Rasedar Gobi - Cauliflower in a creamy fennel flavored sauce

New year started 9 days back and it already seems like it has been here forever. I still haven't written 2014 anywhere, so much for all electronic communications and gadgets. Me & DD had this bet going that we would be writing 2013 until atleast March and I haven't hand written the date even once in the last 9 days, so no scope for error :-). I guess I am not leaving a lot of footprints in this world after all.

There were times when I wouldn't know what to make out of Gobi/phool Gobi/Cauliflower if I found one in my hand. I grew up hardly eating this winter vegetable since nammamma hardly ever brought it home. As I grew older and possibly wiser, I ventured into many vegetables and dishes and cuisines hitherto unknown and found that I did like a lot of them. I am open and willing to try many dishes I wouldn't even have given a second glance before. It no longer seems strange that I already have a handful of Gobi recipes on my blog here. Things do change over time, right?

This is a recipe I got from one of the online cookery shows I was watching on a day when boredom and solitude were how the day was defined :-). Infact it was made with potatoes and not cauliflower at all. Since potato and cauliflower have such kinship and go so well in most recipes they are put together, I was originally thinking of adding cauliflower into the gravy, but it so happened that I was out of potatoes when I finally decided to make this curry, there were chapatis already planned for the lunch so I went ahead and made them with just cauliflowers and loved it totally. Adding potatoes will bring in additional thickness to the gravy, if you want you can combine the 2 vegetables or use either of them.

What drew me to the recipe the first time I saw it was the use of fennel and roasted coconut, it sounded close to the kadala curry I had made and loved and I was eager to use fennel again in my cooking. Did I mention roasted and ground fennel is an aroma I LOVE to have in my kitchen. Here is a quick tip for all you fennel lovers, add a little spoon of freshly roasted and ground fennel to your pizza dough and enjoy the gleeful surprise on the face of your family and guests. This curry turned out simply great and a perfect accompaniment for rotis. I am sure you can serve it with plain rice and a fried rice.

While the list of ingredients look a bit tiresome below, don't let that be a deterrent, I have organized them into masala and others for ease of cooking. The original recipe used readily available powders, since I love fresh ingredients I boosted the flavor here with a few freshly roasted spices in addition to the dry powders.

What do you need to make Rasedar Gobi? 
3 cups chopped Gobi/cauliflower

Rasedar masala: 

1 cup chopped tomato
2 Tblsp roughly chopped onion
2 Tblsp shredded coconut
1 Tblsp oil
1 Tblsp saunf
1 inch piece cinnamon
3 cloves
1 green cardamom
4-6 black pepper corns
8-10 almonds
Other ingredients: 
1 Tblsp oil
1 inch piece ginger
2 Tblsp finely chopped onion
1/2 Tsp kasoori methi
1/2 Tsp red chili powder
1/2 Tsp garam masala
1/4 Tsp amchoor powder
1 Tblsp finely chopped cilantro
1 Tsp salt (adjust to taste)

How do you make Rasedar Gobi? 

• Put chopped Gobi in a microwave safe bowl, cover it with water and a pinch of salt and microwave for 5-7 minutes to make the pieces slightly tender. You can do this on stove top bringing a pot of water to boil, add gobi pieces and switch off. 
• Strain the tenderized Gobi pieces and reserve the water for later use. 
• Heat 1 Tblsp oil in a pan, add cinnamon, cloves, cardamom, pepper and saunf and roast until you get the fragrance of the spices - 1 to 1.30 minutes
• Add roughly chopped onions and saute for a minute.
• Add chopped tomatoes and almonds and saute for 2-3 minutes until tomatoes become mushy. 
• Add shredded coconut and roast for a minute or two. 

• Switch off and let it cool down before grinding to a very smooth paste. 
• Heat the remaining oil in the pan, add grated ginger and finely chopped onions and saute until onions are translucent. 
• Add the blanched gobi pieces and increase the heat to high. 
• Stirring continuously, let the Gobi pieces crisp up and brown a little bit - about 3-5 minutes. 
• Add the ground masala, dry powders. taste and adjust.  

• Adjust consistency with reserved water. 
• Let the gravy boil on medium heat. 
• Crush kasoori methi between palms and add it to the gravy. 
• Switch off, garnish with chopped cilantro and serve warm with rotis or rice. 

