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Sri Lankan Fish Croquettes

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December 26, 2018

OK, I’m going out on a limb again posting another Sri Lankan recipe.

Whenever I do that, fewer people open the email and even fewer look at the recipe.  Sri Lankan food just doesn’t garner the interest (among my readers, at least) that Italian food does.  Interestingly (or not, perhaps) my cousin’s Marinated Pasta Salad from two weeks ago got the largest response ever!

Although a majority of my recipes are Italian, I am reluctant to post ONLY Italian recipes.  There are just so many things that I like to cook…and therefore want to share…that I want to keep my options open.  What happens, if for example if I choose to post only Italian recipes and then want to post my recipe for Bourbon Brown Sugar Apricot Jam?  That most certainly is NOT Italian.  (But it is so, so good!)

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One possibility, I guess, would be to focus this blog on Italian food exclusively and to start a second blog that includes all the other foods I like to cook.  The majority of that food would end up being Asian with a smattering of Western Cuisines.  Bourbon Brown Sugar Apricot Jam would be just as out of place there as it would in an exclusively Italian-food-oriented blog. (And, I’m not sure I could keep two blogs going.)

Here’s my request:  Use the comment feature to let me know what you think about the options, or even come up with alternative suggestions, for how to focus the blog.  I plan to continue posting while I am in Italy for three months but that would be a great time to redesign the focus of the blog, if need be, and start fresh when I return.

Nanacy Rajapakse (left), who taught me the fundamentals of Sri Lankan cuisine, and her sister Thilaka in 2005.

As for the Fish Croquettes, these are actually called Fish Cutlets in Sri Lanka but croquettes would be a more common term in the West.  I think you’ll find that they go really well with cocktails and, if you didn’t tell anyone they were Sri Lankan, nobody would be the wiser.

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Over the next few months, I will post a few more of my favorite Sri Lankan recipes.  When I started doing this in the late summer, my plan was to post enough recipes for my readers to be able to put together a credible Sri Lankan meal, not that every dish I posted would need to be included but that I would have posted enough of an assortment of recipes to provide a good basis for selection.

Fishing boats in Sri Lanka

I am going to follow through on that plan in the coming months.  Upcoming recipes might include Beef Smoore, Devilled Cashews, Ghee Rice, Pol Sambol, Pork Badun, Beet Curry, Fish Curry, Pickled Lime, Pumpkin Curry, Tempered Cabbage and Peppers, and Wattalappam.  If you’ve got a favorite that you want me to post just let me know!

The blog will be an interesting juxtaposition over the next few months as I chronicle my culinary experience in Italy interspersed with Sri Lankan recipes.

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 Sri Lankan Fish Croquettes
Although Tuna is a traditional fish used for cutlets, almost any type of fish will work. Good quality frozen tuna can be used in place of fresh. Curry leaves can be found in many Asian markets. There really is no substitute for them in terms of taste but if not having access to curry leaves is the only thing preventing you from trying this recipe, use another fresh green herb such as basil, thyme, or oregano. These may be served warm or at room temperature.
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Course Appetizers and Nibbles, Fish and Seafood, Mains
Cuisine Sri Lankan
Prep Time 1 hour
Cook Time 1 1/2 hours
Passive Time 4 hours
Servings
croquettes
Ingredients
For the croquettes
For dredging and frying
Course Appetizers and Nibbles, Fish and Seafood, Mains
Cuisine Sri Lankan
Prep Time 1 hour
Cook Time 1 1/2 hours
Passive Time 4 hours
Servings
croquettes
Ingredients
For the croquettes
For dredging and frying
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Instructions
  1. Peel the potatoes. Cut them into pieces approximately ¾ inch on a side.
  2. Put the cut potatoes in a steamer basket. Sprinkle with ground black pepper to taste.
  3. Steam the potatoes over boiling water until tender, 15-25 minutes.
  4. Put the cooked potatoes into a mixing bowl.
  5. Cut the fish into strips approximately 1 ½ inches wide.
  6. Put the fish in the steamer basket. Sprinkle with ground black pepper to taste.
  7. Steam the fish over boiling water until fully cooked and flaky, 10-20 minutes. If the fish has skin, remove it after steaming.
  8. Put the fish on a plate to cool.
  9. Coarsely chop the green chiles
  10. Grind the onions and green chile in a food processor.
  11. Sauté the ground onion mixture, curry leaves, and cumin in the oil until the onion is soft but not brown, 6-8 minutes.
  12. Coarsely mash the partially cooled potato.
  13. Add the fish to the potato and mash again. The mixture should not be completely smooth but there should not be any really large chunks.
  14. Add the onion mixture and salt to the mashed potatoes and fish. Mix well.
  15. Add the eggs and then enough breadcrumbs to bind the mixture. The amount of breadcrumbs needed will vary based on the moisture content. Use your judgement and opt for making the mixture a little loose rather than overly stiff.
  16. Refrigerate, covered, for several hours for the breadcrumbs to fully hydrate.
  17. Taste and adjust salt (and chile if you wish).
  18. Divide into 50 portions. Shape each into a slightly flattened oval shape.
Final Assembly
  1. Season the flour with salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste.
  2. Beat the four eggs lightly and season with salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste.
  3. Dredge each croquette in flour, then dip in the beaten egg, then roll in the breadcrumbs.
  4. Refrigerate, uncovered, at least one hour before frying.
  5. Deep fry the croquettes at 350°F to 375°F until golden brown.
  6. Drain on a rack set in a rimmed baking sheet.
Recipe Notes

