Makeover: Pakistani Ground Lamb and Kidney Curry...

...becomes Brussels Sprouts and Potato Curry!

Let me just say that this recipe is delicious, absolutely the best one so far!

The original recipe (hailing from Pakistan) was seeping with calories (561 per serving!), fat (43.6 per serving!), saturated fat (14.6 g per serving!), cholesterol (219 mg per serving!), and sodium (670 mg per serving!)... yes, I know that's a lot of exclamation points. But seriously, this thing is a heart attack waiting to happen.

Why? Well, the original recipe has 6 lamb's kidneys, 1/4 c sunflower oil, and 1.25 lb ground lamb. BUT... the new recipe has no meat, 1 tablespoon canola/sunflower oil, tofu or seitan, and carrots, petite Brussels sprouts, peas, and a sweet potato. Since you're bulking up the recipes with all these vegetables you end up making more too, so that also helps lower the calories.

What are the changes?

• 140 calories per serving not 561
• 6.4 g of fat not 43.6 (and this is using the firm tofu, which is higher in fat than the softer varieties)
• .8 g of saturated fat not 14.6 (saturated fat is high in animal-based foods, including whole fat dairy and butter)
• 0 cholesterol (exclusively found in animal-based foods)
• 84 mg of sodium not 670
  

Of course, because you're adding all those veggies, you're also getting more vitamins, minerals, phytonutrients, and antioxidants... all the stuff that helps keep us healthy for a longer period of time. For example, you get your entire day's need of vitamin A (high in sweet potato and carrots), and 75% of your vitamin C (high in Brussels sprouts).

Another benefit of cooking vegetarian / vegan (this recipe is vegan) is that it takes a lot less time to cook! The original recipe takes about 50 minutes to prepare, while my version takes about 25.


Brussels Sprouts and Potato Curry

Ingredients:
1 tsp ground turmeric
1 T sunflower or canola oil
1 block firm tofu or seitan, cubed
1" ginger, diced as finely as possible
2 medium tomatoes, cut into 1" pieces
2 carrots, cut into 1/4" pieces (peel can be on or off)
1 bag frozen petite Brussels sprouts (or 1 lb fresh)
3/4 c peas
1 c water
1 sweet potato, cubed into 1" pieces
1 tsp red chili powder
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp ground coriander
2 T chopped cilantro, raw

Instructions:
1. Heat the oil in a medium-large sauce pan.
2. Add the ginger and turmeric. Heat for 30 seconds.
3. Add the tofu or seitan. Stir for 1 minute.
4. Add everything except the raw cilantro and peas.
5. Cook for 10 minutes, covered. Stir occasionally to make sure it does not stick to the bottom of the pan.
6. Add peas and cook for 5 more minutes.
7. Taste the carrots and sweet potatoes to see that they are soft enough. Cook longer if needed.
8. Stir in the cilantro at the very end and enjoy! If you don't like cilantro, you can leave this ingredient out; it's delicious before adding it too.

Enjoy! You can eat this dish as is without any rice or bread. If you need the calories, go ahead and serve it with some basmati rice, or 100% whole grain bread.