Notes: 

• You can add a cup of chopped potatoes to this dish if you are a fan of potatoes. 
• I replace cashew nuts with almonds in most of my gravy recipes because they are better nuts of the two. If you prefer the creamy taste of cashew nuts, go ahead and indulge. 
• Add amchur powder if you like the curry slightly tart and if your tomatoes are not very sour. 
• Blanching the gobi pieces reduces the cooking time in the pan, you can skip this and cover and cook Gobi pieces in the pan until they turn tender. 
• Roasting the spices fresh brings out most flavor, you can skip this and increase the amount of dry powders if you have confidence on their freshness.

Kitchen smartness: 

• Any liquid you boil vegetables in will be flavorful and nutritious, do not chuck this down the drain, you can use it in gravies, making chapati dough and much more.

Achari Gobi(cauliflower) - Cooking lessons from the Master

Hello October, already? Last I spoke to you all was in Summer :-). I have no idea how the year flew by and is almost nearing the end. Well, I will spare the year end/new year speech here (I need that material for Dec 31st :-)). But, time seems to be really rushing by and I have ample proof in the occasional gray hairs I find when I brush. That is also another day's material, I mean the gray hairs and their appearances. Until then, let us stick to safer and more publicly acknowledged topics, shall we?

October marks the beginning of the Fall/Autumn season, and if you happen to be in the region where color changes all around you, consider yourself lucky because that is one gorgeous sight to behold. Of all the places I have been to, I love the Washington Autumn best. The terrain is marked with huge, tall, ever greens but has loads of color changing, leaves dropping deciduous trees. The Autumn colors from blazing red to happy yellow look all the more beautiful as the sturdy, stark, dark green ever greens stand in contrast in the back ground. As I look at those confidence alluding ever greens, it somehow feels ok to let go of all the leaves and let the trees hibernate for the season.

 

As is typical for every weather, the cold days have their very own vegetables. Gobi or Cauliflower is considered a winter vegetable in India, most flavorful and fresh during the cold months. But you can't really eat a bland vegetable in the nippy weather either, right? So, here is some perk-you-up kind of chatpata Gobi curry, if you didn't know the name, you would be wondering where that familiar smell and flavor were coming from. Since you know the name, you can decipher the dish to be tasting similar to achar or pickle :-). But to set the record straight, achari Gobi doesn't mean pickled cauliflower, it is a cauliflower curry with spices used in normal pickles.

In the olden days when there were no 150 odd channels to surf when you switched on the TV, I remember watching a cookery show in a relative's house. The guy flashed his dimples, smiled and was very amiable and spoke in 'shuddh Hindi (good, unadulterated Hindi)' and I just fell in love with that show. He became very famous, wrote (I don't know how many) cook books, turned entrepreneur with kitchen gadgets and masala powders, was invited as a guest on foreign cookery shows (like Rachel Ray's) over the years. I am sure many of you know who I am talking about and probably share my fondness for chef Sanjeev Kapoor. With my own experience in the kitchen, I know now that not all of his recipes will be a hit with my family and also that he was not always doing 'home cooking'. He most definitely was a trend setter on an original cookery show on Indian television when cooking and recipes were limited to one's own kitchen and not flaunted or marketed or shared. Very different times than today. He brought the unknown North Indian dishes to the very South Indian kitchen like ours and also made us laugh at some of the lame South Indian recipes presented on his show claiming them to be authentic :-), ah the allure of authenticity.

I go back to the master chef from time to time to see what I can pick up. With a fresh Gobi, my natural choice was Sanjeev Kapoor. His achari Gobi has an Amritsari charm along with whole spices but I powdered them as we do not prefer to bite into them. I skipped the vinegar but added the yogurt, other than that the recipe is a lift off from Sanjeev Kapoor.

Pepped up with mustard oil, this curry has the flavors of fenugreek, fennel seeds and onions seeds wrapping up the succulent Cauliflower florets - a sure crowd pleaser for a big gathering or a small family meal. We had it with warm chapatis and some tangy sautekayi gojju on the side, yumm. Winter cold becomes bearable with such a dish.
What do you need to make Achari Gobi?
1 medium sized cauliflower - about 4 cups of florets
1 inch piece fresh ginger
2 cloves garlic
1/4 cup yogurt
1 Tsp salt (adjust to taste)
2 Tblsp mustard oil
1 Tsp cumin
1/2 Tsp Kalonji/onion seeds
1/4 Tsp Turmeric powder
To powder:
1/2 Tsp mustard
1.5 Tsp fenugreek seeds
1 Tsp fennel seeds/saunf
2-3 dry red chilies

How do you make Achari Gobi?

