Beef and Vegetable Curry

Last night's meal was so disappointing!

The house smelled so beautiful, the aromas of a lovely curry, but it just failed to deliver on flavour.  I followed the recipe, the only thing I didn't do was add the beef stock (and that was because I simply could not fit it into the crock pot). I figured once it had been cooking all day I would add it later, but as you know with a crock pot you do not lose liquid - if anything you gain it!  In fact I have a lovely yellow "bubble over" on my bench to prove it!!!  I also forgot to add the peas (oops!) but I don't think they would have added too much to the flavour.

Another thing that really gets me is these bloody stylised photos!  After bubbling away in the crock pot for 8 hours my curry had no lovely whole pieces of cauliflower.  These photos really set the home cook up for disaster - how many times have you followed a recipe to the T only to say to yourself at the end - mine doesn't look like that!!  Of course it doesn't - they add bits of lovely whole (probably uncooked) elements to the finished dish, spray it with oil to gloss it up and anything else that they need to do to make theirs look absolutely brilliant.  We as the home cooks are doomed right from the start.  That's why in a way I hope you appreciate my photos - they are not touched up - often without garnishes - this is how they look!!

Having said all that, should I share the recipe with you that I made last night??  I felt I had to post today - didn't want you to all think I was slacking off in the kitchen department and not cooking!!  Was the meal an absolute failure?  No, it just wasn't full of flavour.  Anyway, you decide.

Can you see the cauliflower???

Beef and Vegetable Curry


Serves 8


2 tbs oil
1.2kg gravy beef, trimmed, cut into 3cm cubes
2 brown onions, halved, sliced
2 cloves crushed garlic
1/2 cup korma curry paste
750g lady christl potatoes, unpeeled, cut into 2cm cubes
1/2 cauliflower, cut into small florets
2 x 400g cans diced tomatoes
1 cup beef stock
1 cup frozen baby peas


Heat half the oil in a large frypan.  Cook the beef in batches over medium high heat for 3-4 minutes, or until browned all over.  Transfer to a plate.


Heat the remaining oil over medium heat.  Cook the onion and garlic for 3 minutes, or until softened.  Add the curry paste and cook for 1 minute, or until fragrant.


Add the tomatoes and stock to the onions and garlic, stir to combine.


** Now here is what I would do next time.


Add the beef and juices to the crock pot, pour over the tomato mixture.  Season with salt and pepper.


Cover the crock pot with lid, and cook on low for 8 hours.


Steam the cauliflower and peas and add for the last 30 minutes of cooking.


Serve with rice, yoghurt, chutney and chopped coriander. 


If you try this let me know how you go, and what changes you made to improve the flavour.  The only saving grace with this dish was that because the flavours were so mild "The Darlings" actually quite like it.  So I guess in that respect it was a success!