blue artichoke

I thought I'd challenge myself this week by cooking food from a country that exists only in the minds of people who refuse to recognize the ruling military junta, who changed the name of the country from Burma to Myanmar. They only changed the English name of the country, though; the official name in Burmese is Myanmar. Confusing. Here's what I made:

Burmese Chicken Curry with Yellow Lentils (Kalapei Kyetharhin)

Situated between India and China, Myanmar (formerly Burma) combines the food traditions of both countries it borders. This dish is evidence of those influences--yellow lentils, sometimes called chana dal, are common to Indian cooking, and this thick, comforting stew is often served over Chinese egg noodles (though basmati rice is also a good base). As with most curries, a frosty cold beer is a great match.

I used regular paprika and ran out of chicken broth, so topped off with some lightly salted water. Served with brown basmati rice. Next time, I think I’d brown the chicken first, remove from pot, sauté onions and then add chicken back to pot. The chicken didn’t seem to brown very well with all those onions already covering the pot bottom. Also, I’d cook the lentils in seasoned water, with salt and maybe some generic curry powder. They were a bit bland. But the dish was good overall: hearty and satisfying.

1 1/2 cups dried yellow lentils
2 teaspoons ground cumin
2 teaspoons sweet paprika
2 teaspoons ground turmeric
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1 1/2 pounds skinless, boneless chicken thighs, cut into bite-sized pieces
1 tablespoon canola oil
1 cup chopped onion
2 3/4 cups fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
3 bay leaves

Place lentils in a large saucepan; cover with water to 2 inches above lentils. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat; cover, reduce heat, and simmer 25 minutes or until tender. Drain and set aside.

Combine cumin and next 5 ingredients (through cloves) in a large zip-top plastic bag. Add chicken; seal and shake to coat.

Heat oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add onion; sauté 3 minutes or until tender. Add the mixture; sauté 4 minutes. Stir in broth, scraping pan to loosen browned bits. Add lentils and bay leaves; cover and simmer 30 minutes. Uncover and simmer 10 minutes. Discard bay leaves.

Yield: 6 servings (serving size: about 1 1/4 cups)

CALORIES 344(21% from fat); FAT 8.2g (sat 1.6g,mono 3.1g,poly 2.4g); PROTEIN 35.8g; CHOLESTEROL 94mg; CALCIUM 50mg; SODIUM 576mg; FIBER 6.3g; IRON 5.3mg; CARBOHYDRATE 31.9g
Cooking Light, APRIL 2005