VEGGIE MEATBALL CURRY

Happy Easter lovely people! Things have been slow in the Vegan Nigerian kitchen lately as I juggle life responsibilities and whatnot. Right now, I am home for the Easter break, feeling completely stress-free, surrounded by family and delicious home cooking ;) On the occasions that I cook for my entire family, I like to create hearty vegan meals that rival the regular meaty dishes they're used to eating. This veggie meatball curry is an example of such a meal. There's tons of flavour in every bite and the veggie 'meatball' morsels are mouthwatering. I served it with some fried plantain and a blend of brown rice, quinoa and bulgur wheat. Although the focus of this recipe is the curry, I'll include the instructions for the rice/quinoa/bulgur blend at the very end.
























Ingredients
(serves 4-5)
- 1 large red bell pepper
- 2 large tomatoes
- 3 vegan sausages (I used Linda McCartney's)
- 2 tbsp plain flour
- 2 potatoes (peeled)
- 1 large carrot
- 1/2 head of broccoli
- 1 small red onion
- 3 cloves garlic
- 1/2 scotch bonnet pepper
- 1 tin coconut milk
- 3 tbsp red lentils
- olive oil
- 1 tsp dried thyme
- 3 bay leaves
- salt

Blend the red bell pepper with 1 large tomato and half a cup of water until you have a smooth mixture. Set aside.

Defrost (if necessary) 3 vegan sausages and cut each one into 7 equal pieces. Roll each one between the palm of your hands to form the meatball shapes and roll them in some plain flour. Set aside.

Chop the second tomato into bite-size pieces, along with the peeled potatoes, carrots, and broccoli. Set aside.

Finely chop the small red onion, garlic and scotch bonnet pepper. Heat a cooking spoon of olive oil in a large cooking pot and sauté the chopped onion, garlic, scotch bonnet pepper and meatballs. Keep turning the meatballs around until they are lightly browned all over.

Add the rest of the chopped vegetables (carrots, broccoli, potatoes and tomato).

Add the blended red pepper and tomato mix. Then add the tin of coconut milk. Add the three tablespoons of red lentils for an extra depth of flavour. Stir gently to avoid crushing the meatballs. Season with enough salt to taste, dried thyme and 3 bay leaves.
Turn the heat down and allow to simmer for 15 minutes. Stir gently halfway through.

Serve with some rice and fried plantain.

Below is my technique for combining brown rice, quinoa and bulgur wheat...


Ingredients
- 1.5 cups brown rice
- 1/2 cup bulgur wheat
- 1/2 cup quinoa
- salt to taste

Place the brown rice in a cooking pot and fill with a generous amount of lightly salted water (i.e. triple the rice quantity). Cook on a high heat, uncovered. After 10 minutes, add the bulgur wheat and mix well. Add more water if you notice the water drying out too fast. After another 15 minutes, add the quinoa. Again, add a little bit more water if necessary. Turn the heat down, cover and allow to simmer for another 10 or so minutes until the brown rice, bulgur wheat and quinoa are all soft. Allow the water to evaporate so that you're left with a sticky rice consistency.