Keep calm and curry on

By TASTE, 13 June 2017

When in Durbs, popping by the Britannia Hotel for the legendary sugar bean curry is non-negotiable for food ed Abigail Donnelly. Unsurprisingly, GM Shamla Naidoo is rather tight-lipped about the exact contents of their masala …

THE BEANS

Britannia Hotel sources local dried sugar beans and prefers to precook them in a pressure cooker rather than doing an overnight soak. “We started making the sugar bean curry about seven years ago, as an alternative to our broad bean curry,” says Shamla. “We’ve found that it’s become the favourite of the two among our customers. People come here specially to eat it.”

THE SPICES

The curry kicks off with some cinnamon sticks, bay leaves and star anise fried in a bit of oil until aromatic, before chopped onion is added and fried until soft and golden brown. And then the masala magic happens. “Our masala recipe is a big secret,” explains Shamla. “We source ground spices from Gorima’s in Dlamini Street, and then make up the special blend ourselves. All I’m willing to reveal is that it contains chilli powder.”

THE SAUCE

Once the spices are fragrant, the cooks at Britannia add chopped tomatoes and potatoes and simmer it down, before adding the parboiled sugar beans halfway through. When the potatoes are nice and soft, the curry is done.

THE SIDES

Shamla says one of the favourite ways to have the sugar bean curry at The Britannia is in a bunny (a hollowed out white loaf ) with their chilli-spiked carrot salad on the side, but you can also order it in a roti roll or on its own with a choice of bread or rice. “If you want something extra, I’d recommend you order one of our veg pickles and some puri (deepfried unleavened bread),” adds Shamla. “And some Mrs Ball’s chutney. It’s the classic way to eat sugar bean curry in Durban.”

Britannia Hotel, 1 299 Umgeni Road, Durban; tel: 031 303 2266; hotelbrits.co.za

Discover more curry recipes here.

TASTE

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The TASTE team is a happy bunch of keen cooks and writers, always on the look out for the next food trend or the next piece of cake.
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