Dinner Tonight: Caramelized Onion, Coconut & Egg Curry

There's lots about curry that's complicated: Its history and origins, the way we use the one word for the many dishes—each with its own name—it's come to signify. But what's not complicated about it: making it and eating it. It is delicious. And many curries can be pulled together from what you already have in your pantry.

That's especially true for this Caramelized Onion, Coconut, and Egg Curry. There's a good chance you have a carton of eggs somewhere in the fridge, and maybe a couple onions and a few cloves of garlic. If so, you're halfway there. (And once you have the remaining staple ingredients, you're only half an hour away from dinner.)

Grocery List
Organized by area of the market

• 2 onions, finely sliced
• 6 cloves of garlic, crushed
• 1 teaspoon tamarind paste (in a pinch, substitute with 1/2 teaspoon lime juice mixed with 1/2 teaspoon brown sugar or with pomegranate molasses)
• 3/4 teaspoon chili powder
• 1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
• 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons coconut milk mixed with 1/2 cup water
• 8 medium eggs, at room temperature
• Rice, to serve

We're assuming you already have 1 1/4 teaspoon salt, 3/4 teaspoon sugar, and canola oil or another neutral oil, but if not, add them to your list too!

The Game Plan

30 minutes before you want to eat, heat a large, deep frying pan slicked with oil over medium heat. (Also, if you don't already have rice cooked, start that bubbling away!) Caramelize the onions in the hot pan for 15 to 20 minutes while you go about doing other things (opening yourself a beer, setting the table, etc.), returning occasionally to stir them.

Once the onions have browned, add the garlic and sauté for a few minutes more. Next, add the tamarind paste, chili powder, salt, sugar, and turmeric. Cook the ingredients for a minute, then pour in the coconut milk mixture, bring to a boil, and reduce to a simmer while you boil your eggs: Submerge the eggs in a large saucepan of water, bring to a boil, and then simmer for exactly 6 minutes. When your timer goes off, remove the eggs from the pot and plunge them into ice water for a couple of minutes—then peel them, halve them, and stir them gently into the curry sauce.

Just before sitting down, spoon creamy, cozy everything over a bowl of hot rice.

See the full recipe here.