Curry leaves have an alluring flavor that isn't really comparable to any other herb.  I recommend that you try to find them.  You will probably have extra left.  I suggest adding the whole fresh leaves to eggs before scrambling.

Fresh curry leaves

Copyright © 2018 by Villa Sentieri, LLC. All rights reserved.

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Recipes

Sri Lankan Cashew Curry

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August 29, 2018

I know I’ve posted a lot of Sri Lankan recipes recently.  I’m trying to post enough to create a Sri Lankan meal if my readers are interested.

Sri Lankan food is not common in the United States.  There are some Sri Lankan restaurants on Staten Island but I’ve never ventured to them when I’ve been in New York.  It’s not that I don’t want to, but it’s a bit of a hike to get there…and there are so many good restaurants in NYC that are easier to get to.

One of these days I’ll try some of the Sri Lankan restaurants in Los Angeles but for now I’ll have to settle on my own cooking.

Sri Lankan Arrack is made from the sap of coconut blossoms (Photo by SilentBobxy2 [CC BY-SA 3.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0) or GFDL (http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html)], from Wikimedia Commons)
If you like Indian, especially South Indian, and Thai food, chances are excellent that you will like Sri Lankan cooking.  I find the spices in Sri Lankan food to be more delicate than Indian with abundant use of super-aromatic spices like cardamom, cinnamon and cloves.

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Curry leaves are an absolute delight, lending a taste and aroma that I can’t really describe.

Although native to Brazil, the cashew was transported to India by the Portuguese in the sixteenth century.  From there it spread throughout South Asia.  It is also commonly grown in Africa.

Cashews are an integral part of Sri Lankan cuisine.  Devilled cashews are a common nibble with cocktails.  Arrack is the classic distilled spirit of Sri Lanka, made from the sap of coconut blossoms.

In Sri Lanka, cashew curry is made from fresh cashews.  I’ve never seen fresh cashews in the United States.  Whole raw cashews work well if soaked in water for several hours, just like dried beans.

In my experience there are two basic styles of cashew curry in Sri Lanka, a dry one and one with gravy.  The one I have always made is with gravy.  The “gravy” is really seasoned coconut milk.

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In years past, I would always make my own coconut milk from shredded coconut but now, with rare exception, I use coconut milk that I’ve purchased.  With a good quality coconut milk, such as Aroy-D it is really impossible to tell the difference when making a curry or other well-seasoned dish.

Aroy-D is an excellent brand of coconut milk

This is an especially easy dish to prepare as all the ingredients are simmered.  There’s no sautéing involved.  That makes it a great introduction to Sri Lankan cooking.  Serve it with rice to sop up all the wonderful gravy.

