I’m so excited today to be participating in my first Virtual Vegan Potluck!
It’s always a little nerve wracking attending a party that you’ve never been to before with a bunch of people you don’t know.
I had no idea what to bring. Or what to wear.
And I had to promise myself to go easy on the peach schnapps lest there be some awkward Facebook photos cropping up tomorrow morning.
The first part turned out to be pretty easy. I decided to bring soup (stew actually)!
Tomorrow is Mother’s Day and this sweet, rich, spicy and delicious recipe is courtesy of my mother – everything I know about cooking I learned from her. Make it on a chilly day and watch the snow or rain fall outside.
Caribbean Sweet Potato Stew
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp oil (olive or coconut)
- 3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
- 2 tbsp fresh ginger, finely chopped
- 1 to 2 tsp Asian-style hot chili paste/sauce
- 3 tbsp curry powder
- 1/4 tsp cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp ground cardamom
- 1/4 tsp allspice
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
- 2 cups Spanish onion chopped into big chunks (approx 1 large onion)
- 1/2 cup water
- 1 28oz can diced tomatoes with juices
- 3 cups sweet potatoes chopped into big chunks (approx sweet potatoes)
- 1 and 1/2 cups celery chopped into big chunks (approx 2 – 3 stalks)
- 2 cups carrots chopped into big chunks (approx 4 -5 carrots)
- 2 tbsp Dijon mustard
- 2 tsp sesame oil
- 1 cup coconut milk (not light)
- 1 19oz can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
- handful frozen peas or fresh greens (optional)
Instructions
- Heat oil in a large pot over medium-low heat. Add onion and cook for a minute or less just to warm through.
- Add curry powder, cinnamon, ground cardamom, allspice and salt and heat through.
- Add water and stir, let heat through for a minute or so.
- Add garlic, ginger, carrots, sweet potatoes, celery. Stir well.
- Add canned tomatoes, coconut milk, mustard and sesame oil. Stir some more.
- Reduce heat to simmer and cover. Allow to cook for 30 minutes or so until vegetables are cooked (soft when pierced with a fork).
Enjoy!
Now that you’ve seen my recipe, have some fun checking out the others in the potluck!
Before me was Fitting Into Vegan
And after me comes Soup and Such
To start the potluck from the beginning, visit Vegan Bloggers Unite
Now, off you go and enjoy the rest of the potluck…
…I still have no idea what to wear and I can’t make any promises about the peach schnapps.
Your recipe makes me want to go to the Caribbean, which I have never been to just yet, which is also one of my top destinations to visit for my vegan culinary adventures! And welcome to the group, this is also my first time to participate as well 🙂
Happy Virtual Vegan Potluck 3.0 Day!
♡ rika, vegan miam
http://www.veganmiam.com
★ we travel + eat vegan blog ★
Thanks Rika! I love this recipe and I love your idea of travelling to the Caribbean for vegan culinary inspiration.
So glad I participated in this year’s VVP – your gnocchi looks amazing!
This looks a bit like a recipe I used to make at a cafe I worked at as a cook, and it was very yummy! Your addition of cardamom, cinnamon and allspice sounds wonderful! X
Thanks DBB! The mix of all the different spices is really what gives this stew some depth and makes you warm all over! I hope you enjoy it!
Looks yummy!
Thanks Poppy!
Looks great! If you can believe it, I have actually never made a soup with sweet potato. I need to get on that!
You should totally try it Inge! I just adore sweet potatoes!
Thank goodness we didn’t have to dress up, Sara :-)! Thank you for the beautiful dish and thank you for participating in the Potluck!
We had a no-show (Curly Adventurer) so I’ll need you to update your forward link to Soup and Such at: http://soupandsuch.wordpress.com/2013/05/10/asparagus-and-leek-soup-virtual-vegan-potluck/
Thanks Annie! So happy that I signed up to participate, this has been fun!
Curly Adventurer was before me though so I think I need to update my “back” link. Can you tell me where it should go?
Stew! More people need to make stew haha. This one looks so yummmy and all those spices! Happy VVP!
– alexis
http://www.sugarcoatedvegan.com
Thanks Alexis!
This sounds great! I love sweet potatoes with spicy flavors and coconut.
I couldn’t agree more Allison – great combo!
What a lovely recipe! This dish sings to me! MMMMMMM!
This is a very interesting 1st entry for your very 1st VVP! You succeeded well here! 🙂
Thanks Sophie! I hope you’ll make the stew and love it!
I love that you honored your mother by using this recipe for the VVP. It looks potluckdelish!
Thanks Somer. It seemed like the right thing to do 😉
This looks delicious, AND nutritious!! I had to..haha. YUM.
Lol – thanks Brittany!
This looks delicious! I really enjoy hearty stews. I hope you’ve had fun at the potluck. You fit right in. I am sure no one noticed this was your first time. 🙂
Thanks Teresa! I’m so glad I did it. I have so many new recipes to try! Can’t wait for next year!
Hi Sara, In Japan, ‘Curry Rice’ is a really popular dish. Although many people choose to use blocks of curry roux and just add some vegetables and water. Not vegan though… I love seeing original home made recipes like yours! Big chunks of carrot are nice and hearty 🙂
Wow, that is some hearty soup! I love the mixture of spices you’ve put into this. I like your sea themed blog background as well. 🙂
I can’t get enough sweet potatoes! This looks super hearty and super tasty!
I have never tasted sweet potato in a soup, looks very interesting.
This is fantastic. This is my kind of soup…errr….stew. I am often guilty of making my soup quite thick. Sweet potato in stews/soups are the best. The flavours of this stew is really great. I love adding frozen peas to stews, I think it is an essential ingredient 🙂 . Thank you for the great recipe.
Oooh this stew has so much flavour! I am definitely giving it a try. This week. Thanks!
x Vix
vixbakes.com :: vegan baking + raw desserts
You had me at “Caribbean”!! Love the sound of this stew. 🙂