Duly inspired, I headed to the kitchen for breakfast. I had all the ingredients in, as well as a bag of squid pieces at the back of the freezer. I've no idea if squid is even remotely a curry ingredient, but I don't see why not.
Great! So, a seriously good paleo+ breakfast shall ensue ...
You'll need:
- Seafood - Squid, here, prawns or firm fish would do admirably
- Vegetables - Potato, courgette and peas
- Spices - Ground coriander, ground cumin and turmeric, fenugreek and asafoetida are optional
- Bulk - Onion, garlic, ginger, chillies and tomato
Well, I never weigh or measure ... "sufficient", is my usual answer.
For one (my Mrs abhors curry), I had about 250g of seafood, one large baking sized potato, half a red onion, one small salad tomato, one garlic clove, two chillies (I like heat), slice of ginger, three inches off a courgette, small handful of peas and about a teaspoon of each of the core spices, half a teaspoon of the optional. Pinch of sea salt and a little black pepper. Okay?
Quick tip: Frozen seafood can be defrosted under running cold water and will be ready to cook within a few minutes for things like prawns and squid, maybe 10 minutes for a small fillet of fish, longer for larger.
Let's get to it ...
Curry like this should not be overthunk! It is simply vegetables and spices. There is no secret to this, no hidden method, no acquired technique, just vegetables and spices.
First, peel and cube some potato and par-boil it.
Might as well boil an egg, too. It is breakfast, afterall.
Now, we'll make the curry ...
As a bare minimum, you'd want ground coriander, ground cumin and turmeric. I also like fenugreek and asafoetida, and that's pretty much my spice mix. I use real chillies, sea salt, black pepper and if tomato based, I like some paprika in there, too.
Curry is best with ghee, but butter will do if you keep the heat down to keep it from browning.
So, in a skillet, melt some butter or ghee, adding in some shredded onion - this is a quick and easy breakfast style curry so no need for all that low heat, half hour of caramelisation.
Add in the potatoes and sprinkle over the powdered spices.
Add the courgettes, the peas, a chopped tomato, de-seeded and shredded chillies, minced garlic clove and a little ginger, shredded.
Add the seafood, gently fold together and cook through for a few minutes. I like to add a good knob of butter just towards the end - it makes all curry so much better.
Serve out, sea salt and black pepper to taste, egg to garnish, fresh herbs too if you have them.