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 Sri Lankan Cashew Curry
If using homemade coconut milk, use 3 cups of thin milk instead of 1 ½ cups purchased coconut milk and 1 ½ cups water. Long thin chilies, such as Cayenne or Thai Bird peppers would be appropriate for this dish.
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Course Mains, Vegetarian
Cuisine Sri Lankan
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour
Passive Time 3 hours
Servings
people
Ingredients
Course Mains, Vegetarian
Cuisine Sri Lankan
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour
Passive Time 3 hours
Servings
people
Ingredients
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Instructions
  1. Cover the cashews with water and allow to soak for 2-3 hours, or overnight in the refrigerator.
  2. Split and seed the chilies.
  3. Lightly crush the lemongrass. Peel off the tough outer layers and cut off the dark tough tops, leaving about 4 inches of softer inner pith.
  4. Put everything except cashews, thick coconut milk, and salt into a saucepan.
  5. Boil gently, uncovered, for about 10 minutes.
  6. Add drained, soaked cashews and simmer approximately 15-20 minutes.
  7. Add two teaspoons salt.
  8. Simmer until cashews are cooked but not mushy, approximately 10-20 minutes more.
  9. Add thick coconut milk.
  10. Taste and adjust salt.
  11. Simmer 5 minutes more.
Recipe Notes

Rampe (pandan, bai tuey, or bai toey) can be purchased frozen in Asian grocery stores.

Copyright © 2018 by Villa Sentieri, LLC. All rights reserved.

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Recipes

Sri Lankan Roasted Curry Powder

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August 8, 2018

Most historians of cooking claim that curry powders are legacies of the European colonization of South and Southeast Asia.   I don’t doubt that this is partially true but I think the reality is much more nuanced.

The word “curry” is believed to come from the Tamil word “kari,” meaning sauce.  Now, however, the term is applied to a range of dishes from a wide swath of South and Southeast Asian countries, not just to dishes from India.

What constitutes a “curry powder?”  Does it take multiple spices and herbs or just more than one?

In Sri Lankan cooking, for example, the combination of coriander and cumin in a two-to-one mixture is commonly used in many dishes.  This is so much the case, that Nanacy Rajapakse, who taught me Sri Lankan cooking, suggested that I make the mix and have it available for use as needed.

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I think we can generally acknowledge that “curry” as we use the term in the Western world, is really a Western construct.  It usually refers to a generously spiced dish cooked in liquid, though the liquid may be (mostly) boiled away in some cases to make a “dry” curry.  The word “curry” (or translational equivalent) may not figure into the name of a given dish in the local language but when rendered in English, I suspect, the word “curry” is often used in the name of a dish to signify the general concept.

An array of Sri Lankan dishes. The darker beef and pork dishes make use of roasted curry powder.

Whether commonly prepared spice blends used in these countries actually constitute “curry powders” is a matter of definition and whether or not these spice blends pre-date, or are a result of, European influence is up for debate.  Even when curry powders or pastes are used, my experience is that other herbs and spices are almost always added to fine tune the taste of a dish.  In South and Southeast Asian cooking, it would be rare to rely on curry powder alone to flavor a dish.

Clearly, however, the way spice blends are used in South and Southeast Asia differs from the way “curry powder” is used the Western cooking, whether the curry powder is used to impart an interesting flavor to an otherwise Western dish (like deviled eggs, for example) or to create a Western version of an Asian dish (like a generic “curry” found in so many cookbooks that predate the last 20 years, or so).

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In addition to the coriander-cumin blend noted above, Sri Lankan cuisine makes use of roasted curry powder for meat dishes and unroasted curry powder for vegetable dishes.

Though the spices for many “curries” are cooked in oil at the start, the roasted curry powder of Sri Lanka is different.  It produces a depth of flavor that is completely different from that which can be obtained by simply frying the raw spices and herbs at the beginning of cooking.  While it’s easy to pull together different spices individually for each non-meat dish that might otherwise use an unroasted curry powder, one cannot replicate the taste of roasted curry powder without actually roasting it.  There really is no substitute for roasted curry powder if one wants to make traditional Sri Lankan food.

A curry leaf plant.  The leaves are very fragrant.

There are several dishes planned for the coming months that make use of roasted curry powder.  Today’s recipe is the starting point for those recipes.  If  you have any interest in Sri Lankan, or South Asian, cooking you won’t be disappointed in whipping up a batch of this curry powder.

