Fall continues to delight the soul and inspire recipes that are warm and comforting for the season.So this recipe take quite a few ingredients and steps but its worth it. I have added the flavors of Fennel and Dry ginger to bring in the Kashmiri influence. This recipe is vegan but you could add fresh cream instead of coconut milk if you like.
Lauki or Bottle Gourd is a staple in Kashmir but you can use Zucchini as an alternative.
A pack of organic firm tofu – drained of all water and crumbled in a bowl
2 cups of grated Lauki (Bottle Gourd)
1/2 tsp red chili powder
Green chilis – 2 finely chopped
1 tsp garam masala
1/2 tsp cumin powder
1/2 tsp dry ginger powder
1 tsp fennel powder
2- 3 tablespoons of besan ( Chickpea flour)
salt to taste
For the curry sauce
Onion – 1
Tomatoes – 4 peeled or from a can
1/2 cup cashews soaked for 30 mins
2 green chilis
1 tsp garam masala
1 tsp tumeric
1/2 tsp red chili powder
Ground ginger and garlic ( 1 whole head of garlic and 2 inch ginger)
1/2 tsp dry ginger powder
1 tsp fennel powder
1/2 tsp fennel seeds
4 green cardamoms
1/2 tsp black cardamom powder
1/2 cup coconut milk
1inch cinnamon stick
Salt to taste
Putting it together
Take the Tofu out of the package and drain until dry
Take the grated Lauki and immerse in boiling water for 2 mins. Drain well and squeeze out the water.
Mix together all the ingredients for the Koftas. Adjust the flour to get a good light consistency.
Make moderate size balls and let them rest. Now you can deep fry these, bake them or use the pan I used, a good quality Takoyaki pan that has uses in multiple cuisines. Takes a dash of oil in each cup to cook the veggie balls. Make sure you rotate them to cook evenly.
Once the batch is fried, let them rest on a towel until the sauce is ready.
Blend the cashews, onion, tomatoes and green chili.
Add olive oil to a pan, sprinkle the Cumin seeds and Fennel seeds. Add garlic and ginger pasteand fry for a minute until fragrant. Add the dry ginger powder, fennel powder, cardamoms, cinnamon, turmeric, garam masala and the red chili.
Add the cashew mixture and cook down until the oil separates from the mixture
Add a cup of waterand the coconut milk to the mixture and bring it to a saucy consistency. Add the Koftas and cook on medium heats for 5 – 10 minutes.
Top with some fresh lemon juice and chopped chilis and serve with rice or naan.
Sometime the simplest of dishes bring the most comfort. An effortless stir fry to clean out your fridge is how I would qualify this dish. After a long’s day at work it does feel good when you can whip up dinner 10 mins and it is completely satisfying and healthy. Any firm vegetables of your liking are good in the stir fry such as green beans or asparagus.
Tofu and Snow Peas Stir Fry
For the tofu, I cut it in cubes and let it dry on a kitchen towel. The texture is firmer and better when it has less moisture in it. I like my garlic fresh and whole cloves but please chop if you like. For prep you want to chop all the veggies and set aside. Mix all the wet ingredients and set aside.
Here is what your need ( or what I had on hand)
Organic firm Tofu cut in cubes
1 1/2 cup Snow Peas ( or just a couple of handfuls)
1 Red onion chopped in strips
1 Green pepper chopped in strips
1/2 cup Shelled peanuts
5 garlic cloves sliced in chunks or whole
1 chopped green chili.
1 tablespoon peanut or olive oil
1 tsp sesame oil
For the Sauce, mix together
2 tablespoons low sodium soy sauce
1 inch ginger grated
2 tablespoon rice vinegar ( Mirin works well here too)
1 tablespoon sambal oelek chili paste ( found in any asian market)
1 tsp organic raw honey
1/2 cup vegetable stock or water.
salt and pepper ( remember soy sauce has salt so add extra salt to taste)
Putting it together:
Heat your wok on high until smoking. Add peanut oil and then the peanuts, give it a minute and add garlic cloves and green chili, let the garlic brown just very slightly and then add the tofu, add the veggies one at a time while stirring constantly being careful not to break up the tofu.
Tofu and Snow Peas Stir Fry
Add the sauce and cook on medium heat for a couple of mins. Add sesame oil towards the end for that wonderful fragrance and taste.
This broth-y spicy dish has so many variations that is it hard to go wrong. Always feeds all the senses…
The basic taste is that of Thai food but crosses over to Indian with the addition of curry powder and garam masala. Temper the spices to your taste but if you enjoy spicy food then use the amounts I recommend.
Start off with a tablespoon of good coconut oil in a heavy bottomed pan. Add chunks of firm organic tofu and let it fry for a few minutes. Add 1 tablespoon of curry powder and 1 tsp of garam masala. Fry the spices for another few minutes.
Add 1 heaping tablespoon of red thai curry paste, 3 cloves of crushed garlic and 1 tsp of finely chopped ginger. Add 1 cup of light coconut milk and cook for a couple of minutes.
Add 2-3 cups of vegetable broth, 1 green zucchini chopped in large pieces, 1 red bell pepper chopped in large chunks, 1 cup soaked dry shiitake mushrooms, 2 red thai peppers – halfed.
Let it cook for about 10 minutes at medium heat. Add a handful of rice noodles and cook another 5-10 minutes.
Adjust the salt to taste.
Serve topped with red onions, green chillies, crushed peanuts, Cilantro and lime.
Fall continues to delight the soul and inspire recipes that are warm and comforting for the season. So this recipe take quite a few ingredients and steps but its worth it. I have added the flavors of Fennel and Dry ginger to bring in the Kashmiri influence. This recipe is vegan but you could add fresh cream instead of coconut milk if you like.
