Name: Egg Curry
Prep time: 12 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 32 min
Ingredients: 2 tablespoons butter (or ghee); 2 onions (finely diced); 1 clove garlic (minced); 2 stalks celery (finely diced); 2 carrots (finely diced); 2 plum tomatoes (peeled and chopped); 1-inch piece ginger (peeled and grated); Salt and freshly ground pepper; 1½ cups coconut milk; 1 tablespoon curry powder; 1 tablespoon flour; 4 hard-boiled eggs (cut in half); Sprinkling of fresh herbs (parsley, basil, chervil or cilantro, chopped)

By Krista Harris

Photos by Erin Feinblatt

Egg curry in a white oval dish. — Photo: Erin Feinblatt

M. F. K. Fisher wrote of making an egg curry when she was a young girl that she called Hindu Eggs. It was so spicy hot that she and her sister had tears streaming down their face while they tried valiantly to eat it. You don’t have to make this dish quite so spicy, but the heat will depend on your curry blend. For a custom flavor make your own curry spice mixture. And like the previous two recipes, this is an excellent way to use up your leftover hard-boiled eggs.

Ingredients

2 tablespoons butter, or ghee
2 onions, finely diced
1 clove garlic, minced
2 stalks celery, finely diced
2 carrots, finely diced
2 plum tomatoes, peeled and chopped
1-inch piece ginger, peeled and grated
Salt and freshly ground pepper
1½ cups coconut milk
1 tablespoon curry powder
1 tablespoon flour
4 hard-boiled eggs, cut in half
Sprinkling of fresh herbs, parsley, basil, chervil or cilantro, chopped

Instructions

Heat the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onions and garlic and cook until just translucent and then add the celery, carrots, tomatoes, ginger, salt and pepper. Add the coconut milk and bring to a boil.
Meanwhile blend the curry powder, flour and some additional salt and pepper with a little cold water to make a paste. Add to the skillet gradually, while stirring. Simmer, partially covered until the vegetables are tender. Taste and adjust the seasoning. Set the hardboiled egg halves gently in the curry sauce and spoon some sauce over them. Cover and cook for 5–10 minutes to heat the eggs. Garnish with the fresh herbs and serve over a bed of rice with chutney.

Notes

You can purchase curry powder or make your own blend using spices such as coriander, turmeric, cumin, ginger, fennel, mustard, cardamom, cloves, nutmeg, pepper, fenugreek, cayenne, red chilies. If the spices are whole, first lightly toast them in a skillet, then cool and grind in a coffee or spice grinder. Combine the ground spices and store in an airtight container. Do small batches and experiment!