So many people confuse a whole food, plant-based (WFPB) lifestyle with eating bland and boring foods.  Essentially, a diet lacking in flavor or substance.  Nothing could be further from the truth!  Food does not have to be bland, especially when you learn to incorporate spices into your meals.

In my opinion, spices and herbs are the key to successfully transitioning into this lifestyle.  Spices and herbs are your friends.  Don’t be scared or intimidated by them.  Experiment.  Discover the uniqueness of the taste and aroma of each.  Play around with how much (or little) you use to match your tastes.  As these herbs and spices become more of a part of your every day cooking, you’ll become much more comfortable using them.

For me, I was never afraid of trying new things.  But I will be honest, Indian food intimidated me. 

I was intimidated ordering Indian food at restaurants, often playing it safe.  But then I met my wife.  Born in India, she introduced me to a whole new world.  She safely guided me through the confusion and helped me discover Indian dishes that I liked and those I steer clear of.

While I was courting my wife, she would make Indian dishes for me.  Watching her, I noticed that there was not an exact science to each dish.  She would pull down her spices, most of which were contained in a shiny steel container, separated by small steel bowls, with an odd-looking spoon.  But it seemed this shiny steel container was where the magic really happened.  I would watch her, trying to learn from every spoonful of spice she would add to a dish.  With time, I was no longer intimidated by the Indian spices.  It was now my turn to do the Indian cooking in our house.

Many Indian dishes contain dairy or oils.  Ghee, which is clarified butter, is often used, as is cream or paneer (Indian cheese).  To make these WFPB-compliant, I substitute vegetable broth for ghee or oil, raw cashews or nut milk for cream, and tofu for paneer.  Once you understand these simple substitutions, almost any Indian dish can be modified to fit our whole food, plant-based lifestyle.

The Indian style Potatoes with Green Beans and Mushrooms is really a combination of two Indian dishes, potatoes with green beans and green beans with mushrooms.  My wife initially thought it was odd to combine all three of these components together, but after tasting the final product, she agreed…it tastes great!  I can’t be the first to combine these two dishes, but if I am…well, you be the judge!

The ingredients are as follows:

About 20 to 24 baby potatoes, steamed and cut in half

About 3 cups of mushrooms (white or baby portobello), cleaned and quartered

About 2 to 3 cups of green beans (frozen or fresh)

14 oz canned diced tomatoes

1 ½ tablespoons of ginger and garlic paste

2 teaspoons of cumin seeds

2 teaspoons of cumin powder

2 teaspoons of coriander powder

2 teaspoons of turmeric powder

2 teaspoons of chili powder

1 teaspoon of Garam Masala

Sea salt (to taste)

Cilantro, red onion, and jalapeno chopped (for garnish)

Directions:

In a sauce pan or wok (I prefer using a wok, but it really doesn’t matter), heat the pan on high heat.  Add the cumin seeds, cumin powder, coriander powder, turmeric powder, and chili powder.  Toast the spices for roughly 90 seconds. 

Add the ginger and garlic paste and mix the ingredients together for about 30 seconds.

Add the can of diced tomatoes and mix with the spices and ginger and garlic paste.  Be careful as the hot pan may splatter when the tomato juices hit the hot spices.  Mix the ingredients together and let them incorporate for roughly 4 minutes.  If the diced tomatoes are too chucky, mash the tomatoes with a potato masher.

Add the mushrooms and stir.  Mushrooms contain a lot of moisture, so let them cook down for about five minutes, stirring occasionally.

After the mushrooms have cooked down a bit (reduced in size until they are about ¾ of the raw mushrooms), add the green beans and stir.  Let the green beans cook in the mixture for about 2 minutes.

The pre-cooked potatoes are added next with the Garam Masala.  Stir the potatoes into the mixture and continue to cook on high.  At this point, I like to taste a mushroom or green bean to judge how much salt needs to be added.  Remember, you can add salt later, but you can never take it out.  Start slow and add to your taste.

The key now is to cook the moisture out, constantly stirring.  You will find that the tomato will break down and evenly coat the potatoes, green beans, and mushrooms.

Once the moisture is cooked out, the dish is ready to be moved to a serving bowl.  Top with the chopped cilantro, diced red onion, and jalapeno slices.

This makes a great side dish or as an entrée.  If there is any left over, reheat in the morning for breakfast.  It is a nice break from oatmeal.

Give it a try and let me know what you think. 

Wishing you the best of health!

Stephen