The Organic Collective and my resulting lentil curry
The Organic Collective
Fitzy's been talking up The Organic Collective in recent times so this week we decided to give them a try. We've used online shopping sites before to get our groceries but found that it was just as time consuming. Some of the limitations in choice were annoying and we've since abandoned the idea.
The Organic Collective works differently though in that each week they'll send you a box of whatever they have. My understanding is that a whole bunch of farmers rock up with whatever ever they've got and throw it into a massive pile and then little elves sort the fruit and vegetables into boxes of different sizes for different customers with different requirements. You can make recommendations and they'll take your preferences into account, but the real magic comes when you let them run the show.
We ordered a single-person's box of fruit and vegetables (on advice from Emma) and whilst it was good value, there's no way it'll last us for the week. I think we'll need a small family box, which normally services 3 or 4 people.
The box had been left at our doorstep for a few hours which meant we were greeted with some muddy water. The ice had melted and the potatoes were unwashed which is why the water was brown. For a second I thought "ohh great, dirty vegetables" but then common sense kicked in... they spent their whole life covered in dirt!
We got a great range including Red and Golden Delicious apples, carrots, potatoes, pumpkin, heaps of squash, pears, tomatoes, onion, garlic, broccoli, avocado and cauliflower. We spread them out on some tea-towels to clean them and a few things were noticeable.
Firstly, as Adam's noted, the vegetables are quite small. They're not pumped with massive amounts of pesticides, herbicides and grow-big-to-make-more-money-cides. Also, the colours are legitimate. I say that because sometimes I think fresh produce can look like it's fake. These tomatoes are really red, and the apples were really golden.
I love knowing that it was picked only a few hours (maybe days) beforehand and not 18 months ago, which is how old some of our produce is. The food all looked really fresh - the pears had leaves stuck to them and the tomatoes had some of the bush with it too.
As for taste - they're unbeatable. The apple I devoured straight away was crisp and full of flavour.
Maggie wanted me to make something for dinner that used a lot of vegetables so we could give them a go. She had bought some lentils with shopping a few weeks back and suggested I try and make a pasta that used them. Checking the cupboard was not very motivational because it was the day before I was meant to do the shopping and as such a little bare. No pasta for Mags. I did however remember Adam knocking out a vegetable curry that was pretty good when he and Kirstie had us over for dinner a few weeks back. What's that saying? "Imitation is the highest form of flattery."
Matt's Lentil Curry
Follow this simple recipe to create a vegetarian curry delight.
Ingredients
- 1 large carrot
- 1 onion
- 3 medium potatoes
- half a clove of garlic
- 1 cup brown lentils
- 2 cups water
- 1 cup stock (vegetable recommended)
- squirt of oil - vegetable, canola or Castrol GTX are all fine choices
- a few grinds of salt
- a few grinds of pepper
- 1 tsp curry powder (2 tsp if you're feeling tougher)
- generous dash of caraway seeds
- chili flakes as required
Steps
- We can have lots of fun.
- There's so much we can do.
- It's just you and me.
- I can give you more.
- Rinse the lentils thoroughly and place them in a covered pot.
- Add two cups of water, the salt and oil and bring them to a slow boil.
- Peel and dice the potatoes into 1 inch cubes. Boil the potatoes in a separate pot for 6-8 minutes.
- Slice or dice the onion according to preference. I like to slice. Peel and slice the carrot into discs. Drop them both into the lentil pot.
- Crush the garlic, all the time exclaiming "I will crush you!" Add it directly to the lentils along with the caraway seeds and pepper.
- When the potatoes are partly cooked drain them and add them to the lentil pot.
- Add the curry powder and chili flakes to the stock and mix well. Add your super-broth to the lentil pot.
- Simmer on a low heat for 10-12 minutes whilst taking a warm, relaxing bath. Stir occasionally.
We had the curry on its own but it would have been better with rice (see the part about us having a bare cupboard). As an alternative you could add tomatoes or a dash of cinnamon to alter the flavours. Squash would also work but I think it's a filler vegetable that doesn't add any flavours, so I don't like them much. The meal was a hit with Maggie proclaiming it was one of my finest creations to date. Simple yet delicious.
After Thoughts
The interesting thing was that whilst we were both filled with the meal, in the morning we were ravenous. It wasn't a lasting fullness. I don't know enough about nutrition but I'd suspect it's either because we digest the vegetables quicker, they don't contain the same levels of "energy" as meat, or both. I don't know how you vegetarians manage to live on just vegetables, unless you eat them by the ton? It might be something your body adapts to, and I certainly liked the change, but as Sam Neill will tell you: we were meant to eat red meat. Personally, I couldn't handle the increased illness that my vegetarian/vegan friends appear to suffer from.
I like cooking without a recipe book and following my own instincts, though it might be restrictive in itself if I continue to rely on the same ingredients, though that thought is probably for another post.
What's your recommendations for my next exploration into unguided cooking? Vegetarian or otherwise: what should I have a crack at next?
