Mezcla also has a number of vegan / gluten-free options. This Thai-inspired dish looks like a particularly attractive example and is the first I’m cooking from the “Entertaining” (as opposed to “Everyday”) half of the book.

Cooking Notes: I accidentally added 50% extra coconut milk to the curry – this was OK since it would have gotten added during the bake anyway, although, I think it may have caused the texture of the potatoes to be softer. We made a double batch as we wanted to fully feed 4 hungry folks (including some vegans / gluten-intolerant folks). I put the gratin in two separate baking dishes to keep the surface area the same, I upped the temp by 10 degrees, and I baked for 10 minutes longer. The resulting gratin didn’t have as much bite as I’d like – try cooking a bit shorter; this may also have been due to the mistake of adding too much coconut milk early on. Be sure to substitute tamari for the soy sauce if you want gluten-free.

Tasting Notes: Yum – very good Thai curry flavor (the recipe description says this is close to a Panang curry). The sweet potatoes are a little soft and mushy in the middle, but theres enough texture at the top, sides, and from the fried aromatics to keep it a little interesting. Definitely do the aromatics! I noticed that everyone went up for seconds (I actually snuck some thirds!) Next time I would experiment with adding a portion of Thai ginger instead of regular ginger to the curry sauce. I’d also recommend adding a few hot chiles to the curry as it could have used a bit more heat. I paired this with Milan Nestarec’s Podfuck – a long skin-contact pinot gris from the Czech Republic that has a following in natural-wine circles. I opted not to do a riesling as the curry didn’t seem very spicy (good choice). This wine had plenty of acid, a bit of volatility (it kind of reminded me of some of the highly volatile Georgian wines I’ve had, but less intense), and medium-light tannins. Good pairing.

Joe’s Rating: 7
Difficulty: 5.5