Tofu Kurma, Curry

          Every once in a while, I buy tofu and most of the time it ends up as tofu bhurji. This time when I bought it, I wanted to try something else with it like chilli tofu or in some baking but then it finally ended up in this kurma. This is again an easy dish, goes perfectly with rotis, naans and pilafs and a nice healthy alternative to a paneer dish..

Need To Have

• Diced Tofu - about 11/2 cups
• Onion - 1 medium, chopped
• Turmeric Powder - 1/4 teaspoon
• Red Chilly Powder - 1 teaspoon
• Coriander Powder - 2 teaspoons
• Garam Masala - 1/2 teaspon
• Chopped Coriander - to garnish
• Cinnamon Stick - 1" piece
• Cloves - 2

Paste 1

• Onion - 1 small
• Tomatoes - 2 medium
• Ginger - 1 tablespoon, chopped
• Garlic - 3 cloves
• Fennel Seeds - 1 teaspoon
• Mace - a small piece

Paste 2

• Grated Coconut - 2 tablespoons
• Cashews - 5

Method

          Grind together all the ingredients given under ' Paste 1 ' and ' Paste 2 '.

          Shallow fry the tofu pieces till golden, drain the excess oil and keep.

          Heat some oil, add the cinnamon and cloves, when it starts sizzling, add the chopped onion and saute for 2 minutes, then add the Paste 1 along with the chilly, coriander,turmeric powders and salt and saute well for  5 to 7 minutes till the raw smell of garlic and onion goes away and you get a nice aroma.

          Now add the Paste 2 and saute for a minute or two. Then add the tofu pieces and about 1 to 11/2 cups of water and cook for another 3 to 5 minutes, then add the garam masala, mix and finally add the chopped coriander and remove.

Note
For easy frying, shallow fry big pieces of tofu and then dice it.
Add more or less coconut according to your preference and adjust the spices and tomatoes according to that.

Read More

Soy And Vegetable Cutlets

          It's been a very long time since I made cutlets, I always thought it was a long and tedious job. Couple of weeks back, we had some friends visiting us in the evening and I made this for a snack. I had cooked breakfast, lunch, baked a cake and still had time to make these cutlets, it was then that I realized that they didn't take much time to prepare but a little bit of planning. I had a packet of soy granules, so just went ahead and used it along with some vegetables for making these cutlets. They were simply too good, my daughter who is not a big fan of the store bought ones, loved these, just serve them with some sliced onions and tomato sauce/ ketchup..

Need To Have

• Soy Granules - 1 cup
• Boiled And Mashed Potatoes - 1 cup
• Green Beans - 1 cup, chopped
• Carrots - 1/2 cup, chopped
• Beets - 1 cup, chopped
• Fresh Or Frozen Peas - 1/4 cup
• Bread Slices - 2
• Chopped Coriander - 1/4 cup
• Lemon Juice - 2 teaspoons
• Turmeric Powder - 1/4 teaspoon
• All Purpose Flour/ Maida - 2 tablespoons
• Bread Crumbs - 1 to 2 cups
• Oil for deep frying
• Salt to taste

To Grind

• Chopped Ginger - 2 teaspoons
• Garlic Cloves - 5
• Coriander Seeds - 1 tablespoons
• Green Chillies - 5

Method

          Grind coarsely all the ingredients given under ' to grind ', without adding any water. Put the soy granules in 2 cups boiling water, cover and leave it for 20 to 30 minutes. Drain, squeeze out the water and keep. Cook the beans, carrots, beets and peas, when you cook the potatoes. To the soy granules, add the potatoes, cooked vegetables and mix.

          Then add the ground mix, turmeric powder, lemon juice, salt and mix it one more time. Wet slightly the bread slices, tear it into small pieces, add it to the mixture and mix it well, so that it's no longer very wet and good enough to shape into cutlets/ patties.

          Shape the patties and leave it in the fridge for about 20 to 30 minutes. Mix the all purpose flour/ maida in about 1/2 cup of water and take the bread crumbs in a plate. Take the patties, dip lightly in the flour and water mixture, roll it in the bread crumbs and keep.

          Heat the oil, add the cutlets, a couple at a time and deep fry till they turn golden brown on both sides. Remove, drain and serve them warm with some onion slices and tomato sauce/ ketchup.

Note
If you have a toaster oven, then you can make the cutlets ahead of time and warm them before serving.
You can do everything except the frying part, the previous day itself and refrigerate.
I tried shallow frying them too, but the texture is different from those that are deep fried, they were more like tikkis or patties, moreover when doing in large quantities, deep frying saves time.
Don't leave out the beets, it gives a nice color and taste to the cutlets.

