An Indian wedding goes many many days long. The typical Indian wedding is approximately 3 to 5 days long. Can you imagine planning all different breakfast, lunch and dinners for hundreds of guest for all those days? Especially when the bride’s family loves food and looks for the innovation and the groom’s family is in the restaurant business? That is what happened in our situation. Menu planning was a feat for my family and we wanted to make sure we had unique dishes that were not the standard fare and therefore will be remembered by our guest. For me, it was important to surprise my soon to be hubster with some of his favorite dishes all throughout the event. Everyone loved it! Till this day, we get complimented on the feast we had catered. (Special thanks to Rasoi and Palace of Asia and my cousins for making this happen!) For our wedding day lunch, I had Palace of Asia create a punjabi spiced version of the dish that I am about to share with you – Cauliflower, Potato and Tomato Curry. The hubster loves this dish! My mummy would make it for him all the time when we dated and once we married, I learned to make it for him. It’s hearty, simple, fast to throw together and requires very few ingredients.
The main veggies in this dish are cauliflower, tomatoes and potatoes.
The spices are very basic as well – just salt, red chilli powder turmeric and a pinch of garam masala. It’s perfect for a cold winter night.
Cauliflower, Potato and Tomato Curry (serves 4-5)
1 large potato – chopped in 1/2″ cubes
1/2 head of cauliflower chopped in small pieces (approximately 2 1/2 cups)
2 1/2 plum tomatoes – chopped in medium pieces
1 1/2 tbsp. oil
1/2 tsp. mustard seeds (rai)
1/2 tsp. cumin seeds (jeeru)
1/2 to 3/4 tsp. red chilli powder (I used 3/4 tsp. since we like ours a little spicer)
1/4 tsp. turmeric powder (haldi)
1 1/2 to 2 cups of water
Salt to taste
1-2 tbsp. chopped cilantro (optional)
1) Heat oil in a kadai/skillet/sauté pan on medium high heat.
2) After 1-2 minutes (once oil is heated) add mustard seeds and cumin seeds and wait for them to sputter.
3) Add chopped potato, turmeric powder and red chilli powder and mix.
4) Lower heat, add 1/2 cup of water and cover pan/wok. Place heat back on medium high and let potatoes cook for 3-4 minutes.
5) Add cauliflower and mix. If water has evaporated, add another 1/2 cup.
6) Cover and cook on medium high heat for approximately 5 minutes until cauliflower are slightly tender.
7) Add chopped tomatoes and an additional 1/2 to 1 cup water if needed. (We like ours with more gravy so we added 1 cup).
8) At this point, my mother recommends squishing some of the potato pieces with the back of your spatula/serving spoon to help create a thicker gravy. It really works! After all, mummy knows best!
9) Add garam masala and mix. Cover and cook for another 2-3 minutes until the tomatoes soften up and some of the water thickens to a gravy.
10) And voila! It’s ready to serve. Garnish with fresh cilantro and serve with roti/paratha or rice along with your favorite accompaniments. (We used homemade mango pickle, pickled peppers, onions and papadum).
Hope you enjoy this dish as much as we do! I hope this inspires the hubster to make it for me one day! Keeping fingers crossed!
indianfoodista 