I visited the local organic market near my neighborhood curious about a food vendor this past week.

The Bryanston Organic Market is a trove of healthy goodness. Homemade breads, dosa’s, idli, courgette cakes and vegan treats flow abundantly from counter tops. There’s also fresh food stalls with herbs, greens, garlic and even home made muesli - I always tend to go a bit nuts when I’m around this.

I was particularly drawn to a bag of shelled organic peas and thought it would go well with my brinjals and prawns. I also had some leftover baby marrow so decided to chuck it in my dish to bulk it up a bit more.

Did you know: Organic fruit and vegetables is grown with the promise that no chemicals were used to produce the food that’s on offer. But it’s very hard to tell what’s organic and what’s not. Also if you’ve ever grown strawberries before, you know that a lot of pests are attracted to the flowers and you have to use some sort of pesticide to ward them off. My whole vibe rests in the knowledge that I am supporting locally produced greens who advocate for sustainable farming. Wensleydale Farm and Oaklands Farm in Centurion and Johannesburg respectively is my go to organic brands of choice. Jackson’s Realfood Market is also my number one fresh produce store, where I’m guaranteed to get what I pay for.

Ingredients

2 cups prawns

thyme

1 tsp oil

500 g fresh shelled peas

2 brinjals, cubed

1 tsp ginger, grated

1 tsp garlic, minced

1/2 large onion, chopped finely

1 tsp jeera seeds

1 tsp methi seeds (fenugreek)

1 tsp mustard seeds

1/2 tsp hing (asoefatida)

1 stalk curry leaves

handful of baby marrow, sliced in rounds (You can omit if you don’t have)

1 tsp chili powder

1 tsp garam masala

2 green chilies (omit for a milder curry flavor)

salt to taste

coriander for garnish

Method

1. In a hot pan, fry prawns in garlic and thyme until they’re browned on each side. Set aside.

2. In a large pot on medium heat, add the seeds to oil and when you hear the mustard seeds crackle, add onions, curry leaf stalk and 2 chilies to the pot.

3. Fry until the onions is translucent.

4. Add ginger and all the spices except the garam masala. Give it all a stir and when you start to smell the rawness of the spices go away, drop in the brinjals and peas.

5. Lower the heat to medium to slow and let the vegetables soften.

6. When you notice the bottom of the pot starting to stick to your food, add in a tiny amount of water and keep cooking the vegetables until the peas are soft. This will take time, like 15 minutes or so.

7. Add baby marrow last, salt to taste and sprinkle the garam masala over the vegetables.

8. Drop the prawns in and take off the heat immediately.

9. Garnish with fresh coriander.

10. Serve with brown rice/polenta/rotli/sorghum/bread.