Hetty Lui's Vegan Massaman Curry: History & Heart

0:00It's April 11th. This is Sydney News Today, local news powered by AI, Heady Louis McKinnon, the James Beard Award-winning cookbook author from Sydney, now based in Brooklyn, just dropped a killer vegan twist on Massaman. Curry. She's penned six veggie-focus books, and this one's all about hearty mushroom stepping in for meat, paired with potatoes for their rich, satisfying. Bite. Massaman stands out among Thai curries with its warm dried spices like cumin, cinnamon, cloves, and cardamom, tracing back to ancient trade routes, from India and Persia. It hails from Thailand's Muslim communities, where beef or chicken usually stars, but Heady keeps the depth without the animal products. Folk's love how approachable her version is, swapping shrimp paste for soy sauce to nail that umami punch, and using store-bought red curry paste as a smart shortcut, it balances mild spice with a subtle sour sweet vibe, perfect for home cooks wanting bold flavors minus the fuss.

1:00She amps it up by mixing the paste with extra ground spices, caramelizing onions and veggies in a pot, then simmering with coconut milk, brown sugar, tamarind, and salt till tender, ready in about 40 minutes for four servings. Toss in flexible add-ons like sweet potatoes or greens, and it even tastes better after a few days in the fridge. Serve up some steamed rice and dive into this fusion of history and heart. Heady's proving veggies can carry a curry like champs.