Wednesday 27 August 2008

Nice n' Spicy, Easy Peasy, Leftovers Curry!

I was looking for a space in my bulging freezer the other day when I found a container of dark roast turkey meat - left over from Christmas!!

I had been planning on getting a take out curry that night - but figured with the meat cooked, I could knock one up in the time it would take to deliver. With the added bonus that I could make it exactly how I wanted it and keep it as healthy as possible!

It turned out really really good. The addition of tamarind and fenugreek added a special edge to the other spices. And because the meat was already roasted, it soaked up the gravy and took on a lot of flavour. Best of all - it was ready in 20 minutes!

So here we have it, my nice n' spicy, super-speedy, easy-peasy leftover curry!

Leftover Roast Dinner Curry

Ok, so maybe not the prettiest picture in the world - but it tasted goooooood. And isn't that the important thing?? ;)
  • 1 tsp fenugreek leaves
  • 1 tsp black mustard seeds
  • 3 green cardamom pods, lightly crushed
  • 1 tsp fennel seeds
  • 3 dried red chillies, roughly torn up
  • 1/2 tsp turmeric
  • 1 tsp chili powder
  • 1 tsp ground cumin
  • 1 tsp ground coriander
  • 1 onion, finely chopped
  • 2 cloves garlic, crushed
  • 1" piece ginger, finely grated
  • 1 tin chopped tomatoes
  • 1 tbsp tamarind paste, mixed with 300 ml water
  • left over roast turkey or chicken
  • ghee or oil to fry
  • salt to taste
Heat ghee in a heavy-based saucepan

Add all the seeds and the dried chillies and fry for a minute or two until they smell really good! Add the onion, garlic, ginger and fry for another couple of minutes.

Chuck in the other spices, tomatoes, tamarind water and salt and mix well. Put in the meat and cook for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. If it starts to reduce too much, cover until ready (or add more water ;)

Serve with rice and a smile!



Not only is this an original recipe - but it's an original recipe conceived in about 3 minutes! So I reckon it fits the bill for Lore's Original Recipes event!

Check out the last round up, great stuff Lore!


Culinarty Original Recipe Roundup

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22 comments:

hungryandfrozen said...

That picture is definitely pretty! And looks delicious. Meat leftover from Christmas? I love freezer surprises like that lol.

The Short (dis)Order Cook said...

That's a lovely picture, and the dish sounds really tasty.

Dee said...

Good stuff Kittie! I love tamarind. I should have a rummage through the murky depths of my freezer too.

Jan said...

Nothing wrong with that picture at all - it looks delish! What a great idea too.

Nikki @ NikSnacks said...

oh, no, your picture looks great. I should be eating instead of looking at blogs, but I wish I had some turkey in the freezer, too, right now.

Lo said...

You know... I never know what to do with leftover roasted meats (aside from sandwiches). A curry is a great idea. Good thinking!

The easy part is even more of a bonus!

Neen said...

Curry in 20 minutes? Wow! It takes the delivery guy twice that time, plus you have to pay him! Congrats on whipping this up, I'm impressed.

Beth (jamandcream) said...

What are you talking about - the pics great! I love recipes that use up left over meats from roasts!

ley said...

Ooh yum! I love curry! And a surprise from Christmas, too! lol. I would have thought it'd be, like, freezer burny by now. Maybe my freezer is just bad at that.

What's fenugreek? I feel like I've asked that before, but I don't remember.

Mike of Mike's Table said...

I always have a tough time making any curry-esque dish look good for photos, so when you say this doesn't look good, I could just point you to some of my photos, lol. This looks excellent and sounds like a great way to use leftovers that hardly even shows that leftovers played a part. My use-up-the-leftovers constructions are often not something I speak of, lol ;-)

David Hall said...

Hi Kittie. It was only a few months ago when I unearthed a huge turkey leg from Xmas too! did a nice thick soup with it. Only a few months to go before more arrive eh?! Cheers, David

glamah16 said...

Yummm. Probaly tastes better than takeout too.

Adam said...

Left over from Xmas? Well you def had me fooled :)

Seriously, leftover dishes that taste better than the orignials is an artform. Care to fix up my freezer sometime?

Judy@nofearentertaining said...

That looks so good! Imagine what we find in our freezers!

Lore said...

Kittie, I have my glasses on and the photo looks gorgeous!
Love how it soaked up most of the gravy, that's a sure ticket to flavours' heaven. Thanks for sending it my way :)

Laura Paterson said...

Laura - I also found half a chocolate cake. I figured I should eat immediately, just in case ;)

Thanks short disorder!

Dee, I don't use tamarind enough - this recipe reminded me of that!

Thanks Jan - I've been trying to improve my photography - but it felt like this one was refusing to play ball!

nikki - I think we need a support group for food blog addiction!

lo - I hardly ever make roasts - but I think I would do one just to make this from the leftovers!

Hey neen, make this and demand the tip from Do ;)

Cheers Beth - me too - often more than the roast itself!

Ley - there was one bit which had got a bit burnt, but it was mostly ok. (I've got a fenugreek post coming up in the next couple of days...!)

Hey mike - I actually have started blog-censoring myself - I used to snap almost everything I cooked! Not a good look!

David - my find was the result of my first ever Christmas roast... it's still to be seen if I'll attempt it again this year ;)

coco - most definitely better than some!

adam, I still have a stuffed freezer myself, but I'm determined to clear it over the next few weeks! Watch this space ;)

Lol judy - sometimes I don't want to ;)

Thanks Lore, glad you liked it!

Dharm said...

Yaaay! Good for you! Turkey curry sounds just great.

Maggie said...

Thank you for visiting my blog and leaving a comment. I love curry and this recipe is packed full of wonderful flavours.

Anonymous said...

I just got here from the front page of Tastespotting. That makes me think the whole world loves your leftover curry! :)

Admin said...

It looks Yummy... Looks like Indian Fenugreek Chicken.

Laura Paterson said...

It isn't even 10am right now - and I'm already fantasising about curry, Dharm!!

Thanks Margaret, it was good to find your blog!!

Woo hoo - tastespotting! First time I've had one accepted in ages... and I didn't even like the pic too much... Oh well!

Leon - It was yummy! Mmmm... and I think some fresh fenugreek would work very well here!

Dragon said...

Oh my! Such a lovely, lovely photo. Its almost a shame you had to eat such a pretty dish, eh? :)