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 Sri Lankan Roasted Curry Powder
Roasted curry powder is used in Sri Lanka for meat dishes. It brings a depth of flavor that cannot be achieved by any other means.
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Course Spice Mixtures and Rubs
Cuisine Sri Lankan
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 25 minutes
Servings
cup
Ingredients
Course Spice Mixtures and Rubs
Cuisine Sri Lankan
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 25 minutes
Servings
cup
Ingredients
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Rating: 0
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Instructions
  1. Combine the coriander seeds, cumin seeds, peppercorns, mustard seeds, fennel seeds, cloves, and cinnamon on a rimmed baking sheet.
  2. Roast in the oven 325º F, stirring occasionally, until golden brown, approximately 20-25 minutes.
  3. Lightly crush the cardamom pods but don't remove the husk.
  5. Combine the cardamom pods and curry leaves on a different baking sheet.
  6. Roast the cardamon pods and curry leaves in the same oven as the seeds until the leaves are crispy. Remove the leaves
  7. Continue roasting the cardamom pods until lightly browned.
  8. Roast the cayenne pepper in a dry frying pan over moderate heat till slightly darkened in color.
  9. After removing the roasted spices from the heat, immediately pour them into a cool rimmed baking sheet as the heat of the baking or frying pan can overcook them.
  10. Finely grind the coriander seeds, cumin seeds, peppercorns, mustard seeds, fennel seeds, cloves, and cinnamon in a coffee mill.
  11. Stir in the roasted cardamom pods, curry leaves and cayenne pepper. The curry leaves and crushed should not be ground.
Recipe Notes

Copyright © 2018 by Villa Sentieri, LLC. All rights reserved.

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Recipes

Nanacy Rajapakse’s Sri Lankan Dhal

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June 29, 2018

Who knew dhal could be so complicated?

I discovered dhal in college.  This was mostly during my junior year which provided an amazing, non-stop culinary experience as I lived in the International Residence Project at the University of Pennsylvania.

Dhal refers both to the main ingredient and to the preparation.  Let’s deal with the main ingredient for a bit.

I’ve typically thought of dhal as a synonym for the word “pulse” which, in common, everyday American English, we rarely use.  A pulse is the dried seed of a legume.  Think lentil, dried beans, chickpeas, and so forth.

So far so good.

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Usually, but not always, a dried legume only becomes dhal if it is split.  So, split red lentils (used in this dish) would be dhal but the whole ones would not.  In Indian cookery the word “gram” refers to the whole legume that, if split, would be “dhal.”

According to the Wikipedia entry on legumes, the “term ‘pulse,’ as used by the United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), is reserved for crops harvested solely for the dry seed.  This excludes green beans and green peas, which are considered vegetable crops.”  Peruse any Indian cookbook however, and you’ll see the term dhal applied to dried split peas just as readily as it is to lentils, which are only harvested to be used dried (unlike peas).  So much for the distinction that the crop only be used for the dry seed.

I suppose one shouldn’t be surprised.  The names of different foods vary from region to region and usage is not necessarily consistent.

Split red lentils, referred to as Mysore dhal or a variant of the spelling

While there might be disagreements, need I say confusion, about what constitutes dhal, the dried (and maybe split) legume, the preparation of the dish itself is pretty straightforward.

To turn dhal into dhal, you boil it with flavoring ingredients such as aromatics and herbs and spices.  The resultant dish can have the consistency of porridge or soup or anything in between but it is clearly, and unmistakably, dhal.

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My initial introduction to dhal was Indian.  Channa dhal, a smaller relative of the chickpea (called channa in Hindi) looks pretty much like yellow split peas, which, by the way, are a very good substitute for channa dhal.  My introduction to dhal made from channa dhal (I know, it’s confusing) came initially from Maharaja, the first Indian restaurant in Philadelphia (circa 1972).  The restaurant was actually owned by the aunt of someone with whom I now work.  Small world.  Someone who, by the way, actually asked ME for some Indian recipes!!!

The introduction to dhal deepened after I met Ray Hugh at the end of sophomore year when we were introduced as roommates-to-be in the International Residence Project for our junior year at Penn.  We roomed together over the preceding summer.  We both cooked.  Ray is from Guyana and his cooking reflects the country’s ethnic heritage:  Indian, Chinese, African and Amerindian.

Ray made channa dhal.

