A Memoir of Love, Migration and Food by Yasmin Alibhai-Brown. Yasmin was born in Kampala, Uganda, and her parents' families were originally from South Asia. She writes about coming of age in the 1960s, the era of decolonization and youthful rebellion. It's a great book, a peek into the life of the south Asian settlers who lived in East Africa for generations before they were harassed into fleeing Kenya and Uganda. Yasmin tries to be fair to the settlers, who attempted to find a place between the exploitative British and the resentful Africans, but ultimately made allies with neither group. It's a great first-person story about how colonialism divides people who should be able to find common ground.

She remembers her mother as an amazing cook who kept her family together in tough financial times.  Yasmin shares some of her mother's recipes, but also some of her own, made in Britain but recalling her former home. She writes so evocatively, I've been excited to try one of her recipes since I first started reading the book.

Here's my vegan version of Kuku Paka, a coconut milk and chicken stew, made with what I had in the fridge. Yasmine writes "Sometimes Mum bought a kuku paka and on those nights I went to bed with my nightdress splashed with pale yellow sauce and smelling of coconut, dreaming of the next time, possibly!"

I can understand why young Yasmin would dream of the next time, kuku paka is spicy, creamy, tangy, tasty delicious! I think this would be great with a lot of different vegetables: Squash, broccoli, peppers, zucchini, mushrooms.  See where it takes you!

Disclaimer: as this recipe is written it is not hot!  It is very flavorful and spicy in the full of spices sense.  If you want it hot, throw a couple more chiles in!

Kuku Paka

Makes 4 servings

Takes 2 hours

1 small bunch cilantro, chopped

1 giant garlic pod, minced fine

1 inch piece ginger, peeled and minced fine

juice of 1/2 lime

1 sweet potato, peeled and cubed

1 carrot, cubed

1 block of tofu, cubed (all should be the same size)

3 potatoes

1 large onion, diced

1/2 cup raw cashews

1 stick of cinnamon

2 cloves

1 cardamom pod

1 dried red chili (or fresh)

1 tsp. tumeric

1 14 oz. or 400 ml can tomatoes

1 14 oz. or 400 ml can coconut milk

In a bowl, mix together half of chopped cilantro, all of garlic, ginger and lime juice.  Add about a tablespoon of oil and toss the sweet potatoes, carrots and tofu with the marinade. Let soak together while the oven heats up.

Preheat oven to 425 degrees fahrenheit.

On a baking sheet, spread the sweet potatoes, carrots and tofu out evenly. Bake at 425 for 15 minutes. Lower the oven to 325, turn the veggies/tofu over and bake for 10 more minutes.  When they are finished, put them on paper towels to drain the oil.  Save the marinade, and keep the heat on!

Parboil potatoes.  Cut them into even-sized quarters and put them in a pot with salted cold water.  Bring to a boil and boil for 6 minutes.  Drain and rinse with cold water.  Cut them into cubes that are about the same size as the roasted veggies/tofu.  Set aside.

In an oven proof pot, saute onions on medium high heat until they are nice and browned (stir occasionally so they have time to brown but do not burn).  Turn heat down to medium, add cashews and spices and saute for about 10 minutes, until it is really sizzling.  Add tomatoes and cook for a further 10 minutes, until the tomatoes are completely broken down and it is a thick paste.  Add coconut milk, turn down heat to a low simmer and let everything come together. Add salt to taste and Indian red chili powder or cayenne if you want it spicier.  Turn off heat, and stir in the roasted vegetables/tofu and parboiled potatoes.  Top with remaining marinade. 

Put into hot oven, and cook for 15 minutes.  Turn oven to broil and brown the top for 5 minutes.

 

Sprinkle the remaining cilantro over it.  We ate this intense curry with simple steamed spinach and rice.  And hot sauce!  I'll bet it would be good with Aloo parathas too!

Happy Diwali Pistachio Ice 'Cream'

This year for Diwali, we had a few friends over for masala dosas and sambhar.  Friends brought a salad and chutney and some tapioca payasam!  We had an amazing gluten-free, vegan meal to accommodate everyone's issues, and no one thought for a second that anything was missing.  My contribution to the desserts, because sweets are the most important part of any Diwali celebration, was a Pistachio Ice 'Cream' adapted from David Lebovitz's recipe.  With real nuts and a can of coconut milk it is so rich!

Enjoy, and Happy Diwali everyone!

Pistachio Ice 'Cream'

adapted from David Lebovitz

Makes 6 servings

Takes 1 hour active time (plus cooling and ice cream churning time)

1 14 oz. can coconut milk (make sure it's good and doesn't have any additives)

5 1/2 tsp. corn starch

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup raw pistachios (shelled)

1/2 cup raw cashews

4 cardamom pods, shelled and crushed to a powder

Mix 1/4 cup of coconut milk with the corn starch to make a slurry, taking care to whisk out the lumps.

Heat rest of coconut milk and 1/4 cup of sugar on medium high heat.  Just as it begins bubbling, turn down the heat to simmer, add the slurry, and mix constantly for 3 minutes.  It will thicken right away.  Turn off the heat, let cool, stirring occasionally to prevent a thick skin from forming.  When it's cool enough, put it in the refrigerator.

Bring the raw pistachios, cashews and 1/2 cup of water to a boil.  Remove from heat, and when cool enough, begin removing the skins from the pistachios.  This is tiresome.  You should be able to squeeze the pistachios and the skins should come off neatly, but some times you need to scrub with your finger tips a little for the thin skins.  It's helpful to keep another bowl of water handy to wash your hands. Return the skinned pistachios to the cashews.

When you have skinned all your pistachios, place the pistachios, cashews, powdered cardamom, and remaining 1/4 cup sugar in the bowl of a food processor.  Process, adding the reserved nut-boiling water as necessary to make a smooth paste.  Add this paste to the chilling coconut milk and stir until well-combined.  Chill until you are ready to make your ice cream, or overnight.

Make ice cream according to your maker's directions.  Freeze the ice cream after churning for 30 minutes or so for really nice consistency.

Enjoy!