Kavey's "That's Not Proper Indian Is It?" Sausage Curry

There are currently two calls for bloggers to share recipes that have caught my eye. One comes from Fiona Beckett who is asking bloggers for recipes suitable for students – not necessarily from our own student days but the kinds of dishes that will both appeal to students and suit their lifestyles and budgets. The other comes from the gorgeous Scandilicious who is running a competition looking for the kind of dish that can be cooked easily on a little campervan gas stove with just two rings and minimal washing up.

I decided to kill two birds with one stone and share with you a one pot, few ingredients, easy-peasy, inauthentic but tasty recipe is I created during my student days.

Throughout the day, I dreamed happily of the dinner I planned to make that evening, secure in the knowledge that I'd already done the shopping the day before and everything I needed was waiting for me in the shared kitchen in the student halls where I was living.

On getting home, disaster!

I'd intended to make myself a keema curry to my mum's recipe but discovered at the last minute that some thieving utter bastard had stolen my minced beef from the communal fridge. A bit of milk, I could just about live with (though it took green food colouring to stop the thief who'd down entire pints during the night) but a whole packet of mince – it still makes me shake my head in disgust even now. And it wasn't the cheap frozen stuff either.

Still, I was really in the mood for a good meaty curry, so what could I do? I really didn't fancy trekking over to the supermarket again. In a flash of inspiration, I decided instead to use the sausages I'd bought for later in the week.

Genius! And thus was born my sausage curry!

The first version below uses the individual spices I would have used for keema curry and which I normally use for my sausage version. But I have also made it using ready-made curry powder when on holiday, and it's still pretty good, so I'm sharing both versions of the recipe – you choose.

(Personally, if I had a camper van or a tiny little cupboard in a shared kitchen, I am sure I'd still be able to set a little space aside for a few small jars of key spices and herbs. Wouldn't you?)

Kavey's "That's Not Proper Indian Is It?" Sausage Curry (Individual Spices)

Ingredients
2 tablespoons cooking oil
1 lb/ 500 grams British sausages, each one cut into 3-4 pieces (you can substitute any sausages you fancy but simple pork bangers work well)
2 small to medium onions, diced
1/2 inch ginger, peeled and grated or finely chopped (optional)
2-3 cloves garlic, peeled and finely chopped (optional)
200-250 gram tin of chopped tomatoes
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1 teaspoon turmeric powder
2 teaspoons coriander powder
0.5 teaspoons chilli powder (or to taste)
0.5 - 1 teaspoon garam masala powder
Salt

Method

• Heat the cooking oil, add cumin seeds, wait until seeds splutter.
• Add onion, garlic and ginger and fry until golden to medium brown, stirring regularly so nothing sticks.
• Add turmeric, coriander and chilli powders and stir for 10 seconds to release flavours.
• Add tinned tomatoes.
• Fry until oil separates (when dragging wooden spoon through the tomato and onion mix, a gap is left on the bottom of the pan and the oil seeps out of the mix into the gap).
• Add the sausage pieces and fry until browned/ sealed.
• Cover and cook on medium for about 15-20 minutes.
• Check once during cooking, add a little splash of water, if looking dry.
  
• Just before serving, stir in the garam masala powder and salt to taste.

Kavey's "That's Not Proper Indian Is It?" Sausage Curry (Curry Powder)

Ingredients
2 tablespoons cooking oil
1 lb/ 500 grams British sausages, each one cut into 3-4 pieces (you can substitute any sausages you fancy but simple pork bangers work well)
2 small to medium onions, diced
1/2 inch ginger, peeled and grated or finely chopped (optional)
2-3 cloves garlic, peeled and finely chopped (optional)
200-250 gram tin of chopped tomatoes
2-3 teaspoons curry powder (depending on brand/ strength)
Salt

Method

• Heat the cooking oil.
• Add onion, garlic and ginger and fry until golden to medium brown, stirring regularly so nothing sticks.
• Add the curry powder and stir for 30 seconds to release flavours.
• Add tinned tomatoes.
• Fry until oil separates (when dragging wooden spoon through the tomato and onion mix, a gap is left on the bottom of the pan and the oil seeps out of the mix into the gap).
• Add the sausage pieces and fry until browned/ sealed.
• Cover and cook on medium for about 15-20 minutes.
• Check once during cooking, add a little splash of water, if looking dry.
• Season to taste.

Note – this isn't the most attractive of dishes on a visual level – as the pieces of sausages cook, the meat bulges out of the skin at the cut ends – quite frankly it looks a little obscene. But for good, filling, easy, cheap and bloody tasty food, you can't beat it!