The Prawn Curry with Darkened Cinnamon recipe calls for cinnamon sticks that are broken in pieces and toasted. Then grind them up to look like pepper.

Serves 4

splendidtable.com

INGREDIENTS
3 sticks cinnamon
2 teaspoons Madras Curry Powder
6 medium cloves garlic, finely chopped
3 slices fresh ginger (each about the size of a quarter), finely chopped
1 pound large shrimp (21 to 25 per pound), peeled and deveined, but tails left on
2 tablespoons coconut or canola oil
1 teaspoon black or yellow mustard seeds
1 can (14 ounces) unsweetened coconut milk
¼ cup coarsely chopped fresh curry (or cilantro) leaves
2 teaspoons black peppercorns, coarsely cracked
1 teaspoon coarse sea salt

INSTRUCTIONS
Preheat a small skillet over medium-high heat. Once the pan is hot (holding your palm close to the base, you should feel the heat within 5 seconds), break up the cinnamon sticks into smaller pieces (for an even toast) and throw them in the skillet. Toast, stirring the pieces constantly, or shaking the skillet very often, until they darken further and smell incredibly fragrant, 1 to 2 minutes. Transfer them to a spice grinder (or clean coffee grinder), and allow the pieces to cool, about 5 minutes. Pulverize the cinnamon to the texture of finely ground black pepper.

Combine the cinnamon, curry powder, garlic, and ginger in a large bowl; add the shrimp and toss to coat. Refrigerate, covered, for at least 30 minutes or as long as overnight.

Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Once the oil appears to shimmer, add the mustard seeds, cover, and cook until the seeds have stopped popping, about 30 seconds. Immediately add the shrimp in a single layer, and sear them for about 30 seconds on each side.

Shake the coconut milk well and pour it in. Add the curry leaves, peppercorns, and salt. Bring the curry to a boil and continue to cook until the shrimp curl and turn salmon in color, 3 to 5 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the shrimp to a serving platter. Keep warm.

Continue to cook the sauce, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until it has thickened, 2 to 4 minutes. Spoon the sauce over the shrimp and serve.

In Senegal at the Keur Moussa monastery, a typical meal includes poulet mafé, a thick peanut sauce with chicken, root vegetables, and cabbage served over rice, fonio, or millet couscous. For chef Pierre Thiam, poulet mafé is the ultimate comfort food. His advice: “Be patient when cooking mafé. Let the stew simmer slowly until the oil rises to the surface.” Creamy peanut butter adds body and nuttiness to this savory chicken dish, balancing the aromatic ginger, garlic, and tomato paste. Thiam’s version uses fish sauce, which brings a subtle umami that adds complexity to the stew.

Sub soy sauce, tamari or Worcestershire sauce for fish sauce. Chop up a whole chicken.

Serves 4-6

foodandwine.com

INGREDIENTS
3 medium garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 tablespoon peeled and finely chopped fresh ginger
Pinch of kosher salt, plus more to taste
Pinch of black pepper
1 pound bone-in chicken thighs, skin removed
1 pound chicken drumsticks, skin removed
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 small yellow onion, chopped
1 (6-ounce) can tomato paste
¼ cup fish sauce (such as Red Boat)
7 cups water
1 cup unsweetened creamy peanut butter (such as Smucker’s Natural Creamy Peanut Butter), well stirred
8 ounces green cabbage, cored and cut into 2-inch wedges
3 medium carrots, cut into 2-inch-long pieces
2 medium Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and cut into 1 ½ -inch pieces
1 medium-size sweet potato, peeled and cut into 1 ½ -inch pieces
Sliced fresh Scotch bonnet chiles, to taste (optional)
Cooked white rice, for serving

INSTRUCTIONS
Stir together garlic, ginger, salt, and black pepper in a large bowl. Add chicken; press garlic mixture into chicken pieces. Cover with plastic wrap; refrigerate at least 3 hours or up to 12 hours.

Heat oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high until oil shimmers. Add onion; cook, stirring often, until onion starts to become translucent, about 3 minutes. Stir in tomato paste and fish sauce. Cook, stirring constantly, until combined and tomato paste caramelizes and turns a few shades darker, 6 to 8 minutes. Add 7 cups water, scraping up any browned bits from bottom of Dutch oven. Add chicken and any remaining garlic mixture in bowl to Dutch oven. Bring to a boil over high. Reduce heat to medium-low.

Place peanut butter in a medium-size heatproof bowl; stir in 1 1/2 cups liquid from Dutch oven, 1/4 cup at a time, until peanut butter is thinned out and mixture is creamy. Add to mixture in Dutch oven; bring to a vigorous simmer over medium-low. Simmer, undisturbed, 20 minutes.

Stir cabbage and carrots into mixture in Dutch oven; return to a vigorous simmer over medium-low. Simmer, undisturbed, 10 minutes.

Stir potato and sweet potato pieces into mixture in Dutch oven; return to a vigorous simmer over medium-low. Simmer, undisturbed, until chicken and vegetables are tender and oil has separated from thickened sauce, 30 to 35 minutes. Remove from heat; stir in Scotch bonnet chiles, if using, and season with salt to taste. Serve over rice.

Made with convenient canned beans, this quick and healthy Indian recipe is an authentic chickpea curry that you can make in minutes. If you want an additional vegetable, stir in some roasted cauliflower florets. Serve with brown basmati rice or warm naan.

Serves 6

eatingwell.com

INGREDIENTS
1 medium serrano pepper, cut into thirds
4 large cloves garlic
1 2-inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and coarsely chopped
1 medium yellow onion, chopped (1-inch)
6 tablespoons canola oil or grapeseed oil
2 teaspoons ground coriander
2 teaspoons ground cumin
½ teaspoon ground turmeric
2 ¼ cups no-salt-added canned diced tomatoes with their juice (from a 28-ounce can)
¾ teaspoon kosher salt
2 15-ounce cans chickpeas, rinsed
2 teaspoons garam masala
Fresh cilantro for garnish

INSTRUCTIONS
Pulse serrano, garlic and ginger in a food processor until minced. Scrape down the sides and pulse again. Add onion; pulse until finely chopped, but not watery.

Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the onion mixture and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, 3 to 5 minutes. Add coriander, cumin and turmeric and cook, stirring, for 2 minutes.

Pulse tomatoes in the food processor until finely chopped. Add to the pan along with salt. Reduce heat to maintain a simmer and cook, stirring occasionally, for 4 minutes. Add chickpeas and garam masala, reduce heat to a gentle simmer, cover and cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes more. Serve topped with cilantro, if desired.

In Madhur Jaffrey’s green lentil curry, she infuses them with garlic, ginger, coriander, and cumin, for a dish that’s perfect over rice or with a piece of warm naan bread.

Serves 4

foodandwine.com

INGREDIENTS
1 teaspoon finely grated ginger
1 garlic clove (mashed to a paste)
2 teaspoons ground coriander
1 teaspoon ground cumin
3 tablespoons canola oil
¼ teaspoon cumin seeds
1 small shallot (minced)
1 tablespoon tomato paste mixed with of water
1 ¼ cups dried green lentils
¼ teaspoon ground turmeric
4 ounces green beans (cut into 3/-inch lengths)
4 ounces kale (stemmed and leaves finely chopped)
1 medium carrot (thinly sliced)
1 cup finely chopped cilantro
½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
Salt

INSTRUCTIONS
In a small bowl, combine the ginger, garlic, coriander and ground cumin. Stir in 1/4 cup of water to make a paste. In a small skillet, heat the oil until shimmering. Add the cumin seeds and cook over moderately high heat for 5 seconds, just until sizzling. Add the shallot and cook, stirring, until lightly browned, about 1 minute. Add the spice paste and let cook until most of the liquid has evaporated, about 2 minutes. Stir in the tomato paste and cook until thick, about 1 minute longer.

In a saucepan, combine the lentils with the turmeric and 5 cups of water; bring to a boil. Cover partially and simmer over low heat for 20 minutes, until the lentils are barely tender. Add the green beans, kale, carrot, three-fourths of the cilantro and the cayenne and season with salt. Cook until the lentils and vegetables are tender, 15 minutes. Scrape in the spice paste and the remaining cilantro. Simmer for 5 minutes, then serve.