Wednesday, May 09, 2007

Cauliflower with Onion and Tomato—Indian Style

Last week we had a very large head of cauliflower delivered as part of our weekly organic vegetable order. I didn't want to spend a long time preparing a dish and was in the mood for Indian but not in the mood for pakora. I Googled 'Indian cauliflower tomato onion', onion and tomato being the other organic vegetables I wanted to use, and decided on the following recipe.

Cauliflower With Onion and Tomato Recipe

Ingredients

1 medium cauliflower, broken into - florets
1 medium onion, chopped
1 2 piece ginger, grated
7 tablespoon water
5 tablespoon vegetable oil
6 garlic cloves, chopped
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon coriander
2 small tomatoes, peeled & chopped
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
1/8 teaspoon cayenne, or to taste
1 fresh green chili, chopped
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon garam masala

Directions

Soak cauliflower florets in water for 30 minutes & drain. Blend ginger & onion along with 4 tbsp water until smooth. Set aside. Heat oil in a skillet over medium heat until hot. Stir-fry garlic until it turns medium brown. Put in the cauliflower florets & stir-fry for 2 minutes. Remove the cauliflower with a slotted spoon & put in a pot. Fry the paste from the blender for 1 minute. Add cumin, coriander & tomatoes. Stir-fry until it changes colour, reducing heat if necessary to prevent burning. Add turmeric, cayenne, green chili, lemon juice & salt. Sprinkle with water if necessary to prevent sticking. Turn heat to low. Return cauliflower to skillet with whatever liquid may have collected as it drained. Mix gently. Add 3 tbsp water & bring to a simmer. Cover & cook over gentle heat for 5 to 10 minutes. The cauliflower should be just done. Remove lid, sprinkle garam masala over the top. Stir to mix.


I was very happy with the results—tasted like dishes that I've gotten in Indian restaurants. The nice thing about this recipe is that it is forgiving. I substituted ground for fresh ginger, didn't puree the onion (I hate cleaning the blender) and threw in, by mistake, the garam masala with the turmeric and cayenne instead of at the end, and all was fine. It also keeps and reheats well.

No comments: