Jim on Food: Sweet Chilli Pecan & Brussel Sprout Curry

Ingredients (in order of appearance):

Olive and Sesame Oil

Whole Crackling Spices: Cardamom Pods, Star Anise, Black Peppercorns, Cumin Seeds

Pecans

Rocket Chillies

Fish Sauce

Garlic and Tomato Puree

Bean Sprouts

Powdered Spices: Chilli, Curry, Paprika, Garam Masala, Turmeric

Herbs: Coriander

Chopped Tomatoes

Leaf Spinach

Soya Beans

Brussel Sprouts

Aldershot Stock (Tap Water)

Mango Chutney

Basmati Rice

Result: Positive

I’ve been suffering a particularly bad alcoholic episode over the past 7 days, so I haven’t been adhering to my new low-carb diet at all. This also means I’ve been letting my fridge and kitchen cupboards get pretty bare, with my having to rely mostly on takeaways as I sink further and further into nihilistic oblivion.

Still, let’s up the tone here and find some art through adversity!

Feeling the need for a spicy dish with a mountain of rice, I mentally searched around my kitchen and realised that, hey, I could actually cobble together a basic curry dish! So, whilst my hands shook and my emotions and heart raced with awful booze withdrawals, I found myself making actually one of the nicest dishes I’ve made in quite some time. The mango chutney, which hasn’t been on my list of diet-approved condiments, went in at the last minute, as the whole thing did taste somewhat blah. What a great idea it was! If I fall off the low-carb wagon again, I shall certainly be adding it to my next curry.

The rice doesn’t appear in the above shot, as I’d already started gobbling it down when I thought to take a picture.

That’s what she said.

Instead, I took a picture of the simmering leftovers after scooping out my first portion.

I did add some wafer sandwich chicken to mine, merely as a fridge-clearing exercise, but the amount was so negligible that I thought it unnecessary to include it in the list of ingredients for this fine, otherwise-vegetarian repast. If you can spot any then, I dunno, just pretend it’s a leaf of spinach that survived the cooking-down process.

I’ve got a grocery delivery arriving later, filled with low-carb stuff that should get me back on track with upping my good health. It turns out that switching to beer and wine, thinking it was an improvement over my vast whisky consumption, was just a sideways move. I really need to stop hitting the bottle, whatever it’s filled with, altogether.

Who’d have thought?!

Let’s just hope I don’t have another bad bout of insomnia, the most recent keeping me awake for 28 hours, which is one of the things that will forever kick me off the wagon. Say what you like about alcoholism, but at least you get your rest.

Sigh.

Do stay in touch, darlings.

Toodles!