Marrow, what is it good for? I know, it’s not an everyday issue nor one that seems as prevalent amongst those that don’t grow their own courgettes but almost any honesty table, farm shop or harvest festival box will doubtless contain a leviathan of the marrow order, resplendent in its glorious green, cream and yellow armour they are a thing of wonder but also a thing of ancient terror. My granny, god bless her, was keen on a marrow – a stuffed marrow was her weapon of choice but sadly this was not accompanied by any seasoning, and her oven lacked a little commitment to the cause as well, so things tended to end up a little moist, dreary and dare I say insipid. I have tried here to make things more interesting; I have turned the good ship marrow away from its stuffing course and set its sights on horizons a little more suitable, spicy and also, simple.
This recipe can be made more complex if you make your own Garam masala, I’d suggest that you do as it makes such a huge difference, I recommend the recipe in the Rick Stein India cookbook, or the Mira Soda version is good too – ultimately you will want to make it your own. Shop bought might will be fine but make sure it is fresh and vibrant – not a spice mix that has stayed on the shelf for some time, losing the will to live.
I have used fresh tomatoes as they are still coming out of the poly tunnel – but tinned will work just fine and are probably better than most shop bought fresh toms by this time of year.
I am not brave enough to commit to a proper “Indian” title to this dish, as I simply don’t have the knowledge or experience to accurately do that – so I’m calling this a “Curried Marrow Spiced Basmati Bake” – we love it in our house and I hope you will love it in yours, I often serve this up with some fresh mint and garlic yoghurt, and a few mustard seed wilted greens and if you feel like you will miss the meat – some diced free range chicken thighs can be added when you are cooking the onions.
ESSE Settings
Stove top to 50%
Top oven (vent closed) to 160
Prep time 20 mins, cooking time 45 mins.
You will need a large casserole type dish with a lid, and a sheet of baking paper.
Serves 6
Ingredients
- 2 medium red onions
- 2 large cloves of garlic
- 1 inch of fresh root ginger
- 125g butter
- 300g basmati rice (soaked in warm water for at least 20 mins)
- 6 curry leaves
- 1,2 or three dried chillies or fresh chillies – depending on their heat and your preference
- 1kg marrow
- 1 dessert spoon each of Garam masala and ground turmeric
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 500g fresh super ripe tomatoes, blended in a liquidiser or 1 tin of good tomatoes, and a little water to rinse out the inside of the tin and top up the moisture
- 250 ml water
Method
- To start soak your rice, it’s really important to help make sure this works as well as it can.
- Now then, let’s get cooking. Heat your pan upon the stove top and melt the butter in it. Slice the red onions and garlic and add these, cook them stirring occasionally for around 8 minutes then add the finely chopped root ginger cook for another couple of minutes, add the turmeric and spice and again continue cooking – all very straightforward.
- When it comes to the marrow things are a little more complicated – marrow skin is often tough as old boots, and the seed are big so – I like to peel off about 2/3rds of the skin using a sharp knife and also trim out the seeds and the spongy flesh that surrounds them – if you trim off the end of your marrow to expose a cross section you will see that you can cut your marrow lengthways into three, this will leave you with easy segments to remove the seeds from. These segments can then be sliced into roughly pound coin thick pieces. I don’t like to remove all the skin as it’s a great source of fibre, full of goodness and lends a little texture to this dish – but you can remove it all if you want.
- Add the marrow to the onion mix and cook for a few minutes stirring well, add the blitzed tomatoes and cook again for a minute or two with the lid on. Once everything is simmering nicely add the salt and chillies and curry leaves , along with the water – bring this all back to the simmer.
- Now, drain the rice that has been soaking and add this to the pan – spread it out well without quite stirring it in, but making sure it is as submerged as possible.
- Make a close-fitting circle of baking paper to fit on top of the rice and place it on top of the rice, fit the lid to the pan and throw the whole thing into the oven for 30 minutes.
- After 30 minutes take it out of the oven but do not remove the lid leave it to stand for about 10 minutes.
That’s it – you are now ready to serve, the rice should be soft but not over cooked, the marrow flesh should be soft and tender, well spiced and unctuous – just spoon it out into bowls, add the garnish of your choice and serve – you may find yourself wishing for more marrows!
Recipe created by Tim Maddams. Tim is a chef, food writer and cookery teacher who produces seasonal recipes for ESSE at his home in Inverness using ingredients grown in his kitchen garden. ESSE first met Tim over ten years ago when he regularly co-featured in the hit TV series River Cottage. During his time as head chef at River Cottage Tim pioneered ethical, local, seasonal produce and became a key spokesperson in the area of responsibly-sourced food.
Tim’s aim is to show off the “tremendous versatility” of the ESSE 600 X electric range cooker. The new 600 X has ESSE’s classic heat storage construction, patented ovens, beautiful colour finishes and the reassuring ‘solidity’ with modern, electric controllability and responsiveness.
