
A creative twist on curry, this colorful recipe from my friend Megan has it all--a lean meat, fruit, and veggies.
Ingredients:
1.25 lbs. boneless turkey breast tenderloins (like the kind by Jennie-O)
2 Tbsp. plain yogurt
3 tsp. curry powder
1 tsp. coarse salt
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ground ginger
1/2 tsp. red pepper flakes
2 peppers (1 green, 1 orange)
1 shallot
3 roma tomatoes
2 cloves of garlic
1 in. slice of fresh ginger
2 Tbsp. creamy peanut butter
7 fl. oz. light coconut milk
1 cup fresh pineapple
1 cup raisins
nonstick spray for the skillet
(optional accompaniment) 2 cups brown basmati rise (like Trader Joe's Brown Basmati Rice)
You'll Also Need:
a zippered food storage bag or a bowl to marinate the turkey, a nonstick deep skillet
Step-by-Step:
1. Cut the turkey into bitesize pieces, then marinate it (in the refrigerator) in the yogurt, curry powder, salt, cinnamon, ginger, and red pepper flakes for 2 to 3 hours.
2. After you pull the turkey back out of the refrigerator, spray the skillet with nonstick spray, then slice and saute the peppers and the shallot for a few minutes. Pull the peanut butter out of the fridge so it starts to soften.
3. Add the turkey and saute until cooked through.
4. Chunk the tomatoes, garlic, and pineapple, then add all three to the skillet. Grate the fresh ginger directly into the skillet. Add the peanut butter, raisins, and the coconut milk. Cook through for 10 to 20 minutes.
6. (Optional) Serve over a bed of brown basmati rice.
Serves 4.
The AHH Factor: My friend Megan and I have been exchanging recipes since our undergrad days at The University of Georgia (Go Dawgs!). One of my most-prized possessions is a gorgeously-styled blank notebook I received as a birthday gift in college, which I turned into a de facto recipe book full of handwritten recipes from family and friends and printed typed recipes from the web. I still have it with me, and there are several recipes from Megan in there, including Megan's Gingersnap Chicken (chicken rolled in honey, then crushed gingersnaps, and baked) and a Pumpkin Pie Smoothie (1 pkt. of Alba Snack Shake Mix in Vanilla, plus 1/2 cup of 100% pure pumpkin, plus sweetener and skim milk to taste).
Our cooking talents have grown throughout the years, and even with the physical distance between us (she's in Florida now, and I'm in California), I'm thankful for sites like Facebook that let us keep in touch. When I saw her Facebook post about a turkey curry that smelled amazing, I asked her for the recipe. It's "kind of a mishmash," she said, and I love that. (I prefer to fancy it up and call it "fusion"--ha!). It includes several Indian elements, and I feel like the peanut butter and the coconut milk give it sort of a Thai touch (though Indian recipes do sometimes call for coconut milk as well).
One thing to note with this recipe is that the turkey breast tenderloins can be hard to find in California, though they are here. Megan got hers at Southern grocery store chain Publix, and I eventually found mine at a Ralph's. (FYI, it's only the larger-format Ralph's stores that carry it. Some Stater Brothers have it. Vons doesn't at all.) I'd actually recommend calling the store before you make a special trip.