Indian Spiced Beans
I’m always on the lookout for a quick and tasty meal. Bonus points if it makes good leftovers. I made this one day for lunch when I was working from home and I knew it would be an instant hit. Since that random Thursday a few weeks ago, we’ve had this probably 5 times. The smell of garam masala blooming in a pan sends my mind straight to Indian food, which is a favorite in our house.
This meal comes together in a snap and it perfectly hearty for these long winter nights without being too heavy. I serve it over brown rice and used pinto beans the day I took this picture, but you could use whatever beans you have on hand. Since it calls for a 1/2 can of coconut milk, I just double the recipe and portion it out into single servings and freeze some for an even quicker meal in the future.
One Year Ago: Cranberry, Caramelized Onion, and Goat Cheese Dip
Indian Spiced Beans
Yield: 2-4
Ingredients:
1 large onion, minced
2 tablespoons olive oil
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon garam masala
1 can pinto beans (any kind of beans would work here)
1 can diced tomatoes
1/2 tsp ground ginger
2 teaspoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup coconut milk
1/2 cup chopped cilantro leaves
Directions:
Saute onion in oil. When the onion becomes transluscent add minced garlic cloves and garam masala. Cook for one minute or until the spices become fragrant.
Add beans, tomatoes, ginger, sugar, and salt. Let it cook for about fifteen minutes.
Pour in coconut milk. Heat until warmed. Add cilantro just prior to serving.
Recipe adapted from Lori's Lipsmacking Goodness
I am Jen the Beantown Baker. Engineer by day and baking maven by night. Hubby serves as my #1 fan and official taste tester. We got hitched back in 2006. Barefoot. In the sand. With the waves crashing behind us. It was one of the best decisions we’ve ever made. 
Stunning color!!
beantownbaker — October 8th, 2013 @ 7:06 pm
It just makes me smile 🙂
Oh gosh, I love this recipe! So creative 🙂
We’re making this for dinner tomorrow, sounds perfect! And what a great way to contribute to Breast Cancer Awareness month. Keep it up!
Snowy hello’s from Oslo, Norway/ Tanja Simone, http://somekindashuffle.wordpress.com
beantownbaker — October 23rd, 2013 @ 12:27 am
Thanks! I hope you enjoyed the pasta.
I made this tonight and it was truly one of the worse things I’ve made; the sauce was really chunky and dry, and stuck in my throat every time I took a bite, and the garlic made it even drier. I would not recommend this to anyone.
This is very good. Leaving some of the pasta water is important, as well as adding the olive oil. Grating the beet into the pasta made a gorgeous colored magenta. Eating pasta right away prevents drying out. An optional addition could be adding a can of coconut milk to make a pink saucy dish. Topped with nuts and cheese, yes!