Name: Maunika Gowardhan’s vegetable korma (Navratan Korma)
Prep time: 40 min
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 1 h 10 min
Yield: Serves 4 (or 6 as part of a larger spread of dishes)
Ingredients: 50g cashew nuts; 110g tomatoes (use tinned tomatoes if not in season); 3 tbsp vegetable oil; 1 cinnamon stick; 220g onion (1 largish onion), finely chopped; 3 garlic cloves, ground to a paste in a pestle and mortar; 2.5cm piece fresh ginger, ground to a paste in a pestle and mortar; 1 tsp turmeric powder; 1/2 tsp kashmiri chilli powder; 150g cauliflower, cut into bite-size florets; 200g carrots, diced; 150g potato, diced into bite-size pieces; 2 tsp sugar; 90g tinned pineapple, chopped, plus 100ml of the juice; 50g frozen peas; 70g green beans, trimmed and cut into quarters; 1/2 tsp garam masala; 1/2 tsp ground cardamom powder; 100ml single cream

Maunika Gowardhan’s vegetable korma (Navratan Korma)

Maunika Gowardhan‘s rich vegetable korma is packed with cashews, vegetables, ginger and tangy pineapple. Delicious on its own, or as part of a big Diwali spread. Maunika says: “The literal translation of this recipe is nav, which means nine, and ratan, which means jewels, and this rich vegetarian curry is surely fit for royalty. It gets its name from the nine courtiers of King Akbar of the Mughal dynasty in the north of India. The jewels in the dish are the vibrant vegetables, cashew and fruit. I loved eating this sweet and decadent curry as a girl and it was one of the dishes I looked forward to during celebrations in India.” Check out all our Diwali recipes.

Gluten-freeVegetarian

Serves4 (or 6 as part of a larger spread of dishes)

Hands-on40 min. Simmering time 30 min

Oven30 min

DifficultyEasy

Method

Soak most of the cashew nuts in 100ml warm water for 10 minutes (leaving some aside for garnish). Whizz the tomatoes to a purée and set aside. In the same blender, add the cashews along with the soaking liquid and whizz to a paste. Set aside.
In a large saucepan, heat the oil over a medium heat. Add the cinnamon and, as it starts to sizzle, add the onion. Fry for 15-17 minutes until it begins to soften and change colour, and then add the garlic and ginger pastes. Fry for 1 minute. Now add the blended tomato paste and the turmeric and chilli powder. Fry for 5 minutes, stirring well, making sure the mixture doesn’t stick to the bottom of the pan.
Add the cauliflower, carrots and potatoes and fry for 3-4 minutes, mixing the vegetables into the masala. Add 250ml water, season to taste with salt, add the sugar and simmer, covered, over a low heat for 12 minutes. Stir halfway through. Add the chopped pineapple, peas and the green beans. Continue to simmer with a lid on for 10 minutes. Add the blended cashew paste, pineapple juice, garam masala, ground cardamom and single cream. Stir well and simmer for 4-5 minutes. Serve warm.