Cashew nut curry

Serves 6

Don’t be tempted to increase the chilli heat - the delicate spicing allows the cashews to be the star.

Cashew Nut Curry by Julie Biuso Photo: Supplied/Shared Kitchen

Ingredients

• 250g raw cashew nuts
• 2 cups desiccated coconut
• 2½ cups hot water
• 1½ Tbsp grated peeled ginger
• 2 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed
• 1 medium onion, peeled and sliced
• 2 fresh medium-hot long red chillies, halved and deseeded
• 2 short lengths of lemongrass, smashed with a mallet, or 5-6 strips lemon peel
• Small piece cinnamon bark
• ½ tsp ground turmeric
• 1 small stem curry leaves (optional)
• ½ tsp salt

Method

1 Soak cashews in water to cover for at least 1 hour but up to 4 hours. Drain.

2 Put the desiccated coconut in a blender or food processor and pour in the hot water. Blend for 30 seconds, then tip into a sieve set over a bowl. Squeeze with your hands to extract the milk (alternatively, use ready-prepared coconut milk).

3 Measure 600ml of coconut milk and put in a saucepan with the ginger, garlic, onion, chillies, lemongrass or lemon rind, cinnamon bark, turmeric and curry leaves, if using.

4 Bring to a gentle boil, then cook, uncovered for 12 minutes. Add the salt and cashew nuts, then cook gently for 30 minutes, or until the nuts are tender and the liquid is reduced (partially cover pan with a lid towards end of cooking if liquid is evaporating too fast). Transfer to a bowl and serve hot.