Zucchini Curry

As a kid, there were several things I wouldn't eat (I know! It's true!). One was anything cherry flavored (I still hate it). Another is milk (I blame my parents for that). And one of the big things was anything spicy. I couldn't stomach it-it just wasn't for me. I remember a long time ago, back when I worked for Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, our department used to order in Thai for lunch for any special occasion. The first time we did, I decided I'd try most of the stuff (yes, up to that point, I'd never tried Thai. Now, I can't imagine not eating it almost every week. I digress.) on the table-there were lots of veggie dishes, chicken dishes, and pad thai. What was not to like?

Until I took my first bite, and my mouth went on fire. My face turned such a shade of crimson and my eyes actually watered enough that some of the nurses kept asking me if I was okay, if I was choking, the whole bit. No, no. Just took a big bite of a very spicy veggie dish. For some reason I kept going back to it though. Nowadays, I am not much for very hot dishes, but I'll eat spicy things now. I'm a fan of chili powder, cayenne pepper, and yes, curry spice in my food. It's awesome-I feel like I've opened up to a whole new world of taste.

When I returned home from my fantastic family vacation to Disney this week, I found myself hungry to make something different. I have a recipe I'd been wanting to try from a college friend, aptly named "chickpea thing", but this one, that I'd found in the Boston Globe food section this week, stood out so much I had to make it first. It sounded so good-zucchini, tomatoes, chili powder, what was not to like?



The first thing that should have tipped me off is that although it was called a curry, there was actually no curry powder in the dish. It's made with crushed cashews and sesame seeds, chili powder, and tomato paste. It also has a ton of sauteed onion, zucchini, and tomatoes in it. I added some sprinkling of curry at the end to see if it made a difference.



It did not.

I was a little disappointed by this dish. I'll still eat it, it'll be good for lunch and stuff, but it wasn't terribly flavorful. And no way was it anything curried. I guess it was okay, but if you choose to make this, I'd advise adding a lot of pepper. Or more salt. Or even curry powder or cayenne. Something to give this the kick it needs. The dish sounds so awesome. I wish it lived up to the hype.



Zucchini Curry (adapted from www.Boston.com/food)
2 tablespoons cashews
2 tablespoons toasted sesame seeds
3 tablespoons canola oil
1 large onion, chopped
3 medium tomatoes, cut into 1-inch pieces
4 large zucchini, cut into 1-inch pieces
Salt, to taste
1 1/2 teaspoons chili powder
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1/4 cup water
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro

1. In a food processor, grind the cashews and sesame seeds until they are fine; set aside.

2. In a large flameproof casserole over medium-high heat, heat the oil. Add the onion, and cook, stirring, for 1 minute.

3. Add the tomatoes, zucchini, and salt and cook, stirring occasionally, for 3 minutes.

4. Stir in the chili powder, tomato paste, and cashew mixture. Cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Add the water and cover the pan. Lower the heat and cook, stirring occasionally, 4 minutes or until the zucchini is tender. Sprinkle with cilantro.