Over the years I have become an armchair traveler. I’m old enough to remember when flying actually was fun and a really big deal. We would dress in our best clothes, family came to the gate to wave you off and the staff treated you like honored guests. Travelers were, by and large, respectful of one another.

There was the Pandemic, of course. But even before that, travel just had become such a pain. Long lines at TSA, where I am always stopped, questioned and patted down because of an artificial knee – even with Global Entry. Then we are packed in like sardines on increasingly dirty planes where you are dollared and twenty dollared (it used to be nickeled and dimed) to death by staff who appear over-wrought and wish to be anywhere but on that plane, let alone serving you. There is a desperation about it all these days.

And while I’m in good condition, at 71, I am just too old to be running through airports, racing down long hallways, up and down stairs to catch the train to the next terminal to hopefully make my connection. All while shlepping my luggage because who checks luggage anymore?

But I have found one way to travel that never disappoints – through food. My spice cabinet is huge and I am guilty of occasionally buying somewhat obscure ingredients that are only good for one use. I justify this by telling myself that it is waaaay cheaper than actually buying a plane ticket and staying in a hotel with all of their hidden costs. Don’t get me wrong. I LOVE to be other places. I just hate what it takes to get there. Where’s a transporter when you need one?

As an inveterate reader of historical mysteries, I’m also able to travel through my books without ever leaving the comfort of my own home or favorite armchair. There is a series of books that takes place in 1930’s Ceylon – today’s Sri Lanka – that I love. I have read all 14 books so far and hope for more! There’s a gentleness to them that I appreciate in this decidedly ungentle world we are inhabiting. And I’m currently into a series that takes place in 1920’s Bangalore. (There does appear to be a theme here. My preferred historical period is from WWI to WWII, wherever in the world, although I would not have actually wanted to live then.) Aside from the mysteries, I enjoy the depiction of the times, locale, clothes and food. For me, however, the perfect novel always goes into great detail about the food.

The detective in the Inspector de Silva series always get excited when his cook prepares his favorite Pea and Cashew Curry for dinner. So after 14 books, I decided that it was past time to find a recipe for this vegan curry. It takes a bit of forethought because the cashews need to soak overnight, but there is nothing particularly difficult or fussy about this recipe. The author of the recipe suggested serving it with a Spicy Apple Curry, which I did. So I have included bonus recipes for the Apple Curry, along with a recipe for Sri Lankan Curry Powder. Both are included below.

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The Pea and Cashew Curry is creamy and tastes unbelievably rich, so a little goes a long way. The spices first appear on your tastebuds as subtle. But as the sauce lingers on your tongue, the spices begin to seriously develop and burst onto the scene. The Spicy Apple Curry is a beautiful counterpoint to the rich Pea and Cashew Curry. I served fresh mango, watermelon and pineapple for dessert.

In past postings I have spoken about the importance of using whole fresh spices that you grind yourself as needed. It really takes no time and the difference in flavor is huge, particularly when using otherwise fairly simple ingredients. I do, of course, buy certain spice mixes, but if you wish to truly taste these recipes at their best, grind your own. A coffee grinder works perfectly and can be purchased for the price of a few cups of coffee from your local barista. And whole spices retain their flavor longer than the pre-ground ones that you buy at the market.

Just smelling the spice blend is a journey in itself and utterly intoxicating.

Don’t be intimidated by the list of ingredients or the number of steps. If you enjoy preparing South Asian and Mediterranean cooking, you should have most of the ingredients on hand. Each of the recipes can be done in stages so you don’t have to feel overwhelmed. Make your spice blend one day and soak your cashews. The next day, prepare the Pea and Cashew Curry, since it actually tastes even better if made one day ahead.

Then make the apple curry the day you intend on serving this feast and serve it either with basmati rice or some naan. I used some of the leftover coconut milk from the Spicy Apple Curry to rewarm the Pea and Cashew Curry. If you are not making both recipes, you likely will want to add some water to the Pea and Cashew Curry when rewarming. You want a thick sauce, but you don’t want things to burn.

