Nutrition Facts

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A basic recipe for an Indian curry sauce.

Servings

2 tbsp peanut oil
1 tbsp margarine
1 large onion , chopped
1 tbsp fresh ginger root , minced
2 tbsp minced garlic
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp black pepper
2 tbsp ground coriander
2 tbsp ground cumin
0.25 tsp ground turmeric
1 tsp ground cayenne (red pepper)
2 medium tomatoes
2 serrano chili peppers , seeded
0.5 cup fresh cilantro
0.5 cup lowfat plain yogurt , whisked until smooth
3 cup water

1 Heat oil and margarine in a small skillet or wok over medium high heat. Add onion and saute until very brown, 10 to 15 minutes. (Note: This is an important step; if onion is not cooked well, sauce will taste funny.)
2 Add ginger and garlic to onion and saute for an additional 2 minutes. Process onion/ginger/garlic mixture in food processor until smooth. Do not rinse food processor.
3 Place onion mixture in a large saucepan. Stir in the cinnamon, black pepper, coriander, cumin, turmeric and cayenne pepper and cook over low heat until mixture is thick and has the consistency of a paste.
4 Puree tomatoes, chile peppers and cilantro in food processor until smooth. Add to onion mixture and stir well over low heat, cooking off moisture from tomatoes and cilantro.
5 Add yogurt a little bit at a time, stirring constantly to avoid curdling.
6 Blend the whole mixture in food processor to puree it (for a very smooth sauce). Return to saucepan, add water and increase heat to high; bring sauce to a rolling boil. Cover saucepan and boil for 3 to 5 minutes. Reduce heat and simmer until desired consistency is reached.

To serve with meat, cook the meat first separately, then simmer for 5 to 10 minutes in the sauce before serving over rice or with bread. To serve with vegetables, steam raw veggies first 4 to 5 minutes, then simmer for 5 to 10 minutes in the sauce before serving.