• Remove the stalk end and the surrounding leaves of the cauliflower, separate the florets and cut them in to desired size.
• Wash, peel and make a paste of ginger.
• Make a paste of garlic cloves.
• Take the ingredients under 'To powder' to a spice grinder or mortar and pestle and make a fine powder, keep covered until ready to use.
• Heat oil in a wide pan, when it is about to start smoking, add cumin followed by Kalonji and turmeric powder.

• Add the cauliflower florets, stir it in to mix, add salt, ginger and garlic paste.
• Add 1/4 cup water, cover and cook on medium heat for 4-5 minutes until the cauliflower becomes slightly soft.
• Add the masala powder, mix in thoroughly, cover and cook for another 5-7 minutes until cauliflower is fork tender.
• Add the yogurt, increase heat and cook for a couple of minutes until the liquids evaporate.
• Serve garnished with chopped cilantro and a squeeze of lemon.

Notes:

• Mustard oil gives the dish an authentic pickle taste, if you do not have it, use any other oil.

• Use a wide pan so the cauliflower florets are distributed in a single layer, do not pile or crowd them in a small pan to ensure uniform cooking.
• Yogurt brings the required tartness in the dish, you can replace it with vinegar or dry mango powder instead.
• Actual cook time depends on the size of the cauliflower pieces and your stove but the entire process does not take more than 15 minutes from start to finish, adjust the time to end with juicy soft florets that hold their shape without collapsing.
• This is not a curry with gravy, it is moist but dry, so increase heat once you add yogurt to help the liquids evaporate.

Gobi Manchurian - a family favorite

Gobi Manchurian - the yummy appetizer available in every Indian restaurant, doesn't need any introduction, right? It is not something I make frequently at home just because I go a little low on deep fried recipes. But when craving hits, DD is having her Summer vacations and it is one of her favorite starters (she fills her stomach with it before the main course is served), I made an exception last weekend and we had some of the best home made Gobi Manchurian devoured by all.

Weather has been so gorgeous and perfect, I don't want to jinx it but I have to admit that the balmy skies bring a wonderfully peppy outlook. It is easier to plan outings, enjoy the beautiful nature and terrain and that is what we have been doing for the last 2 weekends. Get up in the morning, pack stuff for lunch and head out on a drive or a hike and I am loving it. Last weekend, we came back in the evening from one of our outngs and made some delicious Gobi Manchurian for dinner, yes it was a full dinner and we made up for eating all that deep fried goodies with some fresh fruits we had got in the morning :-)

Gobi Manchurian is easy to prepare as long as you follow a few simple tricks which will make you dish out a perfectly crispy and juicy Gobi in the sauce. We like the dry form of the Gobi Manchurian and as you can see in the pictures, the sauce is well coated on every Gobi floret but it is not floating in it.

What do you need to make Gobi Manchurian?
For Gobi Manchurian: 
1 medium head of fresh cauliflower/gobi
1 cup all purpose flour/maida
1 heaped Tblsp corn flour
3/4 Tsp rice flour
2 inch long fresh ginger root - peeled and pound in a mortar & pestle or use 1 Tsp fresh ginger paste
2 garlic cloves - mashed into a paste
2-3 green chilies - pound in mortar and pestle
1/4 Tsp turmeric powder
1 cup water
Oil to deep fry - I used Sunflower oil
For the sauce:
1/2 cup tomato ketchup (I used Heinz)
1/3 cup soy sauce - I used the less sodium, naturally brewed
1/4 Tsp black pepper powder
1/2 medium red onion - chopped roughly
1 small jalapeno pepper - deseeded and cut into 1/4 inch thick roundels or use roughly chopped bell pepper

1 Tsp salt - divide and use - adjust to taste
For garnish(Optional): 
1 Tblsp finely chopped sprig onions
1 Tblsp finely chopped cabbage

How do you make Gobi Manchurian? 
Gobi preparation: 

• Remove the stem of the cauliflower and separate the florets, chop them as small or big as you would prefer individual bites to be. 
• In a wide bowl mix 1/2 Tsp salt, turmeric powder, ginger, garlic and green chilies paste and coat them over the cut Gobi florets. Let it marinate for 30-40 minutes. 
• Mix all the flours, remaining 1/2 Tsp salt and make into a thin batter. The consistency should be flowing. 
• Heat the oil on medium heat and test readiness by dropping a small pinch of the batter into it. If the batter comes right up to the surface, the oil is ready for frying. 