Frank and I having a seafood-based meal with Nanacy Rajapakse (far right) in Sri Lanka, 2004

When I actually got into the International Residence Project at the beginning of junior year and tasted Nanacy Rajapakse’s Sri Lankan cooking, I was hooked.  It’s similar to Indian but actually more aromatic and possibly more delicately spiced, though often quite firey hot (which is a totally different characteristic from the non-chile herbs and spices that go into a dish).  For dhal, Sri Lankans typically use the small split red lentils called Mysore or Masoor dhal.  They cook up quickly.  The final consistency is more like porridge than soup.

Over the coming months, I’m going to post a number of Sri Lankan dishes.  If you’re culturally adventurous you might want to give them a try.  At the end of the series you’ll be able to pull together an entire meal that would satisfy anyone from Sri Lanka!

Print Recipe
 Nanacy Rajapakes's Sri Lankan Dhal
You can use more or less coconut milk to taste. I suggest ½ to 1 cup for this amount of dhal. An alternate way to serve this is to omit the coconut milk but add enough water to make a thick coarse puree. Top with some thinly sliced onions and cracked red pepper that have been fried in a little ghee or oil until crispy. Canned coconut milk varies tremendously in quality. Look for a brand that has few (or no) ingredients other than coconut and water. My go-to brand is Aroy-D. See the Notes section below. Dhal can be made ahead and refrigerated, tightly covered. Reheat gently before serving.
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Course Beans, Nuts and Legumes, Sides
Cuisine Sri Lankan
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Passive Time 3 hours
Servings
people
Ingredients
Course Beans, Nuts and Legumes, Sides
Cuisine Sri Lankan
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Passive Time 3 hours
Servings
people
Ingredients
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Instructions
  1. Wash and drain the dhal. Cover with cold water and soak for approximately three hours at room temperature. Refrigerate if it will soak longer.
  2. When ready to cook the dhal, drain and rinse again.
  3. Add fresh water to cover the dhal by approximately ½ inch.
  4. Add all the other ingredients except the coconut milk
  5. Simmer, partially covered, till soft, approximately 20-30 minutes.
  6. Most of the water should be absorbed by this point. If not, boil quickly uncovered to evaporate the excess.
  7. Add coconut milk and salt to taste.
  8. Simmer gently until slightly thickened. Taste and adjust salt.
Recipe Notes

Aroy-D is an excellent choice if you are going to purchase, and not make, coconut milk.

Copyright © 2018 by Villa Sentieri, LLC. All rights reserved.

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Recipes

Sri Lankan Zucchini and Peppers

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February 28, 2018

As a freshman in college who made tentative forays into non-Western European cuisines, I was transformed into a person who couldn’t find a cuisine he wouldn’t try, and didn’t like, by the end of sophomore year.

Junior year was really an intensive study in cooking.  It’s the year I became a respectable Sri Lankan, Indian, Chinese, and West Indian cook.  There were many other cuisines that I dabbled in but those four formed the basis of what I cooked during the year.  By then I considered myself a good Italian cook but my repertory and skill level have expanded significantly since then.

Starting junior year, and for many years thereafter, Reggie and Nanacy Rajapakse taught me much of what I know of Sri Lankan food.  Several cookbooks by Charmaine Solomon, as well as the [Ceylon] Daily News Cookery Book, provided much additional guidance.  Several trips to Sri Lanka with Nanacy, many years later, confirmed to me that I had captured the taste of Sri Lankan food.

In 2005, I accompanied Nanacy Rajapakse to her nephew’s wedding. The groom (with flower on his lapel) and his family approach the wedding venue.

I understand that Sri Lankan food may be a stretch for some of my readers but I really want to introduce you to it.  As a starting point, I’ve selected a vegetable dish that pairs really well with a wide range of cuisines, Zucchini and Peppers with Fennel Seed and Cinnamon.

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I actually made this a few weeks ago at an otherwise all-Italian meal.  It paired really well.  The dinner guests, all of whom were Italian, didn’t think for a moment that it wasn’t Italian!

The wedding ceremony

It’s an example of a style of cooking vegetables in Sri Lanka called tempering.  The vegetables are cut into relatively small pieces.  Aromatics (onion, garlic, ginger, etc.), depending on the dish, are first sautéed.  The vegetables and seasonings are added and everything is cooked relatively quickly, 10 minutes or so depending on the vegetable.