Read More

Vegetable Hakka Noodles

          This is my first noodles dish here, though I have made it a couple of times, I wanted to get it perfectly before I blogged about it. A very easy dish, if you get your noodles cooked perfectly, just follow the instructions on the noodles packet, you should be fine. With the vegetables and tofu added, this makes a complete meal..

Need To Have

• Ching's Vegetarian Noodles - 1 packet
• Cubed Tofu - 1 cup
• Carrot - 1/2 cup, sliced into thin strips
• Capsicum - 1 cup, sliced 
• Shredded Cabbage - 2 cups
• Onion - 1 small, sliced
• Spring Onions - 1 cup, chopped
• Garlic - 3 cloves
• Soy Sauce - 21/2 teaspoons
• Ching's Red Chilli Sauce - 31/2 teaspoons
• Black Pepper Powder - 1 teaspoon

Method

          Saute the cubed tofu in a little oil, till it turns golden brown.

          Cook the noodles according to the instructions on the packet, in boiling water for 2 to 3 minutes. Drain, mix in some oil and separate the noodles and let it cool.

          Heat some oil, add the garlic, toast till it's golden, remove it. To the same oil, add the onion and spring onions ( saving a little of the green part for garnishing). Saute for 2 minutes, then add the carrots and capsicum, saute again for another 2 minutes. Then add the cabbage and keep sauteing for 2 more minutes.

          Now add the soy sauce, the red chilly sauce and salt, mix it , add the cooked noodles and tofu. Mix it gently, finally add the pepper powder, mix it well, garnish with the spring onions and serve it hot.

Note
Don't overcook the noodles, then it'll be a mushy dish.
Serve it with some soy sauce, chilly flakes and black pepper on the side, so that you can add them according to your level of spiciness.
Be a little generous with the oil.
Always make in small batches, it's easy to mix in the noodles and it comes out perfect.
Serves 2 to 3 people.

Read More

Cauliflower And Soy Roast

          Cauliflower and Soy Roast, this is yet another easy and very tasty side dish that goes well with almost anything. I need not go into the nutritional value of soy, a good source of protein - to say the least. Cauliflower pairs with it very well, and the ground masala that I have used gives a nice taste to the otherwise bland soy chunks, give it a try, you'll like it..

Need To Have

• Cauliflower - 1 small
• Soy Chunks - 1 cup
• Dry Red Chilly - 1
• Curry Leaves - 10 - 15
• Salt - to taste

To Grind

• Onion - 1 medium
• Fennel Seeds - 1 teaspoon
• Coriander Seeds - 1 teaspoon
• Grated Coconut - 1 tablespoon
• Red Chilly Powder - 3/4 teaspoon
• Turmeric Powder - 1/4 teaspoon

Method
          Chop the cauliflower into medium size florets, wash well and then add to boiling water and switch off. Leave it for 5 minutes and remove it.

          Boil some more water and add the soy chunks, switch off and cover and leave it for 30 minutes. Then squeeze out the water and keep the soy chunks, if they look too big slice them into two. Grind all the ingredients given under 'to grind'.

          Heat some oil, add the 1 red chilly and curry leaves, mix for a few seconds, then add the cauliflower and the soy chunks and mix.

          Now add the ground paste and salt, mix well, add a little oil and keep cooking on medium heat, till the cauliflower looks roasted and gets light brown spots. Serve it warm.

Note
The cauliflower that we get in India is best done like this, but for the cauliflower that's available in the US, don't leave it for 5 mins in the hot water, just wash it with hot water, otherwise it'll turn very soft.
While cooking the cauliflower after adding the paste, keep mixing the vegetable and soy chunks at intervals.

Read More

Tofu Broccoli With Basil

          Back in the US, my daughter and I would frequent a Chinese restaurant, close to home. Of course being vegetarians, we had very few options, the usual lo mein and fried rice, but once I was surprised to find basil in the lo mein (noodles). It gave such a nice flavor and blended well with Chinese style of cooking. I had wanted to try it at home, so this time when I did a stir fry with broccoli and tofu, I used basil ( was so happy that we can get basil now in Chennai). It turned out very good, if you love basil like me, then you should definitely give this a try..
Need To Have

• Toasted Extra Firm Tofu Cubes - 1 cup
• Broccoli Florets - 1 + 1/2 cup
• Onions - 2 medium sliced
• Red Chilly Powder - 1/4 teaspoon
• Soy Sauce - 1 teaspoon
• Basil Leaves - 1 handful or 1/4 cup packed chopped

Method

          Blanch the broccoli florets ( add to boiling water for 2 minutes and rinse in cold water). Heat some oil, add the sliced onions, saute till it turns pink for about 3 minutes, then add the broccoli.

