Recently arrived at meat-free Bath institution, demuths, young chef Richard Buckley shows Tony Benjamin how to whip up a tasty pumpkin curry.

As the nights draw in, a hearty vegetable curry is just the sort of warming comfort food to welcome you home. Bath’s legendary vegetarian chef Rachel Demuth asked her latest protégé Richard Buckley to rustle up a creamy, coconut-rich pumpkin number for us. The dish, which comes from one of Rachel’s own cookery books and is also vegan-friendly, took barely half an hour to prepare and had our photographer swooning come tasting time.

Richard Buckley, the newly arrived young chef at demuths vegetarian restaurant in Bath, knows where respect is due. “This place has always been at the forefront of vegetarian cooking – it’s in the same lineage as (legendary London veggie pioneers) Cranks.” But Buckley is also aware that the image and expectations of vegetarian dining have moved on from those lentil-crusted origins. “Traditional vegetarian food was quite heavy with lots of big flavours on the plate. Nowadays we want to make it as clear as possible, using classical skills to make the veg shine. The danger for fine dining is trying to make the stuff too complicated, with hundreds of ingredients to get a big flavour when the flavour’s already there in the vegetables. It’s about shopping as much as anything – even the most skilled chef won’t get a flavoursome salad out of supermarket stuff. Get into veg boxes or farmers’ markets and things automatically jump up a gear. You’re getting traditional varieties, raised in smaller-scale production, sourced nearer to home and you can always taste the difference.”

Buckley’s on a mission (with the blessing of restaurant founder and veggie guru Rachel Demuth) to move demuths’ cuisine onwards. Taking his inspiration from famously creative sources like Michelin-starred former Bath Priory head chef Chris Horridge, fancy London eaterie Hibiscus and Bristol’s Mark Turner (Café Maitreya), he’s got ambitious plans: “I hesitate to use the word ‘elegant’ but… I think modern gastronomy is moving away from big, heavy meals. People are looking for lighter eating, and vegetables are so much more subtle than meat or fish. It’s about balancing the elements and ingredients to come together as a whole and that’s what those fine dining people do so well. It’s a transition for Demuths but we’re not rushing at it. I want to take our team with me and keep the strengths that are already there – consistency is all, after all, and it must be good every night, whoever’s in the kitchen.”

DEMUTHS 2 NORTH PARADE PASSAGE, BATH, BA1 1NX. TEL: 01225 446059, WEB: WWW.DEMUTHS.CO.UK

RECIPE demuths' Pumpkin Curry

Taken from the ‘Green Seasons’ cookery book by Rachel Demuth (available from www.demuths.co.uk )

INGREDIENTS

For four people – vegan-friendly

• 1 large onion, sliced

• 2 tbsps sunflower oil

• 750g pumpkin, peeled, cut into large bite-sized pieces

• Thumb-sized piece of fresh ginger root, peeled and finely chopped

• 2 garlic cloves, peeled and chopped

• 1 tsp turmeric

• ¼ tsp cayenne

• ¼ tsp ground cinnamon

• ½ tsp all spice

• Pinch of salt

• 350ml coconut cream

• 100ml water

• Juice of 1 lime

• Juice of 1 orange

• 200g green beans, topped and tailed

• 4 tomatoes, cut into 1/8ths

• Handful of fresh coriander, chopped

INSTRUCTIONS

	1	In a large saucepan, gently fry the onion in the sunflower oil until softened – about 20 minutes.
	2	Add the pumpkin, ginger and garlic and fry for a few minutes until fragrant.
	3	Add the turmeric, cayenne, cinnamon, allspice and a pinch of salt. Follow with the coconut cream, water, lime and orange juice and simmer for 10 minutes.
	4	Add the green beans and the tomatoes and simmer for another 10 minutes. Season to taste.
	5	Add the coriander and serve with rice.

Richard Buckley’s comments: “It’s pretty much idiot-proof as a recipe and delicious to eat. The obvious mistake would be to cook the onion too fast and not for long enough. Twenty minutes at a low heat is the minimum to get the full sweetness into the curry. By contrast you could also overcook the beans and tomatoes at the end – don’t do them until the last minute, just before you eat it, and that way you get that crunch as well as the colour. And then, finally, people often don’t use enough salt. We’re all afraid of salt but, used properly, it’s a great flavour enhancer. It takes a bit of practice but it’s worth getting it right.”

The Vegetarian Cookery School

In her addition to her successful cookery books, Rachel Demuth provides a range of day courses covering the world of vegetarian cookery from southern Indian thali and Mexican cookery to Xmas feasts and courses for young people. All courses take place in the newly refurbished cookery school in central Bath. Check www.vegetariancookeryschool.com
 

Text copyright Tony Benjamin 2010; recipe copyright Rachel Demuth

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