Most Sri Lankans are ethnically Sinhalese.  The next largest group are Tamils, followed by individuals of Arab descent (called Moors locally).  Typically, Sinhalese are Buddhist, Tamils are Hindu, and Moors are Muslim.  There is a smattering of others ethnic groups and religions.

A reception for the newlyweds, several days after the wedding. Nanacy is on the right and her sister Thilaka is on the left

Hindus and Buddhists in South Asia, are nominally vegetarian.  Muslims typically don’t eat pork.  This recipe, which is ethnically Sinhalese, includes bacon which 92% of the Island’s population theoretically would typically refrain from eating.  But they don’t!

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In fact, I found no shortage of meat (and meat-eaters) on my trips to Sri Lanka.  Even the most ubiquitous of condiments, pol sambola, contains flakes of dried fish which would typically be avoided by both Buddhists and Hindus.  Clearly there is some sort of “accommodation” that the Sri Lankans have made around the idea of being vegetarian because the local cuisine contains a lot of (very wonderful) meat and fish dishes.

On the other hand, it’s also an easy place to be vegetarian.  One of my trips to Sri Lanka coincided with one of my periods of vegetarianism (which I ultimately gave up for cultural and health reasons).  There was an array of vegetarian options available at every meal.

A view of the Indian Ocean not far from Thilaka’s house south of Colombo

The most difficult time came when neighbors of Nanacy’s sister Thilaka, with whom we were staying, invited me over for a lunch of “curry and rice” which, although it sounds innocent enough, means you’re in for a delightful meal and lots and lots of food.  On the other hand “short eats” refers to snack food.

The neighbors had gone all out!  There was a huge array of dishes, each more wonderful than the last.  It truly was the best food I ate in Sri Lanka.  I tried to just eat the vegetarian options but it was clear that my hosts were distraught, though they would never have said anything to me.

Thilaka tempering vegetables for dinner

I decided that the appropriate response to their generosity was to eat everything.  My hosts quickly became delighted (as did my taste buds)!  Only years later did I come to understand that in Sri Lanka (and many Theravada Buddhist countries of South East Asia) Buddhist monks are obliged to accept all food offered to them, even meat, unless they suspect the animal was slaughtered specifically for them.

Since I was most certainly not a monk, I’m sure they couldn’t understand why I was only eating the vegetarian dishes rather than everything that was offered to me.  In the end, it was a happy accommodation for everyone involved.

If you have a favorite family recipe and a bit of a story to tell, please email me at santafecook@villasentieri.com and we can discuss including it in the blog. I am expanding the scope of my blog to include traditional recipes from around the country and around the world. If you haven’t seen Bertha’s Flan or Melinda’s Drunken Prunes, take a look.  They will give you an idea of what I’m looking for.

 

Print Recipe
 Sri Lankan Zucchini and Peppers
I learned to make this from Nanacy Rajapakse who is from Sri Lanka. Nanacy made it with bacon, and, while very good with bacon, it is also wonderful without. As a variation, cabbage, cut into ½ inch wide strips, can be substituted for the zucchini. Feel free to adjust the quantity of spices to your taste. Curry leaves can be difficult to obtain outside of large metropolitan areas with large South Asian or Southeast Asian populations. There is no substitute. If not available, just omit the curry leaves as I often do.
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Course Sides, Vegetables
Cuisine Sri Lankan
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Servings
people
Ingredients
Course Sides, Vegetables
Cuisine Sri Lankan
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Servings
people
Ingredients
Votes: 0
Rating: 0
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Instructions
  1. Peel and thinly slice the zucchini.
  3. Core and seed the peppers and cut into thin strips.
  4. Thinly slice the onion.
  5. Dice the bacon.
  6. Crush the fennel and cinnamon in mortar. Reserve.
  7. In a large sauté pan, fry the bacon until crisp.
  8. Remove and reserve the cooked bacon.
  9. Fry the onion in the rendered bacon fat until golden.
  10. When the onion is nearly done, add the crushed fennel seed and cinnamon along with the curry leaves, if using.
  11. Cook a few minutes longer to bloom the spices.
  12. Add the zucchini and peppers.
  13. Stir fry over high heat until the vegetables are pliable but still crunchy.
  14. Season with salt and pepper while cooking, tasting from time to time to adjust the seasoning. The dish is best with a bit of a bite from black pepper.
  15. Stir the cooked bacon into the vegetables after they have cooked.
Recipe Notes

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