spicy tunisian vegetables

easy and quick to put together, i have to credit claudia roden for this one - i got it from her book Tamarind & Saffron then played around with it - the original recipe is for root vegetables but i have used all sorts of combinations which have been delicious - i find it really useful for dressing up veggies the man isn't keen on!
this can also be served as a side dish or a vegetable dish in it's own right - i always make more than we need as leftovers can be turned into soup or chopped up more and added to couscous, served hot or cold

it's a good stand-by dish as you can make it with any combination of vegetables you like - i always start with onions and carrots then add at least three of the following; potatoes, parsnips, squash/pumpkin, sweet potato/yam, cabbage, peas, green beans, potatoes, cauliflower, courgettes, cooked chick peas, broad beans

caraway seed

ingredients

serves 2 -3 as a main dish 

• about 2 pint measures of chopped vegetables 
• water
• 1-5 tablespoons olive oil (to taste)
• 1/2 tsp turmeric
• 2 tsp caraway seeds
• 1/2 tsp ground ginger
• a good pinch chilli powder (optional)
• 1-3 tsp lemon juice

method

• warm the oil in a heavy bottomed pan with a lid - add turmeric, caraway, ginger and chilli and heat through then add vegetables* and enough hot water to 1/2 cover the veg
• bring to the boil and cover the pot, then reduce heat to a simmer for about 15 minutes
• check to see how cooked the veg are, stir well and cook for 5-10 minutes more or until the veg are cooked to your taste
• you can cook it uncovered towards the end to reduce the liquid 
• serve hot or cold

 if you are having it as a meat free main dish try it with a yoghurt relish and couscous or a flatbread 

* some veg (e.g. root veg) take longer to cook than others, so i usually add those first, then add the rest when the roots are part cooked - or you can dice the roots very small