• Take the marinated Gobi florets one batch at a time (sufficient to fill your oil pan but not overload it) and dip it into the batter and drop gently into the hot oil. 

• Let it cook for 2 minutes without disturbing and then turn them over and let cook on the other side for 2 minutes. Keep the oil on medium heat and let the Gobi cook well. The bubbles in the oil subsides when the Gobi is done. 
• Drain the fried Gobi and set aside on a paper tissue to absorb oil. 

Sauce Preparation: 

• Heat 1 Tsp oil in a wide pan, keep the heat on high. 
• Add the onion slices and let cook on high for just a minute, the onion should not get soft, should be crunchy. 
• Add the sliced bell pepper and fry for another minute, again make sure it doesn't become soft. 
• Add the tomato ketchup, black pepper powder and soy sauce in to the pan and stir it quickly to coat all the onion and bell pepper pieces. 

• Add the fried Gobi and mix it well to coat every fried floret well with the sauce. 

• Serve hot Gobi Manchurian immediately garnished with thinly chopped spring onions and cabbage. 

Notes: 

• Corn flour and rice flour give a crispy layer to the Gobi, so make sure you use them. 
• Marinating the florets in the ginger, garlic and green chilies paste allows them to absorb the flavors well and gives you the authentic, restaurant taste of the Gobi Manchurian.
• Make the batter thin, it should only coat the Gobi in a single layer and should not be lumpy as it will make the Gobi soggy. 
• Remember you are adding salt in 2 places and the store bought tomato ketchup and soy sauce have sodium in it, so make sure you do not over salt the end product.
• Adding turmeric powder to the batter gives a nice color to the Gobi Manchurian when fried. 
• It is a good practice to soak cauliflower florets into warm salted water before marinating it. 
• Garnish is completely optional and you can use anything you like or omit it completely, it is my way of getting some healthy vegetables in as part of the process.
• Mix fried Gobi into the sauce just before serving. 
• After taking the Gobi out of oil, if the covering feels soft to touch, refry another 2 minutes until it is crispy.

Guilt free Gobi ka Kofta (Cauliflower balls in gravy)

Cauliflower or Gobi or Hookosu (Hoo/huvu~flower, kosu~cabbage) was not a vegetable I grew up with, it was a real late entry into my life. It was not a very eye catching veggie in the street corner veggie shop in Mysore since it would usually be wimpy and also pricey due to the fact that it was not a native of the South Indian climate. Nammamma never brought this vegetable home and we grew up without eating it though its much cheaper, versatile sister cabbage was a quite regular fare at home. Once when I asked nammamma why she didn't get the gobi home, she said 'it is stinky :-)', well that applies to the regular cabbage also but she made curries and sambar with it, so why not this one? After probing a little bit, she said 'it looks like chicken when you cut it' :-)). You have to give it to nammamma, a staunch vegetarian, she has never had chicken in all her life and I am confident she has not seen it from close corners either. So here was my amma who told me that she didn't use gobi because it looked like chicken, give it up for stereotyping :-).

I think I tasted gobi  at home for the first time after I got married, amma makes gobi bhath, gobi fry etc when it is fresh and within reach of common man. I have grown to like it and frequently make it at home.

Cauliflowers are low in fat, low in carbs but has high fiber content, water and vitamin C and hence is a great addition to your recipes. While I love a good kofta and order it almost with every restaurant meal, I am never satisfied with the quality/taste of it. Either I find it too greasy, koftas too hard and come back home chiding myself for having ordered it again. The cycle repeats again and life goes on... The other day, I was browsing books in a Half price book store (Yes, in case you didn't know, sometimes you get good deals there) and found an Indian cook book by Nita Mehta, the book was not in a very good shape and I saw a recipe for Gobi kofta without onion. I came home and tried it from memory but made some changes to suit our palate.  I wanted to retain the nutritional value of the vegetable at the same time not compromising on the taste factor. So here comes a keeper recipe for 'Gobi kofta - the slim way' adapted from Nita Mehta.

