Wine Pairing: Sweet Potato Coconut Curry with Dry Riesling
- 1 lb of ground meat - I used pork
- 1 lb of shrimp - I would used cleaned and peeled shrimp
- 1 container of tofu - prepare the tofu in your favorite fashion
- 1 lb cooked shredded chicken breast
- 2 cups of rice
- 2 cups of quinoa
- Fill a medium stock pot with salted water and set over high heat
- Peel and cut the sweet potatoes into 1 inch cubes
- Boil the potatoes until soft **While potatoes are cooking skip ahead to step 2**
- Drain potatoes and return back to pot
- Add 1 quart of stock
- Bring back to boil
- Turn off and cool slightly. Blend until smooth
- Pre-heat the oven to 350F
- Cube zucchini into ½ inch cubes
- Peel eggplant and cube into ½ inch cubes
- toss with 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil and 1 tsp salt
- Place vegetables on roasting pan and place in heated oven until cooked or approximately 30-40 minutes **While veggies are roasting complete step 1 or skip ahead to step 3**
- Mince or finely chop onion and garlic and set aside
- Place skillet or cast iron over medium heat.
- Once it is heated - add a little butter, margarine, or cooking oil and begin to slowly add your protein
- If you are using shrimp they will cook fairly quickly - 3 to 4 minutes - so be watchful. They are done once they are firm and a pretty pink color.
- If you are using ground meat - then begin to saute until cooked approximately 10 minutes
- Remove protein from skillet and set aside
- In the same skillet add the onion and garlic and saute until brown.
- Remove onion and garlic and set aside
- Into the broth, add the roasted vegetables, cooked protein, and the sauteed onions and garlic
- Add the can of coconut milk
- Add all of the remaining spices and sugar
- Bring to a boil and allow to cook for a about 10 minutes to combine flavors
Plate this hearty curry over a grain of your choice. Garnish with thai basil and/or scallions. Serve with a glass of Unionville Vineyard's Dry Riesling.
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Desk or vineyard? This is the question I asked myself when making the leap of faith to leave my corporate life behind to pursue my passion for wine. After working in the medical communications space for 10 years, 2022 was the year of epiphany. It may sound old fashion, but I did have a major realization in the beginning of the new year that I was not meant to work behind a desk and chug along doing work that I was no longer passionate about.
My first notion of my interest of wine came during my frequent business trips to Boston about 4 years ago. For the first time I was immersing myself in the world of wine through client dinners, networking events and a lot of self-exploring through Beantown. During this time was my first encounter with sommeliers and wine experts. I was fascinated and intrigued by the expertise knowledge of wine, wine making and learning about the intricacies that goes into producing a bottle of wine. At this moment, I thought about how amazing it was to witness such passion for the craft of wine.
I enrolled in an online sommelier level one course at the Wine School of Philadelphia and began studying and reading everything I could about wine. This is where my 2nd major epiphany happened – I asked myself, the question that I stated in the beginning “desk or vineyard?”
This is the question that started the major stepping stone to my journey. I no longer wanted my wine passion to be in the background – I wanted to be 100% committed and both feet in. Unionville Vineyards was the first winery that popped into my head when I thought about making my “9:00- 5:00” switch. I attended a wedding at Unionville the year prior and loved the atmosphere, the wine and the people. The position that I applied to was half farm work half hospitality. I was instantly attracted to the idea of being out in the field to where it all begins in wine making. Thoughts of my “office” transforming into the beautiful vineyard was something I desired. I was pleasantly surprised to learn that Unionville has multiple vineyard sites with the Coventry site located within Coventry Farm in Princeton being my favorite (love the views there!) Working at the different sites allows you to see how the different micro climates, soil and land impact the vines and fruit cluster growth. Also working in the field to me was the perfect learning opportunity to understand the craft of wine making soup to nuts. Being surrounded by vines that produced grapes such as Pinot Noir, Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah, Chardonnay was eye opening to me. I was so used to seeing the finished product of these grape varietals in their bottled form, but actually being able to perform farming techniques on the vines starts to create another level of perspective and appreciation for wine.
One of my favorite farming tasks to perform in the field on the vines is leaf pulling. Leaf pulling is when you remove leaves from around the fruit clusters. The rule of thumb is to remove leaves that are across and below from the fruit cluster. Removing the leaves creates oxygen flow, openness for pesticides to be sprayed and exposes the fruit to more sunlight. I enjoy seeing the satisfying result of a perfectly balanced vine with the right number of leaves removed. Working in the field creates a huge bond between you and your other field peers. You become a family unit and learn how to work together and communicate as a team. To me, this is a very important factor for having a successful vineyard. My experience with people at Unionville in general has been amazing. You have the opportunity to interact with people from all different backgrounds (teachers, college, corporate, etc.) which makes for some great conversations and comradery.
To anyone reading this, do not be afraid to follow your passion and take a chance on doing what you want to ensure your happiness. It was scary to make such a drastic shift from corporate to farm work, especially since the two are extremely opposite ends of the spectrum, but I have no regrets and I am happy with where my career and focus is going.
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