Main Ingredients:

See below ingredients and instructions of the recipe

Cooking Preparation of the Recipe:

1 1/2 lb Spinach, fresh
1/2 lb Ricotta cheese,
-fresh (see note)
3 md Brown onions
Ginger, fresh
-(1 1/2 inches),
-chopped fine
1 md Tomato
1 1/2 ts Cumin seeds
1/2 ts Turmeric
1/2 ts Red chile powder
-(cayenne; more to taste)
2 Cloves
1 pn Nutmeg
1 pn Mace
1 tb Ghee (or use
-melted butter or oil)
Salt (to taste)

Cook the spinach and chop it up. Cut the cheese into about
3/4-inch cubes and deep fry a few pieces at a time in oil (a wok
is good for this).

Fry the chopped onions in the ghee. When almost brown, add the
finely-chopped ginger. Use a medium to high heat. When the onions are
golden, reduce the heat and add the skinned and chopped tomato, then
the spices and salt. Cover for a few minutes, then add the spinach
and salt. Cover and simmer about 5 minutes to let spices penetrate.
Add the cheese pieces, mix and serve.

NOTES:

* Indian vegetarian spinach and cheese curry -- This is a dish I
learned from an Indian lady, at a cooking class. It's simple to make
and has a beautifully subtle flavor. As per true curries, it uses raw
spices instead of some prepackaged curry powder. Yield: Serves 4 to 6.

* We eat this dish as a meal with rice, although you can use it as
one dish along with others.

* The quantities given for the spinach and cheese are very flexible.
I never measure or weigh them, just putting in what seems right.
Experiment. Similarly, it can be kept hot for a while with no loss in
taste or texture.

* In North America, most Ricotta cheese is packed as a pot cheese.
This recipe calls for a more solid form of the cheese. Specialty
ethnic markets in large cities will carry solid Ricotta. You can make
your own by buying a tub of pot Ricotta and wrapping it in a clean
cloth to wick the moisture out, leaving the whole assembly in the
refrigerator for a week or so, and changing the cloth every day. With
such treatment the cheese will gradually solidify enough that you can
slice and fry it. Buffalo-milk Mozzarella is a fair substitute, and
ordinary Mozzarella is a last-chance substitute.

* Don't fry the cheese too long. It should have a golden exterior
and have a marshmallow texture inside. Frying too long makes it hard
and dry.

* Use whole cumin seeds and cloves, not the ground variety.

* Like most curries, this reheats splendidly.

: Difficulty: easy to moderate.
: Time: 1 hour.
: Precision: Approximate measurement OK.

: Peter C. Maxwell,
: Department of Computer Science,
: University of New South Wales,
: Sydney, AUSTRALIA.
:
: peterm%cadvax.oz#seismo.css.gov

: Copyright (C) 1986 USENET Community Trust

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