In the past year, I have been using Indian Bay Leaves (Cinnamomum tamala) when I cook my Basmati rice. These are not to be confused with Bay Laurel Leaves, nor are they a substitute. The Indian Bay Leaves impart a subtle cinnamon flavor and have transformed my rice, especially when I have added either butter or a buttery EVOO to the mix. Everyone who tastes the rice loves it, but they can never place the secret ingredient.

Cooking should be fun and stress-free and a time to take a few chances. Hopefully a delicious and often healthy product results that is seasoned to your taste. These Sri Lankan recipes are no exception. I am giving you the measurements as originally written, but feel free to adapt them to your comfort level with spice. And if you only make the Pea and Cashew Curry or only the Apple Curry, as a side dish that is just great. And while occasionally I make my own naan, I also buy it. So take a journey and eat well. Just enjoy!

Recipe

Yield: 4 servings

Pea and Cashew Curry

Ingredients

300 g raw cashews

1 tsp salt for the brine

½ medium onion diced

2 cloves garlic finely chopped

2½ tsp Sri Lankan curry powder

¼ tsp turmeric powder

1/4 to ½ tsp cayenne pepper

½ tsp sugar

8 fresh curry leaves if you can get your hands on them (I used dry as I do not have easy access to fresh leaves)

13.5 oz. can of good quality full-fat coconut milk (If your cans are slightly larger that is fine)

1 to 1.5 cups frozen peas 

Directions

Place the cashews in a bowl and cover with room temperature water. Add the salt and mix to dissolve. Cover and leave the cashews to soak overnight (up to 24 hours)

When you’re ready to cook the cashews, drain them and set aside.

Heat about a tablespoon or two of oil (you can use coconut oil or a neutral tasting oil, like Avocado or Canola) in a medium-sized saucepan, over medium heat.

Add the chopped onions and sauté until translucent.

Add the garlic, bay leaves/curry leaves and sauté for a few minutes until it becomes fragrant.

Add the soaked and drained cashews, turmeric, curry powder, cayenne pepper, sugar and a generous pinch of salt and the coconut milk. Mix to combine.

Cover and let it simmer for 45 – 50 minutes. Check from time to time to make sure there’s enough liquid in the saucepan – add water if needed. Add salt to taste.

When the cashews are cooked, they should be firm on the outside, but not crunchy when eaten. They should be almost al dente in texture but be creamy when eaten.

Add some water if the gravy is too thick (I add about ½ cup of water). Add the frozen peas and cook until the peas are heated and cooked through and the gravy is simmering – about 10 more minutes.

Serve warm with rice. This can be made a couple of days ahead and it actually tastes better on the second day. Leftovers can be reheated.

Sri Lankan Spicy Green Apple Curry

Yield: 4 to 6 servings

Ingredients

2 large Granny Smith apples or any crisp apple that has a slightly sour profile (My apples were on the smaller side so I used 3)

3 tablespoons of oil

1 1/2 teaspoons mustard seeds

1/2 medium onion roughly chopped

1 – 2 bay leaves dried

1 green chili pepper jalapeno or serrano

3 to 5 dried red chili peppers (Such as Arbol chili) de-seeded, if you prefer a milder curry

1 tablespoon Sri Lankan Roasted Curry Powder

1/4 tsp turmeric powder

1/2 to 1 tsp chilli powder/cayenne pepper or less for a milder curry (I love Rajasthan chilli which has a sweet, fruity and mild heat. I now use this in place of cayenne or whenever chilli powder is called for. It is easily available online and in South Asian grocery stores.)

2 garlic cloves chopped finely

1 tablespoons of brown sugar or jaggery, if you have it

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 cup coconut milk

1/3 cup water or apple cider/natural juice NOT VINEGAR

Salt to taste

Directions

Chop the onions and slice the green and red chili peppers. Remove the seeds if you prefer less heat in your apple curry.

