Chef Kate Attlee’s deli restaurant group, Sabzi, serves an aromatic, fragrant and daily-changing menu with a taste of the Middle East.
Curried Yoghurt Potato Salad
This is one of our most popular potato dishes at Sabzi. Try serving alongside a spiced and roasted whole cauliflower or a lemon and rosemary rubbed leg of lamb and a crisp green leaf salad for an absolutely delicious twist on a classic roast.
Best enjoyed warm or even at room temperature, rather than piping hot, so this is a brilliant option when you would like to get ahead before guests arrive; there’s no need to plate up with an audience!
Serves 6
Ingredients:
For the potato salad:
Potatoes, approximately 1kg
300g Greek yoghurt
1 tsp Sabzi dahl blend
1 tsp garam masala
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground turmeric
Cumin seeds
Juice of 1-2 fresh limes depending on your preference and the juiciness of the limes
Pinch of chilli flakes (omit if you don’t love the heat)
50g fresh coriander finely chopped
60g mango chutney
2 roasted cloves of garlic, smushed
Approx 100ml olive oil (or oil of your choosing)
Salt and pepper to taste
For the pickle:
2 red onions
200ml red wine vinegar and the same volume in the measuring jug of brown sugar
Method
Start by roasting your potatoes with plenty of seasoning, a sprinkling of cumin seeds and a couple of whole garlic cloves bashed with the back of your knife (you can then use these roasted cloves in your dressing, below). I love to roast the deliciously delicate new potatoes that are available locally at this time of year, but pretty much any white potato will do.
In the meantime, mix your curried yoghurt dressing using all listed ingredients. Sub out the Greek yoghurt for a vegan alternative if desired. This is a lovely way to use our Dahl Blend at Sabzi, but you can absolutely use a curry spice blend or a garam masala.
While your potatoes are roasting, pop a hot pickle on for your onions. Start with equal parts red wine vinegar and brown sugar; bring to a bubble and reduce the heat until the sugar is dissolved. Taste and add sugar to your preference; I like a sweet pickle for this dish, but everybody’s palate is different. Once ready, simply slice and add a couple of red onions while the pickle is still hot to kick start the pickling process. When cool this can be put in a container in the fridge for up to a week and is a brilliant garnish for many dishes, or thrown through a salad for a piquant edge.
To serve:
When your potatoes are cooked and cooling, begin layering with your dressing, drizzling generously over the potatoes. Add pickled onions on top of the dressing, a sprinkle of fresh coriander or chives, and a dusting of nigella seeds. I really hope you enjoy eating these potatoes as much as I do!
Fresh Herb Chutney
I love this chutney. It’s that simple really. Over the years it has become a staple in the Sabzi kitchen – it’s a wonderful way to avoid ever wasting herbs, it’s quick and simple to make, keeps beautifully in the fridge (you can even freeze it!) and it is extremely versatile.
Serve on top of hummus for a quick starter with crisps or flatbreads, drizzle over roasted veg as part of a main course or whisk through dressings to add interest to a simple green leaf salad; once you’ve started having a tub of Sabzi’s herb chutney in your fridge, mealtimes will become a lot more interesting!
Serves 6
Ingredients:
100g fresh mint
100g fresh coriander (though if you don’t like coriander, other soft herbs work really well too – and you can use any combination you like)
1 large red chilli, mild (or 2 if you like the heat!)
Agave nectar/honey
Olive oil
2 roasted cloves of garlic
Fresh lemon juice or vinegar of your choice (I like apple cider in this dish)
Method
Finely chop your chosen herbs (you can do this by hand or the whole chutney can simply be blitzed in a food processor – either is fine) and place in a bowl with enough oil to cover them. Add half as much vinegar as oil (I use apple cider vinegar but pick your favourite; red or white wine work well too), and half as much agave/honey as vinegar, along with a generous pinch of sea salt and a couple of (‘smushed’ on the back of your knife) cloves of roasted garlic.
Whisk together and add to this mix your chopped chilli. You can use fresh chilli or dried if that’s what you have to hand – use one chilli if not too hot, or a pinch of flakes. You can taste and play around from there. At this point it’s just a question of taste; this chutney should be sweet and sharp and spicy.
Trust your instincts, taste and simply add more of any of the ingredients until you get a flavour you love.
To serve:
I love serving it alongside creamy, unctuous tahini or a seasoned Greek yoghurt which are both great flavour absorbers, so don’t be afraid for your chutney to pack a punch.
Cook’s Note on garlic: Obviously in the kitchen at Sabzi we confit big trays of garlic regularly but at home try peeling 6 or 8 cloves, covering with oil, and gently warming on the hob while you’re doing other things in the kitchen. Cook until the garlic is buttery soft and sweet and keep in the fridge for dressings and cooking through the week – it’s so much more delicious than raw and you’ll keep finding ways to use it once it’s there.
Sabzi Hummus and House Dahl
Hummus is fantastically versatile; throw in some roasted veg for added flavour and colour, or even try with a different pulse if you don’t have chickpeas to hand. Once you’re confident with the core recipe, you can play around with different variations or top your hummus with some delicious olive oil and some added seasoning. Sabzi’s House Dahl has been on our menu since we opened in 2019. It is easy to make and I love serving it with some mint flecked Greek yoghurt; add a squeeze of lemon and a little drizzle of honey along with plenty of black pepper to your choice of yoghurt. It’s wonderful with some spiced and roasted vegetables in place of croutons on a soup.
Serves 6
Ingredients:
For the Hummus:
2 tins chickpeas, drained (save the liquid, known as aquafaba from the tins)
1 heaped tablespoon of tahini
Good grind of black pepper
1 clove roasted garlic
40-50ml lemon juice
20ml oil of your choosing
30ml aquafaba
Water, for texture
For the Dahl:
Sabzi spice blend or a mixture of ½ medium curry powder to a ¼ turmeric and ¼ garam masala
500g red lentils
1 large white onion, finely chopped
Thumb-sized piece of fresh ginger , grated
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 tin chopped tomatoes
1 tin coconut milk
2 tbsp tomato puree
Lime juice
Mango chutney
Fresh coriander (quantity as per your preference)
Greek yoghurt (to serve)
Method
For the Dahl:
Gently fry your onion before adding your ginger and garlic and cook until soft and fragrant.
Add one heaped teaspoon of Sabzi House Dahl blend per person (6 in this case), plus fresh chilli if you like more heat. Continue to stir before adding tomato puree, 3 tablespoons lime juice (bottled is fine). Season with black pepper. Add your lentils and stir to coat well with the spice paste. Add water if needed to avoid catching. Add chopped tomatoes and one extra can of water. Stir through 2 tablespoons of mango chutney and cook gently, stirring frequently until lentils are almost tender. Keep topping up with water to avoid lentils becoming too thick. Add coconut milk to the Dahl along with a dash more lime and half of your fresh coriander, chopped. Taste. When cooked adjust seasoning to your preference; you will often need more mango, lime and salt at this stage. Serve with Greek yoghurt and the remainder of the fresh coriander.
For the hummus:
You can of course make this dish with a pestle and mortar and pure muscle, but it is easier in a food processor! Start by putting all your ingredients in above quantities in your food processor and blitz until the consistency you like. Taste, you will need to tweak – I will generally add more lemon, black pepper and sometimes some more aquafaba to really give the hummus its gorgeous velvety consistency. Once you’ve reached your desired flavour, don’t be afraid to loosen with good old water if needed. Sealed in a tub, this will keep really well for 4 days in the fridge, and can even be frozen.
