Our family loves curry. Anything curry.  In fact, though we like experimenting with cuisine from all cultures, I would say that Indian is one of our favorites.

Now, before I go on, let me say that this dish isn’t really curry – so don’t run away if you are not a curry fan.

And soon I hope to post a dish that DOES feature curry seasoning.  And it is for sure my most requested recipe EVER.

Most Indian food, however, can be quite time consuming.  So when I can get the taste of Indian spices in a fast, one pot meal, then I have the best of both worlds.  ‘Cause these days, who has a lot of time to spend in the kitchen on elaborate steps?  I have other things that need to be done.  Like photo albums (please don’t ask how many years behind I am.  I need to start a support group for moms with empty photo albums .)

This recipe is adapted from a dish simply called “Red Lentils” by Southern Living.  Blah name for a great dish.

It’s quick on its own, but really lickety-split in my pressure cooker.  If you don’t have one of these yet, put it on your Christmas list now.  I know, I should get better at planning meals, but it sure is nice to not have any idea what you are going to have for dinner at 5:30 and have dinner on the table at 6:15.

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Putting Shepherd’s Pie together with adzuki beans seems like…well…quite an odd combination, doesn’t it?  In fact, it is, but the result is actually quite nice.  Nice also is a recipe and history lesson combination.

So before the recipe, here is a bit of “lore” about the pie and the beans involved.

The English tradition of meat pies dates back to the Middle ages. Game pie, pot pie and mutton pie were popular and served in pastry “coffyns.” These pies were cooked for hours in a slow oven, and topped with rich aspic jelly and other sweet spices. The eating of “hote [meat] pies” is mentioned in Piers Plowman, and English poem written in the 14th Century. (Cooking of the British Isles, Adrian Bailey, pages 156-7) The Elizabethans favored minced pies. “A typical Elizabethan recipe ran: Shred your meat (mutton or beef) and suet together fine. Season it with cloves, mace, pepper and some saffron, great raisins and prunes…” (Food and Drink in Britain: From the Stone Age to the 19th Century, C. Anne Wilson, page 273)

The key to dating Shepherd’s pie is the introduction (and acceptance) of potatoes in England. Potatoes are a new world food. They were first introduced to Europe in 1520 by the Spanish. Potatoes did not appeal to the British palate until the 18th Century. (Foods America Gave the World, A. Hyatt Verrill, page 28). Shepherd’s Pie, a dish of minced meat (usually lamb, when made with beef it is called “Cottage Pie”) topped with mashed potatoes was probably invented sometime in the 18th Century by frugal peasant housewives looking for creative ways to serve leftover meat to their families. It is generally agreed that it originated in the north of England and Scotland where there are large numbers of sheep–hence the name. The actual phrase “Shepherd’s Pie” dates back to the 1870s, when mincing machines made the shredding of meat easy and popular.” (The Oxford Companion to Food, Alan Davidson, page 717). (From http://www.foodtimeline.org/foodpies.html#shepherdspie)

The word, “adzuki” is actually a transliteration of the Japanese word for the same bean and in Japanese the word means “small bean.”  And they are small, which also means that they cook quickly.  They still need to be soaked before cooking, but in my pressure cooker, they cook in as little as 5 minutes.

In Japan, the beans are most typically mashed and mixed with a bit of sweetener and made into a soup base or thick paste that is the base of many traditional Japanese desserts.

And I’m an Irish/Japanese combination as well.  My father immigrated from Ireland in his 20′s and I lived in Japan for a year following college graduation.  Now, I don’t ever recall actually eating Shepherd’s Pie either at home or when I actually visited family in Ireland, but I did consume my fair share of adzuki beans both while I was in Japan and after returning to the States.

Adzuki Bean Shepherd’s Pie

This recipe is my remake of one from Whole Approach’s recipe forum.  Since our family has been trying to reduce carbohydrates, the cauliflower-based topping is helpful in that respect, while still being delicious!  My kids always ask for lots of “the white stuff.”  You can, of course, also adapt this by substituting the same volume of beans with beef.  For now, enjoy this high-on-vegetables-low-on-cost option.

Pictured above served with Moroccan Carrots.