Wash and cut apples into quarters. Do not remove the core or the apples will get mushy. I did pop out the seeds, however. Halve the quarters length-wise for thinner slices or across for chunkier pieces.

Heat the oil over medium heat in a non-stick saucepan or skillet.

Add the onions, bay leaves, green and red chili pepper and mustard seeds, and sauté for a few minutes till onions are softened. (While I did use all of the noted Arbol chiles, I removed them after adding the coconut milk. One Indian vlogger that I follow, says that Westerners have “Baby-mouth.” I’d say that my husband and I have graduated to “Toddler-mouth!” Since you can control the heat when you cook, you do what feels comfortable.

Add the Sri Lankan curry powder, turmeric and chili powder and mix for about 30 seconds, just until you start to smell the spices.

Add the sliced/quartered apples, garlic, salt and sugar and cook on medium high heat for a few minutes while gently coating the apples all over with the spices.

Cook the apples for about 10 minutes – uncovered, stirring occasionally. The apples will start to soften slightly.

Add the coconut milk and water/apple cider and stir through with the apples. Return to the stove for another 5 – 10 minutes covered, until the apples soften – PLEASE SEE NOTE.

Taste and season with more salt if desired.

Carefully stir through to coat the apples with the sauce/gravy – since the apples have softened and you don’t want them to break up (add more water if you like more sauce – but I recommend a thicker sauce).

NOTE – cook the apples for only about 5 minutes if you prefer slightly firmer apples that still have a good bite to it. Cook them up to 8 minutes if you prefer softer apples in your curry. They are firmer in traditional Sri Lankan apple curries.

Sri Lankan Roasted Curry Powder

Ingredients

30 g coriander seeds 4 – 5 tablespoons

30 g cumin seeds 3 tablespoons

20 g black peppercorns 2 tablespoons (I actually used a mix of peppercorns because that’s what I had.)

20 g basmati rice 1.5 – 2 tablespoons

5 g green cardamom seeds from about 20 – 30 green cardamom pods. Reduce by half for a more subtle cardamom flavor

6 g fennel seeds about 2 tsp

4 g whole cloves about 20 – 30 cloves. Leave out if you don’t like cloves or reduce to 10– 15 for a more subtle clove flavor

4 g black mustard seeds optional, about 1 tsp

16 leaves curry leaves optional, you can use either dried or fresh leaves

Directions

Remove the seeds from the cardamom pods and discard the husks. (I buy already husked cardamom seeds these days because I use so many in baking etc. However, I also have whole pods for cooking.)

Optional (if using fresh curry leaves. I only use dried) – Heat a skillet over medium low heat. When the pan is hot, add fresh curry leaves to dry them out on low heat. Keep moving the leaves around in the skillet so that they dry out evenly, and don’t burn. Skip this step if you’re not using curry leaves OR if you’re using dried curry leaves. Remove the dried leaves and set aside.

Place the rice in a dry non-stick pan. Heat over medium heat until the rice starts to turn light brown in color.20 g basmati rice

Add the rest of the spices and the cardamom seeds to the rice, and pan roast for a further 2 – 4 minutes until the spices start to brown, toast, and become aromatic. The time will vary depending on the heat of your stove and the amount of spices in your skillet.

Keep moving the spices around to prevent them from burning. I like to shake the pan to keep the spices moving, and doing this off heat from time to time will also help to evenly toast the spices. Make sure not to burn the spices, as this will result in a bitter curry powder.

Remove from the heat and place all the toasted spices in a plate or bowl for the spices to cool down.

Add the dried curry leaves to the spices and mix once or twice to allow the spices to cool down faster.

Once the spices cool down, use a spice grinder (or a mortar and pestle) to grind the spice mix into a powder (in batches if needed), and mix well. Store in an airtight container.