Since you like steps so much (in reverse) :)
1. A vege lasagne, or a wicked soup.
2. I’m not sure on who this sickness survey was conducted, but I can speak for Kirstie & myself, she gets sick from the kids at school a lot, and every time I’ve been sick in the last year has been a couple of days after her (this trait has followed me my whole life, even when I was a steak a day man). Those little gremlins! As an aside, I can’t find any concrete evidence that a vegetarian diet has any impact on your immune system, if it’s an appropriately formed diet. Like anything, it’s common sense :)
3. Like you said, you had just the curry on it’s own and weren’t completely fulfilled. You’re right about your body digesting the vegetables and using them up quicker. Same thing happens to me. But I’ll always have the meal with something else, or make sure all combinations are in the one-pot meal. I probably eat more often now, but you should be eating more meals a day anyway. It’s just a case of eating the right things, and that’s practice/knowledge. There’s a bunch of web sites where you can figure out which things fill you up and which is just filler (both veges and legumes/beans/nuts etc)
Non-list items:
Our vegetables don’t come refrigerated, so I’ve never suffered the muddy water syndrome. Also you had a completely different selection from us this week, and I was surprised! I thought everyone got the same thing (unless specifically requesting items), so that’s pretty cool :) With the amount of food you like to chow down, I think you’ll enjoy a larger box too.
Have fun with it!
i wouldn’t take any sickness data from me as one of your vegetarian friends. i have an incredibly low immune system from having a bout of glandular fever in 2003. i catch pretty much everything that goes around and that’s heightened being that i work with the littlies who have no sense of personal boundaries and tend to cough/sneeze/puke etc on you with no regard to your health. and i’ve been vegetarian since i was seven and i very rarely got sick before i got glandular fever.
and i have plenty of vegetarian friends who very rarely get sick and loads of meat eating friends who are perpetually sick. i think it’s all relative to how you take care of yourself in general. if you watch what you eat and make sure you’re getting enough vitamins and boosting your immune system with the right stuff you’ll be fine. i don’t necessarily believe meat is the magical illness preventative solution :)
so awesome about the organic collective! glad it was a positive experience after how much adam and i talked them up :)
i agree with a vegetarian lasagne. i can send you through a positively wicked recipe of mine for that if you’d like!! :)
@Adam:
My “vegos get sicker more often” was loosely based around me seeing exactly that. It might be similar to the idea that pirates stop global warming though.
Soups are always a good idea: you and I have bashed out a couple of great pumpkin soups in the past. My thieving brother has even adopted our “roast before you blend” idea as his own.
Jamming the rice into the meal would have helped a lot - it was a massive oversight not to see that immediately.
Our veges came via Fast Track Express courier, so that might explain why we have a refrigerated box instead. I thought I remembered you mentioning that yours was in a brown box.
@kirstie
I wrote a massive reply which I think needs its own post, so stay tuned for that (unintended, but expected) controversy ;)
The OC has been really, really good. The food’s top-notch and I like that I can call it “The OC.”
Your lasagne recipe would very much appreciated. Send it on through and I’ll give it a whirl!
oooh i eagerly anticipate your post - controversy can be fun ;)
you’re a dork. but so wicked that you guys are enjoying the organic collective. kudos to alex and renee for starting the trend!
will type it up and email it through :)
Your brother is a thief, noted. Now to remember that dumpling recipe…
And yes, the fast track courier is for people outside the delivery zone, which was only brought in about a week or two after we signed up. Ours get dropped off in a cardboard box by a driver as we are close enough.
I’d like to chime in on the sickness bit. The only reason I have been sick of late is due to my medication which fucks with my immune system. Tony however is the most well he has been since I have known him! So I think your assumption of vego = illness is very much incorrect.
Good work on the curry, it sounded lovely. Can I suggest you try a high protein grain along with it next time? You could try Quinoa or Amarenth. You’d probably find that would stick with you longer. Also from all of the reading I have done and studied, I believe it is better for you to digest things faster. Then they have less time to sit about your digestive system fermenting and creating problems. Also being such a high fibre meal, it would have helped give your insides a nice clean out!
Looking forward to more recipes in the future!
Why did you have to bring up Matt’s insides?
Adam:I could have been more graffic about the ‘cleaning out’ bit. You got off light!
Matt: I reckon slow cooked one pot meals are a really fun way to play around with making stuff up, and different flavours. The way I do it is I choose a ‘theme’ like Mexican, Italian, French, Moroccan, Indian, Cajun etc. Then you could do a bit of research on what spices to use etc, or buy a pre-made spice mix even. Choose any kind of meat (if you so desire), the good thing with slow cooking meat is you can choose very cheap often tough cuts as the slowcook makes them fall apart anyway. (You’ll want the cooking time to be about 2 hours, at a very low temp.)
Throw in whatever veg you happen to have, let it cook down a bit, and now the fun part to creating rich robust, complex flavours.
So obviously spices are a big help. I am a MASSIVE fan of wostershire sauce, it really gives food a certain complexity. Things like dried fruit (apricots and dates are AMAZING) are great if you’re going for something like a moroccan meal. Other great things can be tomato paste, wines, spirits like port, good quality stock, even campbells consume soups are great to use for stock, as are a lot of the meat baby foods (very little salt, high quality), mushrooms are also great to add a meatiness to any food.
Then you need a side dish. A cool one for Moroccon is Israeli cous cous. It’s like notrmal cous cous but HUGE. Even just some lovely steam veg, or wilted spinich with garlic and butter.I also love accompaniments like natural yogurt (soy in my case) and chutney.
Another great thing is TEXTURE. Adding nuts to give some crunch, or poppy seeds (great in curries), even using deep fried shallots (buy packs in Asian shops) to sprinkle on the top.
I could write 5 books if I keep going. Anyway, I hope that inspires a bit. I’m like you I make it up as I go.
hmmm i think the reason you don’t feel as full is because protein (that thing which meat is full of) takes a lot longer to digest than carbs and sugars (that thing that veges has a lot of) therefore you feel ‘fuller’ longer…. if you add protein rich veges mushrooms (meet for vegetarians) or spinach this may help… alternatively do as we do and add meat lol