Slow Cooker Afghan Lamb with Spinach

I find Afghan food to be very flavorful -- accented with subtle spices. Afghan food is not as spicy as Indian food. Some Afghans love spicy food so they make various kinds of accompaniments to add the extra zing.

Onions are the base for most Afghan dishes. Sabzi Challow is a traditional Afghan NewYear’s Eve dish, made with spinach (sabzi) and lamb with rice (challow). This particular dish with lamb and spinach only is called Sabzi-e- Ghoste (means vegetable and meat).

I had sabzi -e-ghoste in an Afghan friend's wedding and wanted to try the dish since then. According to me the subtle spices in the spinach combined with lamb and Basmati rice is a perfect dinner for a rainy day.

Ingredients

2 pounds lamb meat
1 cup olive oil
2 onions, diced large
4 teaspoons chopped garlic
2 teaspoons turmeric
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper or to taste
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1 can (32 ounce size) tomatoes, drain and chop
8 oz water/ beef stock
1 pound fresh spinach, wash and drain
1/2 cup yogurt
1 tablespoon grated lemon peel
salt, to taste
1/4 cup roasted pine nuts

Directions
Sear lamb in the olive oil in a cast-iron skillet or Dutch oven. Add the onions; saute them for 2 minutes; then add the garlic and saute it for 1 minute. Put this mixture in the slow cooker 

Put in all the other ingredients except lemon peel, spinach and pine nuts.

Cook for 5 hrs on low then add the spinach and continue cooking for additional 3 hrs.

Add the lemon peel and salt to taste. Sprinkle with roasted pine nuts.

Serve over rice pilaf.

Slow cooker Thai Mango Chicken

Thai food is something that my whole family enjoys eating whenever we go out. Everything from the Satey to Drunken Noodle to Red and Yellow Curry dishes.... we love it all!

Growing up in a tropical country I simply loved mangoes and there’s something about the combination of Mango,Coconut milk and Chicken that just works. 

This dish is a myraid of colors and flavors. The base of this curry is basically onion, coconut milk and red pepper.

  

This recipe calls for yellow curry powder which is easier to make than you think, and the taste is so much better than store-bought powders which, unless you're lucky enough to find an organic blend, usually contains preservatives.  Using a curry powder rather than a paste means the curry is quick and easy to make, and many of the roadside curries I enjoyed in Thailand were made this way. 

I used boneless chicken tenderloins in this recipe as I had very little time for preparation. I planned to cook this in the afternoon for dinner, that's the only time I get to cook when my baby is taking her afternoon nap!

CURRY POWDER RECIPE

Ingredients:

• 1 Tbsp. turmeric

• 3 bay leaves 

• 3 Tbsp. whole coriander

• 2 Tbsp. cumin seed 

• 2 tsp. ground ginger

• 1 tsp. ground pepper 

• 2 to 3 tsp. cayenne pepper powder or chilli paste

• 2-3 whole clove

Direction

Remove pan from heat and tip spices into a bowl to cool. Meanwhile, prepare your grinder.
Place toasted spices in the grinder and grind well to make your curry powder.

If using whole spices

Place all ingredients in a dry frying pan over medium-high heat. Stir continuously for 1 minute, or until pan is very hot. Then reduce heat to medium and continue stirring 6 to 10 minutes. This will lightly toast the spices, leaving them even more fragrant and tasty.

If using ground  spices

Use all ground spices in this version, omitting the bay leaf until you cook your curry. Stir together the spices and then 'dry roast' them all together as instructed above. When you use the powder for curry, be sure to add 1-2 bay leaves to your curry pot.

MANGO CHICKEN RECIPE

Ingredients

1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into pieces (can also use drumsticks if you desire)
1 large onion, chopped
1 red bell pepper, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 Tbsp. fresh minced ginger 
2 Tbsp. yellow curry powder
1/2 tsp. ground cumin

4 Tbsp. of canola

1 can. coconut milk2 ripe mangoes, peeled and diced (try using little firm mangoes which are not very sweet)
2 Tbsp. apple cider vinegar (use any vinegar you have, except wine vinegar)
Salt to taste


Direction

Take a skillet add the oil in medium heat and put the onions. When the onions turn slight brown add the pepper and fry them together.
Put the chicken in the slow cooker first and then add all the other ingredients finishing with coconut milk at the end.
Dont worry about the mango it will be cooked and the pieces will be intact, cut bit bigger pieces so that it doesn't get mixed in the curry. 
Try to keep few pieces for garnish if you can........ my husband ate them, so I was not able to garnish my dish with mangoes.
Set your slow cooker on high for 2 1/2 hrs if using boneless chicken and 3 1/2 hrs if using drumsticks. 
I generally make it in the afternoon so I keep it on high, you can cook all night or day long on low for 6-7 hrs on timer.
Serve it with hot rice and garnish with mangoes.