Chickpea Curry with Carrots

1. Place sun-dried tomatoes in a bowl and cover with boiling water. Let soak until softened, about 10 minutes. Drain.

2. Crush mustard seeds and cardamom seeds using a mortar and pestle. Heat ghee in a skillet over medium heat; add crushed spices, onion, ginger, garlic, garam masala, turmeric, cinnamon, and cloves. Fry until mixture is light brown in color, 3 to 5 minutes. Add drained sun-dried tomatoes, chickpeas, carrots, and chile pepper; cook until softened as desired, about 30 minutes.

3. Stir in yogurt. Add broth to thin curry if necessary.

Cook's Notes:

If dry chickpeas are used, use approximately half the quantity and soak in water overnight.

You can use 3 or 4 whole cloves in place of clove powder; be sure to remove them before serving. You can use oil in place of ghee.

If not all spices are available, only the chile, turmeric, and some other spice are essential; in a hurry, I sometimes use just curry powder! The amount of chile depends on how hot the curry should be (the size and hotness of chiles varies immensely, as does the perceived taste of the eater). The proportion and quantity of the various spices can be varied depending on your own personal preferences.