And now for something completely different - to me, anyway. A cheese you can cook on a grill or in a pan and it doesn’t melt! Top this filling curry dish with chewy, tasty, pan-fried halloumi, pour a glass of retsina and you’ll feel like you’ve been transported to warm Mediterranean lands. Afiyet olsun!
Ingredient list for 4 servings
- 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil - divided
- 2 cans chickpeas - drained and rinsed
- kosher salt and black pepper
- 2 zucchini OR summer squash - diced
- 15 ounce can corn - rinsed and drained
- 1 shallot - chopped
- 1 inch fresh ginger - peeled and grated
- 2 cloves garlic - minced
- 1 ½ tablespoons yellow curry powder*
- ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper, more or less to taste
- 14 ounce can coconut milk
- 2 tablespoons tahini - stirred well
- 1 tablespoon lime juice
- ¼ cup fresh basil - roughly chopped
- 8 ounces Halloumi cheese, sliced into 8 - ¼ inch thick pieces
- 2 cups basmati rice - cooked
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- *Curry Powder 3 ½ tablespoons
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- 4t Cumin 4t Coriander
- 4t Turmeric 4t Chili Powder
- 2t Cinnamon 1t Cloves
- 1t Nutmeg
- Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. When the oil shimmers, add the chickpeas and season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally until the chickpeas begin to crisp, about 5 minutes.
- Add the zucchini, corn, shallot, garlic and ginger. Season with salt and pepper. Cook the veggies another 5-10 minutes or until they just begin to soften.
- Stir in the curry powder and cayenne and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the coconut milk, ⅓ - ½ cup water, and the tahini. Stir to combine, bring the mixture to a simmer over medium heat, cook 5-10 minutes or until the sauce thickens slightly. If the sauce thickens too much, add additional water to thin. Remove from the heat and stir in the lime juice.
- To serve, divide the rice among bowls and spoon the curry overtop. Top with halloumi and basil.
Note: If you’re making only 2 servings and refrigerating the leftovers, fry half of the halloumi now and the rest when you’re making this dish the second time.
Also, if you’re avoiding canned corn because most corn grown in the U.S. is bioengineered, Del Monte Foods’ sweet corn was USDA certified in 2016 as a non-GMO product.
