Directions
Actually not really. This cauliflower dish is simply easy, tasty, quick to fix and perfect for any weekday meal... even if every time I fix it my husband says the house smells like the Lower East Side circa 1920. But I don't care, cauliflower is good, inexpensive and one of the most versatile vegetables out there. It's also pretty and the spring-like colors of this cruciferous wonder out there right now remind me of a basket of parti-colored Easter Eggs.
Cauliflower comes in a variety of colors, purple, pinks, greens, yellows and plain old white, so when I was at the market I was drawn to all the pretty colors and decided I needed more Gobi in my life. Also, they were on sale... just sayin' . So, I chose a brilliant deep golden one and took it home.
I wanted a simple way to cook this cauliflower, something that wouldn't take all day as we're in the midst of a script and I couldn't spend hours in the kitchen, so I turned to a basic Gujarati sabzi, a simple dry curry vegetable dish, and to speed things up, I roasted the cauliflower before cooking. This allowed me extra work time as I could pop it into the oven on a baking sheet get some work done while it roasted, and then do the final assembly quickly. I highly recommend roasting as it really brings out a lot of flavor, and as I said, keeps things moving. Also I'm not nuts about filling the house with the aroma of boiling cauliflower.
Simple Gobi Sabzi
Here's What You Need:
For The Cauliflower :
1 medium cauliflower broken into florets
1/8 tsp turmeric 2 Tbs vegetable oil, I use coconut oil
2 serrano chilies slit
1 peeled and crushed shallot
1/2 tsp chopped fresh ginger
1/2 tsp cumin seeds
1 dried red chili
1 finely chopped onion
1 fresh tomato peeled and chopped or diced chopped canned tomatoes
1 tsp chopped fresh cilantro
For the Spice Paste:
1/2 cup of water
1 tsp kashmiri chili powder
1/2 tsp coriander
1/2 tsp garam masala
1/2 tsp turmeric
2 Tbs yogurt
Here's What To Do:
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
Cut the cauliflower into florets.
Place them into a bowl and drizzle them with 1 Tbs of coconut oil and 1/8 tsp turmeric.
Mix everything around well so the cauliflower is coated.
Place it on a baking sheet and pop it into the 400 degree oven to roast for about 20 minutes.
Check in and stir it around. When it starts to get slightly crispy-looking, it's done.
Take it out and set it aside.
Mix together the ingredients for the Spice Paste.
Whip the yogurt.
Mix it with the water.
Add in the Kashmiri chili, garam masala, turmeric, and coriander powder.
Mix it together well.
Slit the serrano chilies.
Crush the shallot and chop the ginger.
In a skillet or kadhai heat 2 Tbs of vegetable oil.
When the oil is hot toss in the 2 slit serrano chilies. Let them sizzle for about 10 seconds then take them out and set them aside.
Now add in the cumin seeds.
When the seeds start to crackle add in the ginger, shallot, dried red chili and saute everything for about 2 minutes.
Now add the chopped onion...
...and diced tomato.
Let them saute for about 2 minutes then pour in your spice paste.
Mix it in well and cook it until it starts to thicken and the oil seperates.
Now add in the previously roasted cauliflower.
Cook it until the cauliflower is warm again and cooked through.
Check it for seasoning and serve it up.
Garnish it with the serrano chilies and sprinkle it with the chopped fresh cilantro.
Just don't eat the serranos. We took our lunch out into the garden.
The cauliflower in this dish can be roasted ahead, the spice paste made ahead... all in all this is why this dish makes a great lunch or dinner side. Enjoy it with rice, chapattis or any American main course. Coming up next more Seasonal Indian dishes and a surprise giveaway from the gang at CocoaPlanet Tasting Room and Modern French Cafe...win a Golden Ticket! Follow along on Twitter @kathygori
