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Originally posted by musicasacra:
I'm looking for recipes with kale, if anyone can recommend some.

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Meatless Monday: Super Cinchy Curried Potatoes

While in DC last week, I cooked dinner with my pal Liz Kelly, who shares my love for all things lentil-y. The gray cold weather last Tuesday had us craving something that would warm our bellies, so we decided to try out a recipe that’s been on my to-do list, from the new “660 Curries” by Raghavan Iyer.

In just 45 minutes, we had dinner on the table, but we agreed that if not for our kitchen gabfest, we probably could have pulled it all together in about a half hour. (The trick is to have a pot of lentils going while you prep the taters and the aromatics.)

(Kim O'Donnel)
I had little idea of what Iyer meant by a red lentil sauce and how it would translate at the table, thinking maybe this would make an interesting side dish. But something magical happens when the creamy lentil puree meets the starchy curried-up diced potatoes – it morphs into a hearty stew that feels like a one-bowl meal. The texture is so satisfying, with plenty of curried notes to keep the tongue engaged. This dish is a serious keeper!

Liz reports that it was even better for lunch the next day, and highly recommends experimenting with tamarind sauce as a dipping condiment (she likes Deep brand, which she found at an Indian grocery in Falls Church, Va.).

We heated up frozen naan for mopping up the gravy, but I could see a thin roti working here as well as a scoop of rice.

One-Pot Potatoes in a Red Lentil Sauce with Lime Juice
From "660 Curries" by Raghavan Iyer

Ingredients
1 cup red lentils
2 tablespoons canola oil
2 teaspoons cumin seeds
1 small red onion, finely chopped
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh ginger
2 or 3 fresh green Thai, cayenne or serrano chiles, to taste, stemmed, finely chopped
1 pound russet or Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled, cut into 1/2-inch dice, submerged in a bowl of cold water to prevent browning

2 teaspoons coarse salt
2 teaspoons cumin seeds, ground
1 teaspoon coriander seeds, ground
1 teaspoon ground turmeric
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh cilantro leaves
Juice of 1 medium lime

Method
Place lentils in a medium saucepan. Fill pan halfway with water and rinse lentils by rubbing them between your fingertips. Water will become cloudy. Drain this water. Repeat three or four times, until water is relatively clear, and drain.

Add two cups water and bring to a boil, uncovered, over medium heat. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover pot and simmer, stirring occasionally, until lentils are tender, 10-12 minutes. Remove pan from heat.

While lentils are cooking, heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add cumin seeds and cook until they sizzle, turn reddish brown and are fragrant, 10-15 seconds. Add onion, ginger and chiles, and stirfry until onion is caramel brown, 8-10 minutes.

Drain potatoes and add them to skillet. Stir in salt, ground cumin, coriander, turmeric and cilantro. Stirfry to cook spices as they turn fragrant, 1-2 minutes. Add 1/2 cup water, scraping bottom of skillet to deglaze, releasing any collected bits of onion and spice. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until potatoes are fork-tender, 8-10 minutes. (KOD note: The potatoes took closer to 20 minutes to get tender. One option is to parboil potatoes before adding to the skillet with spices.)

Puree lentils, using a blender, immersion blender or a whisk – a trick that Celebritologist and fellow lentil lover Liz Kelly shared with me. The red lentils are easily coaxed by a few turns of a whisk.

Pour this creamy blend over potatoes. Stir sauce into mixture allowing potatoes to absorb some of its flavors. Stir in lime just before serving.

Makes six servings.

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Originally posted by susan dorris:
And it would be wonderful to have the recipes in the permanent file!