Sri Lankan Cashew and Green Bean Curry with Peak-Harvest Tomatoes

Drain the soaked cashews and set aside. Soaking keeps them from drinking up all the sauce and leaves them creamy rather than chalky.

Serves 4

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups raw cashews, soaked in warm water 30 minutes and drained
• 3 tablespoons coconut oil
• 1 large onion, finely sliced
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger
• 1 sprig fresh curry leaves, about 12 leaves
• 1 stick cinnamon
• 1 tablespoon Sri Lankan roasted curry powder
• 1 teaspoon ground turmeric
• 1/2 teaspoon chili flakes, or to taste
• 12 ounces green beans, trimmed and cut into 2-inch lengths
• 3 large ripe tomatoes, roughly chopped
• 1 can (14 ounces) full-fat coconut milk
• 1 1/2 teaspoons sea salt
• Steamed rice, for serving

Instructions

1. Drain the soaked cashews and set aside. Soaking keeps them from drinking up all the sauce and leaves them creamy rather than chalky.
2. Heat the coconut oil in a wide heavy pot over medium heat. Add the curry leaves and cinnamon stick and let them crackle for 30 seconds until fragrant.
3. Add the sliced onion and cook 7 to 8 minutes, stirring, until soft and lightly golden at the edges.
4. Stir in the garlic and ginger and cook 1 minute more, then add the curry powder, turmeric and chili flakes and toast 30 seconds until the oil turns deep gold.
5. Add the chopped tomatoes and 1/2 teaspoon of the salt. Cook 6 to 8 minutes, pressing them with a spoon, until they collapse into a thick pulpy base.
6. Add the drained cashews, the coconut milk and 1/2 cup water. Bring to a bare simmer, then cook uncovered 15 minutes, stirring now and then, until the cashews are tender and the sauce thickens.
7. Add the green beans and the remaining salt. Simmer 6 to 8 minutes more, until the beans are just tender with a slight bite and still bright green.
8. Taste and adjust for salt and heat. If the curry has tightened too much, loosen it with a splash of hot water — it should coat a spoon, not cling to it.
9. Rest off the heat 5 minutes, fish out the cinnamon stick, and serve over steamed rice.
10. Cashew curry, or kaju maluwa, is a celebration dish in Sri Lanka, cooked for weddings and New Year tables where the cost of good cashews signals generosity. Pairing them with green beans and ripe tomatoes turns a special-occasion curry into something you can cook on a Tuesday in August, when beans are cheap by the pound and tomatoes are at their sweetest. Roasted Sri Lankan curry powder — darker and more toasted than Indian blends — is what gives the sauce its distinctive depth, so it is worth seeking out.

Nutrition (estimated, per serving)

• Calories: 620 kcal
• Protein: 16g
• Fat: 48g
• Carbohydrates: 36g
• Fiber: 7g
• Sugar: 10g
• Sodium: 890mg