When I was maybe third or fourth grade, I asked my mom to make chicken curry. My request was inspired by an episode of Sailor Moon when Chibi-usa (Rini in the dub) makes chicken curry for a family day at school. Despite knowing who her mother is and finding a loving home with Usagi’s (Serena’s) parents, Chibi-usa doesn’t invite any parental figures to the family day and goes about the whole process alone. It’s a lonely episode with an uplifting ending, but it inspired me to try chicken curry.
My mom did make it, but I wasn’t a fan because it was unexpectedly spicy. I don’t remember the specifics of that dinner, just feeling disappointed that the meal wasn’t as good as I thought it would be.
Fifteen years later, I’m making it in my kitchen from scratch with a rag tag arsenal of ingredients that will hopefully work well together. Curry as an adult? Delicious.
Since becoming an adult with a kitchen of my own, I taught myself cooking by reading recipes, trial-and-error experiments, and calling my mom. Despite my refusal to include onions or salt (the biggest flavor boosters), I like to think I’m a good cook, if only for those times I throw a bunch of random ingredients together with nothing but a hope and a prayer that it will work out.
This is one of those recipes.
If you’d like to recreate the recipe below, I apologize. Measurements are not exact (as if I measure anything anyway) and creative interpretations are strongly encouraged.
HOPE AND A PRAYER CHICKEN CURRY
INGREDIENTS:
- Aldi’s apple-flavored chicken sausage
- World Market’s pumpkin-flavored gnocchi
- 1x zucchini
- two big handfuls of sliced celery*
- small handful of baby carrots, sliced into quarters*
- 2 slices of green pepper*
- the last of my butter, about 2 tablespoons? Maybe 3?
- couple tablespoons of flour
- 2 cups of water
*The celery, carrots, and green peppers were taken from a gallon-sized bag of vegetables that are used for either snacking or cooking. Hence the odd proportions.
For a gluten-free version, use corn starch instead of flour.
For a vegan version, substitute butter with oil and remove the chicken sausage.
SPICES
- Ginger
- Lemon Pepper seasoning
- Cumin
- Paprika
- Coriander
- Cardamon
- Sage
- Curry Powder
- 2 cubes chicken bouillon
MAKING IT
I will simply state my steps and you can modify to your preferences.
- Use your biggest pot and fill it 3/4 full of water. Set it on the oven to boil. While that’s happening, remove the chicken sausage from the packaging and place it on a fry pan. Fill pan with some water and simmer, covered, until gnocchi is done, flipping occasionally.
- While water is boiling, chop/slice vegetables. When water boils, add gnocchi and continue chopping vegetables until gnocchi floats. It’s okay to finish chopping vegetables if all the gnocchi is floating. It doesn’t harm anything.
- Dump gnocchi into a strainer and keep it in the sink for the time being. Turn off the burner for the chicken sausage. Set sausage aside on a plate to cool outside the water.
- Reset the burner to Medium. Using the gnocchi pot, put all the butter into it and stir it around with a wooden spoon until mostly melted. Add as much ginger as you desire to butter.
- Add vegetables to butter and stir until mixed. Shake the rest of the spices onto vegetables in whatever order you desire. Add some flour. Mix that around.
- Add the chicken bouillon (if you haven’t done so already) and pour the water into the vegetables. Mix around until the bouillon is dissolved.
- Increase the heat to med-high and let sit while you slice the sausage. Add sausage into mixture. When boiling, add gnocchi, mix, and reduce heat to simmer.
- Simmer until you’re done hand-washing all the dishes.
- If sauce not as thick as desired, add some more flour 1/2 tablespoon at a time. (Don’t do what I did and accidentally dump a bunch on it. I added more water to even it out.)
- It’s done when it’s hot.
Final result: good. Could use a little extra kick, but I love what I made. The sauce is thicker intended, but it doesn’t take away from the final experience. The unexpectedly awesome flavor combination comes from the sausage, which is apple-flavored, slathered in the curry sauce. Curry-flavored apples sounds odd, but I have a feeling it would be just as good.
For next time: I would add garlic, turmeric, my roommate’s unwanted half an onion, and something spicy like cayenne.
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