CURRIES & STEWS

Cashew nut korma with shrimp

Cashew nut korma with shrimp

Korma (a mild and creamy Indian curry) is high on our list of ultimate comfort foods. And this korma, without doubt, is the best we’ve ever tasted. Surprisingly, it was also the quickest and easiest korma we’ve ever made — so needless to say there were a lot of ‘high fives’ at our place when we first made it!

Part of the reason the sauce is so easy to make is because we blitz most of the cashews with the coconut milk, a can of tomatoes and a little water in a blender until creamy. Don’t be put off by the pinkish-colored concoction at this stage — as soon as you pour it into the pan with sautéed onion, garlic, ginger and spices, it turns a wonderful hue of nut-brown and thickens to a gravy. We reserve a handful of whole cashews to throw in to the sauce at the end, which add an extra textural treat as you eat.

Although this dish is quite high in calories (so it’s not the sort of meal we would eat every day), much of the creaminess comes from the ground cashew nuts, which are rich in heart-healthy unsaturated fats, along with fiber and many important vitamins and minerals.

In this version, we added shrimp and green beans, which poach gently in the simmering sauce. But this korma is also a terrific base for chicken, fish or scallops, or you can add chickpeas for a vegan version. There are lots of other veggies that also work well instead of the green beans such as mushrooms, spinach, peas, cauliflower, or you could add small chunks of potato, sweet potato or pumpkin.

Cashew nut korma with shrimp
serves 2
A rich and creamy Indian korma that combines ground and whole cashew nuts with succulent shrimp.
14 oz (400g) canned chopped tomatoes
½ cup coconut milk
½ cup water
1 cup whole unsalted roasted cashews
2 tablespoons peanut or canola oil
1 onion — finely chopped
2 cloves garlic — finely chopped
1 tablespoon finely grated fresh ginger
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon ground turmeric
½ teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon salt
12 green beans — cut into 1-inch pieces
14 large uncooked shrimp — peeled and deveined
Cooked basmati rice to serve
BLEND the tomatoes, coconut milk, water and ¾ cup of cashews in a food processor until smooth. HEAT the oil in a large saucepan over a medium heat and cook the onions for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. ADD the garlic and cook for 3 minutes. ADD the ginger, cumin, coriander, turmeric and chili and cook 1 minute. ADD the tomato-cashew-coconut mixture and salt and bring to a boil. ADD the green beans, reduce the heat to medium and simmer, covered, for 3 minutes. ADD the shrimp and simmer, covered, for a further 5 minutes. STIR in the reserved ¼ cup of cashews and serve over rice.