Six-Vegetable Curry

1 lg All Purpose Potato; Peeled

-And Cut Into 3/4-Inch Cubes 1 lg Sweet Potato; Peeled And Cut

-Into 3/4-Inch Cubes 2 md Turnips; Peeled And Cut Into

-3/4-Inch Cubes 2 lg Zucchini; Sliced Crosswise

-Into 1-Inch Thick Slices 1/2 lg Eggplant; Cut Into 3/4-Inch

-Cubes, About 12 Ounces 12 ea Stringbeans; Cut Into 2-Inch

-Lengths 3 tb Safflower Or Canola Oil

2 lg Onions; Finely Chopped

1 ts Cumin Seeds

1/2 c Chickpea Flour; (Besan)

1 ts Fenugreek; Ground

6 Fresh Green Chiles; Such As

-New Mexico, Finely Chopped -(Seeded And De-ribbed If -You LIke It Less Hot) 2 tb Fresh Ginger; Minced

1 tb Coriander; Ground

1 ts Tumeric; Ground

1 ts Dark Brown Sugar

1 ts Salt

4 md Tomatoes; Peeled And

-Coarsely Chopped 4 Bay Leaves

1 tb Tamarind Concentrate;

-Dissolved In 3 Tb Hot Water -OR 1 tb Molasses; Dissolved In 3 Tb

-Lemon Juice 1/4 c Fresh Coriander; Chopped,

-(Cilantro) Place the potato, sweet potato, turnips, zucchini, eggplant and string beans in a large bowl of ice water. Heat the oil in a large enameled cast-iron casserole. Add the onions and cumin seeds and cook over moderately low heat, stirring until the onions soften, 7 to 8 minutes. Stir in the chickpea flour and fenugreek and cook, stirring until the chickpea flour becomes a paste and browns slightly, 2 to 3 minutes more. Pour in 2 cups of warm water and bring to a boil, over moderately high heat. Cook, stirring, until the gravy begins to thicken, about 1 minute. Add 2 more cups of water and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low and cook until the gravy reduces and thickens slightly, about 10 minutes. Stir in the chiles, ginger, ground coriander, tumeric, brown sugar, and salt and cook for 5 minutes longer, stirring gently. Drain the vegetables and add them to the gravy. Stir in the tomatoes and bay leaves, cover and cook until the vegetables are tender but not mushy, about 20 to 30 minutes. (If making this dish ahead, under cook the vegetables slightly. Refrigerated the dish for up to 2 days. When re-heating the mixture, add 1/2 cup of water and bring to a simmer over moderate heat before proceeding.) Stir in the tamarind mixture and the fresh coriander and cook, uncovered for 5 minutes. Discard the bay leaves and serve. NOTE: Serve with cooling fresh Pineapple for those that do not like the heat. Posted by: Rich Harper From: Food And Wine April 1994