What do you need to make Gobi Kofta?
I will break the ingredients into 2 sets, one for the kofta and one for the gravy.

Kofta Ingredients:
1 medium sized cauliflower/gobi - ends removed and florets grated
1 sweet potato - boiled, peeled and mashed into a pulp
1 potato - boiled, peeled and mashed
1 Tsp salt (adjust to taste)
1-2 Tsp corn flour for binding
1/2 Tsp red chili powder
2 Tsp cooking oil

Gravy Ingredients: 
3 medium sized tomatoes chopped into 4 pieces each
1 medium sized shallot/red onion - about 2 Tblsp chopped fine
1 Tblsp ginger paste/2 inch ginger root chopped fine
1 Tsp Garlic paste/1 clove garlic chopped fine
1 Tsp salt
1/2 Tsp garam masala powder
1 Tsp dhania-jeera powder (or use an additional spoon of garam masala)
1 Tsp red chili powder
1 Tblsp kasoori methi
1 Tsp cumin seeds/jeera
1 small tej patta/dry bay leaf
1 Tsp cooking oil
2 Tsp of almonds/cashew nuts (soaked in warm water for 15 minutes)*
1/2 cup milk (I used skim milk)

Chopped cilantro/coriander leaves for garnish
* I use almonds as they are I am a health(y) nut :-)

How do you make Gobi Kofta?
Making Kofta:

• Stir fry grated gobi in a pan and add salt until it softens up a little bit for 10-12 minutes.
• Once the gobi is cool to touch, add mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, corn flour, red chili powder and mix well.
• Form small lemon sized balls from this mixture and keep aside for 15 minutes.
• Now comes the waist line friendly part of the whole dish, I use my non stick 'imported from India' paddu pan (see picture below), this is also available at stores here as Aebleskiver or Ebleskiver pan.
• Heat the paddu pan, drizzle with drops of oil and place the gobi balls in gently as they are still fragile at this stage.
• Cook on medium heat for about 10 minutes on each side and flip it (remember 'gentle') and cook it until both sides turn golden brown and crisp. 
• Exhaust all the gobi balls you made the same way and store the gobi balls on the side until the gravy is ready, it is very tempting to just pop one of those balls and keep munching on them but you will end up with gravy sans kofta in that case :)

Making Gravy:

• Heat oil in a wide pan, add cumin seeds and let it sizzle.
• Add the ginger & garlic, stir it for 2 minutes.
• Add the chopped onion and stir frequently until onion turns light pink. 
• Prepare a puree of tomatoes, tej patta and the soaked nuts.
• Pour the puree into the pan, add salt and let it simmer for 15 minutes until the raw smell of tomatoes is gone.
• Add the dry powders and let the flavor cook into the gravy for 5 minutes.
• Add the milk and water to get a pouring consistency, the sauce thickens up as it cooks and cools.
• Let the sauce simmer for another 5 minutes. 
• Crush the kasoori methi in your palms and sprinkle it on top of the boiling gravy, switch off the stove.

NOTE: The process takes time but does not need constant baby sitting. I was in fact working on the day I made this, set my kitchen timer at various points and continued to work. 

To serve: 

• Keep the gravy warm until it is time to serve.
• Drop the gobi koftas in to the gravy and coat them with the gravy just before serving
• Serve delicious, melt in the mouth gobi koftas garnished with cilantro as a side dish to roti or rice. 

Variations: 

• When you make the gobi balls, you can keep a raisin and cashew nut in the middle of the gobi balls for that extra restaurant touch, but my koftas were naturally sweet with the sweet potatoes.
• You can omit onions for the gravy like in the original recipe.
• You can replace milk with cream for a richer gravy, I found my gravy to be just perfect.

Tips: 

• Once you make the gobi balls, keep them outside for about 15 minutes for them to naturally dry a little bit, this makes it easier to fry them.
• I have tasted koftas made with gram flour or besan which gives a strong pakoda-like taste, corn flour is very non intrusive in taste and acts as a good binding agent.

Here goes my Gobi kofta to Vardhini's Healing Foods-Cauliflower event started by Siri