On the islands of Animal Crossing: New Horizons, vegetables are life. Surrounded by the seas, the gardens that dot the islands are not only tended to as hobbies of the residents, but also for nightly dinners.
Among the produce growing in these gardens, carrots are a common crop. Sweet and hearty, they can be used to make a number of delicious dishes. But, on an island where nothing should ever go to waste, the greens atop the carrots are equally useful and tasty. The islanders use these to make a delicious curry.
When eating a curry, bread to dip is always a must. Though not a typical crop grown in personal gardens, wheat is not uncommon in the gardens of the islanders. This wheat can be ground into flour which can be used to make a delicious and warm island flatbread that makes the perfect side to accompany the carrot-tops curry.
To bring this curry to life, we will need both spinach and carrot greens. We’ll ultimately need more spinach than carrot greens for flavor balance (and because spinach is easier to obtain in a large quantity more so than carrot greens). The carrot greens and spinach are briefly blanched, shocked, and blended into a silky emerald purée, then folded into a base of onion, garlic, and ginger bloomed with cumin, coriander, and turmeric. Vegetable stock loosens the mixture into a smooth curry, while Greek yogurt, carefully tempered and stirred in at the end, adds a gentle tang and creamy body. Tender carrot slices bring a little sweetness and texture to round it out.
Alongside the curry, a simple yogurt flatbread comes together with flour, baking powder, olive oil, and more Greek yogurt for richness. The dough is mixed, kneaded briefly, divided, rolled thin, and pan-fried until lightly golden and soft. The result is a warm, pliable bread perfect for scooping up the vibrant green curry.
A bowl of a deliciously spiced vegetarian curry an a piece of warm flatbread to sop it up… a perfect meal while taking in the island breeze from your front porch on a sunny afternoon.
Ingredients
2 cups carrot greens, loosely packed
12 oz spinach leaves
1 medium carrot, peeled and sliced
3 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp butter
1 large onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced
½ tbsp fresh ginger, grated
1 tbsp + ½ tsp salt, plus additional
½ tbsp cumin
½ tbsp coriander
1 tsp turmeric
¼ tsp white pepper
¼ tsp garam masala
¾ cup Greek yogurt
1 cup vegetable stock
2 cups carrot greens, loosely packed
12 oz spinach leaves
1 medium carrot, peeled and sliced
3 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp butter
1 large onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced
½ tbsp fresh ginger, grated
1 tbsp + ½ tsp salt, plus additional
½ tbsp cumin
½ tbsp coriander
1 tsp turmeric
¼ tsp white pepper
¼ tsp garam masala
¾ cup Greek yogurt
1 cup vegetable stock
Flatbread
1 ½ cups all purpose flour
1 cup plain Greek yogurt
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1 ½ cups all purpose flour
1 cup plain Greek yogurt
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
If you can’t get carrot tops, you can substitute with an equal amount of parsley as they have very similar flavor profiles.
Let’s begin by the flatbread. Add the flour, baking powder, and salt to the bowl of a standing mixer. Using a dough paddle attachment, turn the mixer on to low-medium setting and mix the dry ingredients together for a minute to blend. Add the yogurt and olive oil, and turn the mixer back on to low-medium. Mix the yogurt and oil completely into the dry ingredients until a dough is formed. This should take about 2-3 minutes.
Remove the dough from the mixer and form into a ball. Place the dough on an appropriate surface dusted with flour and knead the dough by hand for two minutes or so, until the dough is smooth.
Using a knife, cut the dough ball in half to create two pieces of equal size. Roll each piece back into a ball and use the knife to cut each of these balls into two pieces of equal size. Roll each piece into a cylindrical shape with tapered ends. You should have four smaller ‘logs’ of dough that are roughly the same size.
Take one of the logs of dough and place it on an appropriate floured surface. Sprinkle some flour on top, and then use a rolling pin to flatten the dough lengthwise. roll back and forth until the dough it a flat ovular shape, roughly ⅛ to ¼ of an inch thick. Repeat this process with each piece of dough.
Heat a frying pan over law-medium heat. Add one or two tablespoons of olive oil to the pan and swirl to coat. Place one piece of the flat bread dough in the frying pan and allow it to fry for one minute, flip the dough and fry for one minute more. Remove the flat bread from the pan and reserve on a plate. Repeat with each piece of flat bread dough.
You can keep the flatbread warm in a 200°F oven while you make the curry.
Bring a small pot of water to a boil over medium heat. Add the sliced carrots and allow them to simmer until soft, about 7-10 minutes.
Place a large enough pot filled halfway with water over high heat and add 1 tbsp of salt. Fill a bowl halfway with ice water. Once the water in the pot comes to a boil, add the spinach and carrot greens to the wafer. Lower the heat to medium-low and allow the greens to boil for about 2 minutes. Reserve about one cup of the water and then drain the greens. Add the drained greens to the ice water to stop the cooking. Once cool, remove them from the ice bath and squeeze them dry.
Add the greens to a blender or food processor with ¼ to ½ cup of the reserved liquid. Blend the greens until they are very smooth.
Place a pan over medium-low heat. Add oil followed by the butter. Once the butter melts, add the onion and ½ tsp of salt. Sauté the onion, softening it until sweet, not browned, approximately 5 minutes. Add the garlic and ginger, and sauté for 30 seconds, until fragrant.
Add the cumin, coriander, and turmeric. Stir it fully into the onions and allow it to bloom for 30 seconds. Stir in the green purée, fully blending it with the onion and aromatics.
Add the cumin, coriander, and turmeric. Stir it fully into the onions and allow it to bloom for 30 seconds. Stir in the green purée, fully blending it with the onion and aromatics.
Add the vegetable stock ¼ cup at a time, completely stirring the stock into the puree before adding more. Continue this until the filling cup of stock has been added. The curry should reach a spoonable, smooth consistency when done.
Lower the heat to low, stir the white pepper and garam masala into the curry, and allow it to simmer for two minutes.
Remove the pan from the heat and add the yogurt to a small bowl. Before we add the yogurt into the curry, we need to temper it. Add a ¼ cup of the warm curry into the yogurt bowl and whisk them together completely.
Repeat this process two more times to ensure the yogurt is tempered. Then add the tempered yogurt into the curry, stirring it in until it is completely incorporated.
Return the curry to the heat and allow it to simmer for an additional 2-3 minutes, stirring regularly. Salt to taste.
The curry is ready. To serve, ladle a portion onto a small bowl, garnish it with carrot slices, and then place it on a plate alongside a piece of the flatbread. Enjoy!
Learn more about Carrot-Tops Curry from Animal Crossing New Horizons at the Nookipedia.