Sweetcorn in a Spicy Peanut Sauce

Recipe slightly adapted from Kumud Shah's Quick After-Work Indian Vegetarian Cookbook. You can replace some or all of the sweetcorn kernels with baby sweetcorn, cut into 2 or 3 pieces, and cooked for the same time as for the frozen unthawed sweetcorn kernels.

Serves 4

• 1 tsp sunflower oil or other flavourless oil
• 1 tsp cumin seed
• 1 large onion
• 1 tsp grated fresh ginger root
• 1 green chilli
• 4 fresh tomatoes, or 4 tbsp chopped canned tomatoes
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 tsp mild chilli powder
• 2 tsp dhana jheera
• 1/2 tsp garam masala
• pinch of turmeric powder
• 350g (12oz) frozen or canned sweetcorn (or fresh baby sweetcorn - see above)
• 3 tbsp (50g, 2oz) unsweetened peanut butter, preferably crunchy
• 1 tsp lemon juice
• To Garnish:
  • a few chopped coriander (cilantro) leaves, or
  • a few diagonal slices of red chilli

1. Chop the onion. Deseed and chop the green chilli. Chop the tomatoes finely. Measure out all the spices.

2. Heat the oil, then add the cumin seeds and stir. Add the onion and saute until golden.

3. Add the ginger, green chilli, chopped tomatoes, salt, chilli powder, dhana jheera, garam masala and turmeric. Cook, stirring, for 2-3 minutes.

4. Add the sweetcorn, 6 tbsp water and the peanut butter. Simmer, covered, stirring occasionally, for 15 minutes if using frozen unthawed sweetcorn and 10 minutes if using frozen thawed or canned.

5. Add lemon juice to taste, mix well and serve.

Kake's (Vegan) Cookery Site - http://www.earth.li/~kake/cookery/
This page added some time in 1997 - comments and questions to Kake L Pugh (kake@earth.li).