Eggplant and Tomato Curry

I must admit I had fun with this one. I had a couple of heirloom yellow eggplants, and I was craving curry. Hmm, yellow curry. What would happen if I made a yellow curry with all yellow vegetables? Okay, delicious. Does it taste different than a curry made with the more the more tradition purple eggplant, red tomato and green or red pepper? Probably not. But, this is a feast for the eyes as well as the palate!

Ingredients: 

1/2 cup brown rice

1 Tbs olive oil 

1/2 cup onion, diced

1 clove garlic, minced

1 tsp minced ginger

1/4 cup water

up to 1/4 cup yellow curry paste

up to 1 can low fat coconut milk

1 Tbs turbinado sugar

2 tsp low sodium soy sauce

1/2 tsp cumin

1 eggplant, sliced then diced into 1/2-inch pieces

1/2 cup Yukon gold potatoes, diced into 1/2-inch pieces

1/2 cup yellow pepper, diced into 1/2-inch pieces

1 can garbanzo beans (optional)

10 yellow pear tomatoes, halved

1/4 cup chopped Thai basil or spinach

1/4 cup chopped chives

Directions: 

Cover the brown rice with 1 cup water and bring to a boil. Cover and cook until done, about 30 minutes. Heat the olive oil in a large nonstick skillet or small heavy bottomed pan. Add the onion, garlic, and ginger and cook until the onion begins to turn translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the water to deglaze the pan. Add 1 or 2 tablespoons of the curry paste and an equal amount of the coconut milk to the pan and whisk to combine. Taste, adding more curry paste if you like it spicier. Add another 8 ounces of coconut milk to the pan along with the sugar, soy sauce, and cumin, stirring to combine. Add the eggplant, potatoes, pepper, and optional garbanzo beans, then cook until the potatoes are done, about 15 minutes. Add the tomatoes, along with the Thai basil or spinach. 

To serve, mound about 1/2 cup cooked rice in a bowl, top with 1/2 of the eggplant and tomato curry. Garnish with the chopped chives.

Stealthy Cooking Tip: Yellow curry paste is the least spicy of the curry pastes. It's made with mostly turmeric, plus cumin, coriander and you guessed it, some chilies. Even though it's mild, it still has some heat. Adding the curry paste 1 tablespoon at a time allows you to control just how spicy you like your curry. As for the other Thai curry pastes, green curry paste is made with green chilies, plus lemongrass and Thai basil, so it's slightly spicier. Red curry is made with red chilies, plus garlic and additional spices and is typically the spiciest of the Thai curry pastes. You can always add some chilies if you want it spicier!