          Mix, then add the chilly powder, soy sauce, salt and a tablespoon of water, saute for another 5 minutes. Finally add the tofu and the chopped basil, mix well and serve it warm, garnished with some fresh basil.

Note
Toast slabs of tofu and then cube it.
Increase the amount of soy sauce or chilli powder as required, if needed you can add some black pepper powder at the end.

Read More

Capsicum Tofu

          I don't know how long it's going to take for me to really get used to my new kitchen, I miss my old one, it's been so long since I have cooked something interesting, miss my cooking and clicking. Hope I'll settle down soon, I know everything is in the mind and takes some time. Coming to today's dish, Capsicum Tofu, again it's something that I had made long time back, a very easy and nutritious dish, goes very well with rotis or with some Chinese fried rice or even with any pilaf..

Need To Have

• Extra Firm Tofu cubes - 1 cup
• Capsicum - 1 big chopped
• Onions - 2 medium chopped
• Chilli Powder - 3/4 teaspoon
• Turmeric Powder - 1/4 teaspoon

Method
          Heat some oil and saute the tofu cubes till they are turn golden, remove and drain. Again heat some oil, add the chopped onions, saute for a few minutes till they turn transparent, then add the chopped capsicum, saute for 2 more minutes. Now add the turmeric and chilli powders and salt, mix cover and cook for 5 mins. Finally, add the fried tofu cubes, give one last mix, remove and serve it warm.
Sending it to Cuisine Delights for the Spotlight - Curries/Gravies event.

Note
You can toast a big piece of tofu in a little oil and then cube it, it'll be easier this way to flip it to cook it on both sides. 

Read More

Tofu Bhurji (Scrambled Tofu)

          Happy Women's Day to all my readers and thought to celebrate it, the healthy way, with some tofu burji. Tofu, now we are hearing a lot about it, it's health benefits, especially to women, and it's use in the place of dairy, in so many products ranging from cakes to ice creams. But, growing up, tofu was like Greek and Latin to me, I had tasted it for the first time, only after marriage, while staying in Singapore, even then I didn't cook it at home. Only later, after coming here, I saw the extra firm organic tofu, and started using it in noodles and fried rice and then tried to replace it in the place of paneer. One dish, which comes out very well is this tofu bhurji, to make up for the taste of paneer, I use cashew paste in milk, try this out..

Need To Have

• Extra Firm Tofu - 1 cup, crumbled
• Green Capsicum - 1
• Red Capsicum - 1
• Onion - 1
• Tomato - 1
• Ginger - 1 tablespoon, grated
• Garlic - 3 cloves, grated
• Cashews - 1 tablespoon
• Cardamom - 1
• Milk - 1/4 cup
• Red Chilli Powder - 1 teaspoon
• Coriander Powder - 1 teaspoon
• Garam Masala - 1/4 teaspoon
• Kasuri Methi - 1 tablespoon
• Sugar - 1/2 teaspoon
• Cumin Seeds - 1 teaspoon

Method
          Slice the capsicums, chop the onion and tomatoes, grind the cashews and cardamom with some milk into a fine paste. Heat oil, add the cumin seeds, once it sizzles, add the onion, garlic and ginger, saute for a few mins, then add the tomatoes, keep sauteing for few more mins. Once the tomatoes starts to wilt, add the chilli and coriander powders, mix well, then add the capsicums. Keep cooking till the capsicums are done, add the tofu, cashew paste, sugar and milk, cook for a couple more mins, finally add the garam masala and kasuri methi, mix everything well and serve it with some rotis or naans.
Sending this to Spicy Treats for the Show Me The Hits - Fiber Rich Foods event,
                   to Food Corner for the Midweek Fiesta event,
                   to Vegetarian Food And Me for I'm The Star event,
                   to Zesty South Indian Kitchen for the Hearth And Soul Blog Hop event,
                   to Sara's Corner for the Women's Day Celebration event,
                   to Roshan's Cucina who is hosting this month Gayathri's WTML event and to
                   to Shama's Easy2cook Recipes for Sara's Cooking With Love - Granddad Series event.

Note
Don't overcook the capsicums, use chilli powder as per your taste.
If you want this vegan, just grind the cashews with water, but milk or cream will definitely make it more richer.

Read More