Craig and Shaun McAnuff, two brothers of Jamaican decent and raised in London, are known for their modern take on Caribbean food, which they’ve been sharing through their Original Flava videos and cookbook. And they’ve got an entire set of recipes, all of which happen to be vegan. Not only does the Caribbean produce a whole range of vibrant fruit and veg, the region has a long history with veganism because the Ital diet followed by Rastafarians is predominantly plant-based.
And that’s what Craig and Shaun are celebrating with their cookbook Natural Flava: Quick and Easy Plant Based Caribbean Recipes, which combines Ital inspo and bold Caribbean flavours into quick and easy recipes. This Caribbean curry is the perfect thing to make this Veganuary; it’s a real winter warmer that’s simple to whip up. As the guys say, “We love a Thai green curry, so we’ve taken inspiration from it and fused it with the flavours of Caribbean green seasoning – a seasoning mix often used in Trinidadian curries as a base for cooking chunky vegetables, and oh my, the flavas are incredible!”
Ingredients
For the green seasoning:
Handful of coriander leaves
Handful of parsley leaves
4 garlic cloves, peeled
2 spring onions
1 celery stick
½ medium onion
3cm piece of fresh ginger
1 lemongrass stalk
4 fresh thyme sprigs
½ scotch bonnet pepper
200ml coconut milk
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
For the curry:
2 tbsp vegetable oil
1 red bell pepper, deseeded and cut into strips
1 large aubergine, cut into half-moon slices about 1cm thick
250g green beans
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp Caribbean curry powder
1 tsp paprika
200ml coconut milk
1 tbsp dark soy sauce
2 tbsp brown sugar
350ml vegan stock
Juice of 2 limes
Small handful of coriander leaves, to serve
Method
1. First, we’re going to blend up the Caribbean green seasoning. Trim and roughly chop any ingredients that need breaking down a little, then add to a blender with salt and black pepper to taste, and blitz to a thick but still sloppy consistency. Add a likkle water if it needs it.
2. Heat the vegetable oil in a large pan, add the bell pepper, aubergine and green beans and fry for 5–7 minutes, then remove from the pan.
3. Add 4 tablespoons of the green seasoning mixture to the pan (save the rest in the fridge, where it will keep in a sealed jar for a week). Cook down for 2–3 minutes, then add the cumin, curry powder and paprika and mix together. Add the coconut milk, soy sauce, sugar and stock and bring to the boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for 5 minutes.
4. Add in the pan-fried vegetables and mix it all together, then squeeze over the lime juice and serve with plain rice, with coriander leaves sprinkled on top.
For more vegan grub, check out Natural Flava: Quick and Easy Plant Based Caribbean Recipes by Craig and Shaun McAnuff (Bloomsbury) here.