There was a beautiful head of cauliflower in my vegie box this week, and after a couple of weeks of struggling for dinner inspiration, I'm all ready for a Tuesday Night Vego Challenge!
Some time ago, my husband bought me a wonderful cookbook simply called Curry, and it's a wonderful collection of curry (and curry-like) recipes from India (north and south), Pakistan, South East Asia, Africa, the Caribbean, Britain and Japan. It's written by a range of authors, so each section is authentic, but the recipes have been written with a western home cook in mind - the ingredients are generally ones you can find with little effort. The book also includes a range of side dishes, breads and condiments. If you like curries, it's a great book to have in your collection.
A subzi generally refers to a vegetable curry from India or Pakistan. They're quick, fresh and use seasonal vegetables. This is a "dry" style curry - more like a plate of spiced vegetables, rather than the saucy versions you make with coconut milk. Very light and perfect for a Tuesday night.
Cauliflower and Potato Subzi
500g cauliflower, cut into florets
500g kipfler potatoes, sliced (I left the skin on)
1 onion
1 punnet grape tomatoes, halved
1 tsp crushed garlic (2-3 cloves)
1 tbsp chopped ginger root
½ tsp ground tumeric
1 pinch chilli flakes
1 tsp cumin seeds
salt and pepper
1/2 cup water
1 handful fresh coriander
2 tablespoons coconut oil*
Heat the oil and gently fry the spices, onion until the onion has softened. Add the tomato, garlic, ginger, and season with salt and pepper. Fry until the tomatoes have started to soften. Add the cauliflower and potato, pour over the water and cover with a lid. Cook for 20 minutes or until the potato is tender. Stir through some chopped coriander before serving immediately.
We ate this with some steamed brown rice and a mint raita.
*I havet a jar of virgin coconut oil and it works brilliantly in curries as a substitute for ghee. It does have a high quantity of saturated fat, but supposedly has high amounts of lauric acid, which has antioxidant properties. Not sure if it's a miracle food like some people claim, but it does taste amazing (and can be used as a dairy-free substitute for butter in baking).
2 comments:
Love the sound of this recipe, and it meets all the fast, easy, healthy rules! I like the idea of using coconut oil too. I shy clear of canned coconut cream for everyday use cos it's so far out of my locavore range, (and because I'm wary of things with a high oil content in cans lined with BPA). But coconut oil seems like a good way to get that lovely coconut flavour. I've heard the miracle claims too, and I think my attitude is exactly the same as yours - the evidence seems to be that it's not a miracle cure but a saturated fat with some good health benefits. And the problem is not saturated fat per se but too much saturated fat in Western diets.
I only have cauliflower and leek in the fridge, and I can't decide between this recipe, the brown rice risotto and a leeky cauliflower soup!
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