Curry night

Spice up footfall and heat up your sales with a one-off or series of special curry nights

National Curry Week 8-12 Oct

It’s one of the nation’s favourite dishes and guaranteed to draw the crowds; yes it’s a curry. There are so many different types to create, from classic Indian to Thai and Chinese versions, so go all out with a week of specials, a dedicated night or a curry tasting menu.

The great thing about curry, aside from the aromatic fusion of flavours, is it’s so versatile. You can use pretty much any type of meat and fish, the vegetarian options are endless, they can be as simple or as elaborate as you prefer, adaptable to suit different diets, can be surprisingly healthy with a few simple ingredient swaps and it’s the perfect warming dish as the nights draw in. Why not offer as a takeaway option too?

When you consider the opportunity for additional sales with all the popular add-on accompaniments too, such as naan, poppadoms, samosas and bhajis, it’s a win-win for your venue.

PRAWN LAKSA BOWL

Serves 2

»PREP: 5 MINS

»COOK: 10 MINS

INGREDIENTS

1 tbsp olive oil; 1 red chilli, finely sliced; 2½ tbsp Thai red curry paste; 1 vegetable stock cube; 400ml can reduced fat coconut milk; 2 tsp fish sauce; 100g rice noodles; 2 limes, juice of 1, the other halved; 150g cooked king prawns; ½ small pack coriander, roughly chopped

METHOD

1 Heat the oil in a pan and add the chilli. Cook for 1 min, then add the curry paste, stir and cook for 1 min more.

2 Dissolve the stock cube in 700ml boiling water, then pour into the pan and stir to combine. Tip in the coconut milk and bring to the boil.

3 Add the fish sauce and a little seasoning. Toss in the noodles and cook for a further 3-4 mins until softening. Squeeze in the lime juice, add the prawns and cook through until warm, about 2-3 mins. Scatter over some of the coriander.

4 Serve in bowls with the remaining coriander and lime wedges on top for squeezing over.

Top tips

»USE GHEE FOR A REALLY AUTHENTIC DISH

»TOMATO PUREE AND YOGURT ARE GREAT NATURAL THICKENERS

VEG SAMOSAS

Serves 5

»PREP: 20 MINS

»COOK: 10 MINS

INGREDIENTS

0.2kg potatoes, peeled; 2 tbsp oil; ¼ small onion, diced; 70g green peas, smashed; 1 tbsp curry powder; ½ tsp chilli powder; 1 tsp sugar; spring roll wrappers, cut into 3 equal-size rectangular pieces; 1 egg white; oil, for deep frying

METHOD

1 Boil potatoes for 10 mins, or until completely cooked through. Drain and cool. Break up the potatoes using the back of a spoon.

2 Heat a skillet and add oil. Sauté onion until aromatic, then add potatoes, peas, curry powder, chilli powder, sugar and salt to taste. Cook for a few mins, remove from skillet and cool.

3 Scoop 1 heaped tsp of filling and place at top centre part of a piece of spring roll wrapper. Brush outer edges of wrapper with egg white, fold and form samosa into a triangle. Pinch edges and all corners to make sure they are sealed tight and there is no leakage. Repeat until filling is used up.

4 Deep-fry the samosas at 176C until golden brown. Remove from oil using a strainer or slotted spoon and transfer to a plate lined with paper towels. Serve warm.