This Saturday, I made a really tasty Madras from Madhur Jaffrey’s Simple Indian Cookery Book, which I could not recommend highly enough. The recipe was easy to follow, didn’t involve any elusive ingredients, and the finished result was as good as anything I have eaten down Brick Lane (me, modest? All credit to Madhur).
Anyway, I digress. Because the Madras was just sauce and meat, I decided to make a vegetable side dish to accompany, and came up with this light, but deliciously spiced cauliflower curry. It worked really well as a side dish, but would be just as good on its own with a bit of rice for a really quick, cheap, mid week dinner.
Ingredients (serves 2 as a main dish, 4 as a side)
1 head of cauliflower
1 teaspoon of cumin seeds
1 teaspoon of black mustard seeds
1 teaspoon of turmeric
1 teaspoon of garam massala
300mls of chicken stock
1 tomato, chopped finely
1 teaspoon of olive oil
1 small knob of butter
Directions
Chop cauliflower into florettes.
Heat oil in a saucepan and throw in cumin seeds and mustard seeds. Cook for a minute or two until they begin to pop. Pour in stock and add rest of spices.
Throw in cauliflower and stir to coat in liquid. Put lid on pan and cook for 5-7mins until cauliflower is tender. Remove cauliflower with a slotted spoon and set aside to keep warm.
Add tomatoes and butter to liquid and reduce by about half to thicken. Return cauliflower to the pan and coat in sauce.
Serve with fresh steamed rice, or with your favourite curry.