Veggie Rendang

Remember all our recent Indian bits and pieces – chicken salad … but not as you know it and Malai wali murghi (MWM) from Post holiday blues?

For a supper with friends I decided on the MWM, meatball size lamb koftas, and all the usual suspects, raita, mango and naan. The only element that was missing was for me – the veggie curry. Speed, as usual, was my main aim. Here's my veggie rendang.

You can make your own speedy rendang sauce :

Rendang Sauce

Serves 2

100ml coconut cream

50ml water

3 tsp brown sugar

2 tsp curry powder

(strength to suit your palate – I used mild

to suit my guests)

1 tbsp kecap manis

(sweet soy sauce)

Combine all the ingredients in a saucepan over a low heat and it's ready to roll. You can make this ahead and re-heat.

Add whatever veggies you like – do a fridge raid if you think you've got a miscellany of stuff that needs using up for a mid week supper. If your raid produces leftover cooked veggies that's great if not, then uncooked veggies should be cubed to the same size and sautéed in a drop of rapeseed oil. They don't need to be cooked through since you'll be adding them to the rendang sauce.

It's difficult to give exact quantities since I know from experience that meat eaters always eat the veggie stuff – don't ask me why it's one of the great mysteries of life! Some guests may take a spoonful to try or to compliment the meat and poultry dishes – to cover yourself I'd double the above recipe to serve 4.

I used onion, potatoes and chick peas :

1 medium onion chopped finely and sautéed in a drop

of rapeseed oil

500g baby potatoes (I used Cornish) cooked, cooled

peeled, cubed and bagged until ready to use

1 400g can of chick peas, drained, rinsed and shucked

2 handfuls of frozen petit pois – optional

There's a downside with chick peas … the shucking - just in case you're not sure about shucking it's to remove the outer covering of anything that is eaten from an oyster to cereal or corn.

I find it therapeutic but then I'm sad!