The Baked Sweet Potatoes with Green Tahini will pair perfectly with the Kidney Bean Korma.
Baked Sweet Potatoes with Green Tahini
Despite the addition of bacon, the baked sweet potatoes are inspired by the cool cuisine of Tel Aviv. Here vegetables are the star of the show and often it’s the condiments they come with that take them to the next level. The green tahini is everything: rich and delicious, but also spicy and herby at the same time, cutting through the sweetness of the potatoes. John Gregory-Smith said he added the bacon as the dish “screamed for something salty”.
Serves 4
Ingredients
2 tablespoons olive oil
4 sweet potatoes
4 rashers of streaky bacon (about 100g) finely sliced juice of 1 lemon
2 handfuls of roughly chopped parsley
2 teaspoons sumac sea salt and freshly ground black pepper for the green tahini
80g tahini juice of 1 lemon
½ garlic clove
½ green chilli, deseeded if you like
A handful of coriander (cilantro) leaves sea salt
Method
1: Preheat the oven to 200°C fan (400°F/gas 8). Rub 2 tablespoons of the oil over the sweet potatoes and season well with salt and pepper. Place into a roasting tin and roast for 40 to 60 minutes, depending on size, until tender.
2: Meanwhile, heat a non-stick frying pan (skillet) over a medium heat and chuck in the bacon. Stir-fry for four to six minutes until crispy.
3: To make the green tahini, put all the tahini ingredients into a food processor with 80ml of water and a good pinch of salt. Blitz until smooth.
4: Put the red onion into a bowl and add the lemon juice and a pinch of salt. Mix well and leave for five minutes to allow the onion to mellow. Add the parsley and sumac and mix well.
5: To serve, transfer the potatoes to serving plates and slice them open. Pour over plenty of the tahini sauce and top with the onion salad and bacon. Drizzle over a little more sauce and serve immediately.
Kidney Bean Korma
Serves 4
This is a simple recipe that’s inspired by an Afghan kidney bean curry. Cook the beans slowly in a rich tomato sauce with plenty of garlic and spices. Adding coconut cream at the end lifts the flavour and gives the sauce a silky finish . . . delicious.
Ingredients
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 onion, finely chopped
4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
2 teaspoons ground cumin
2 teaspoons ground coriander
2 teaspoons dried mint
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2x400g tins of kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1x400g tin of chopped tomatoes
2 tablespoons tomato puree
350ml vegetable stock
2 tablespoons coconut cream or 20g butter a handful of coriander (cilantro) leaves boiled rice to serve
Method
1: Heat the oil in a saucepan over a medium heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, for six to eight minutes until golden. Add the garlic, cumin, ground coriander, mint and black pepper. Mix well.
2: Add the kidney beans, tomatoes, tomato puree and stock to the pan with the onion. Add a good pinch of salt and mix well. Bring to the boil, cover, reduce heat to low and cook, stirring occasionally, for 30 minutes so the flavours can develop.
3: Remove the lid and increase the heat to medium so you have a gentle bubble and cook, stirring occasionally, for 15 to 20 minutes until the sauce is really rich and thick.
4: Add the butter and stir together to melt. Check the seasoning and add more salt to taste. Sprinkle with plenty of coriander and serve immediately with rice.
