Test Kitchen: Vegan Thai Coconut Vegetable Curry

Easy, healthy recipes tested for you weekly at the Sargent Choice Test Kitchen

Caroline Kohler, Dietetics Student, SAR ’19

About the Sargent Choice Test Kitchen: We’re all about making healthy taste delicious here at Sargent Choice.  That’s why we’ve teamed up with faculty-in-residence Dr. Karen Jacobs to offer students a one-of-a-kind opportunity to trial and taste-test new Sargent Choice healthy recipes each week at the Sargent Choice Test Kitchen.  Dr. Karen Jacobs invites students of all majors (not just nutrition) into her home on Boston University’s campus to cook up a recipe developed by Sargent Choice Registered Dietitian, Jennifer Culbert.  Feedback from the weekly Test Kitchen gets incorporated into future Sargent Choice recipes and helps shape the face of healthy dining at BU.

With the weather getting colder, Vegan Thai Coconut Vegetable Curry was the perfect meal to make at this week’s Sargent Choice Test Kitchen. The combination of the colorful veggies and the aromatic onions, garlic, and spices made this a tasty and cozy meal to share with friends. And having many hands was definitely helpful for chopping lots of veggies!

Nutrition Fun Facts:

  • This recipe contains so many veggies! With cauliflower, carrots, mushrooms, tomatoes, peas, and kale, the curry contains a rainbow of vegetables, making it an easy and delicious way to get lots of vitamins and minerals in one bowl.
  • The chickpeas and peas are great sources of protein and fiber, helping to keep you feeling full. (We think it’s a great meal for midterm season!)
  • Using coconut milk instead of cow’s milk is an easy way to make the curry creamy but still vegan.

What We Liked:

  • The vegetables provided a variety of textures, and the onions and garlic provided extra flavor, too.
  • Cooking was very easy! Once all the ingredients were chopped, everything goes in one pot and all you have to do is stir.
  • The brown rice was great for soaking up all the delicious broth in the bowl.
  • We had lots of leftovers, which made this a great dish to take for lunch the next day too!

Tips and Tricks:

  • Be sure to chop all the veggies to about the same size so that everything cooks evenly.
  • If you like spicy foods, experiment with adding more curry paste or other spices. You can’t go wrong with spices in this recipe!
  • For an added crunch, we brainstormed adding crispy chickpeas to this recipe. Give it a try!
  • This curry recipe has so many possibilities for adding different vegetables and beans, switching up the whole grains it’s served with, and experimenting with spices. Make it your own—it’s sure to become a new favorite.

Sargent Choice Vegan Thai Coconut Vegetable Curry

Recipe modified from https://thekitchengirl.com
Yield: Approximately 6 servings

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons olive oil
2 green onions, chopped
4 cloves garlic, finely grated
1 cup cauliflower
1 cup carrots
1 cup mushrooms
3 tablespoons curry paste
1 15-ounce can chickpeas (drained)
1 15-ounce can diced tomatoes (drained, but keep juice to adjust consistency later, if needed)
1 cup frozen peas
1 15-ounce can light coconut milk
½ teaspoon Kosher salt
2 cups fresh kale, chopped
Cooked brown rice

Directions:

  1. In a 3-quart skillet or pot, heat olive oil over medium heat.
  2. Add onions, garlic, cauliflower, carrots, and mushrooms all at once; continue to heat and stir until vegetables became fragrant and slightly soft (about 4 minutes).
  3. Add curry paste; sauté a few minutes, stirring as needed.
  4. Add chickpeas, tomatoes, peas, coconut milk, and salt; increase heat to bring to boil then reduce heat to low and simmer for 15 minutes (leave uncovered). NOTE: If you feel more liquid is needed, add juice from the canned tomatoes.
  5. Add kale; cover and simmer long enough to wilt (about 2 minutes).
  6. Serve over brown rice. Enjoy!