Monday, February 27, 2017

Cauliflower and Butter Chicken




When we are in India, one of my favorite dishes is Cauliflower (Gobi in Hindi). It is prepared in numerous ways. We found this easy recipe for Whole Roasted Cauliflower on the Israeli web site of the newspaper: Haaretz. It is not Indian but Middle-Eastern. We wanted the cauliflower to go with an Indian Chicken dish called: Butter Chicken that we were making. The Butter Chicken was good, but as with many Indian recipes, it doesn’t quite catch the magic of eating it in India!


Butter Chicken
New York Times

Butter chicken is the General Tso’s of Indian food, a great, ever-evolving, cross-continental dish found in Delhi, London, New York, Perth and most points in between. In its purest form, it is yogurt-and-spice-marinated chicken dressed in a velvety red bath comprising butter, onions, ginger and tomatoes scented with garam masala, cumin and turmeric, with a cinnamon tang. This version was adapted from one a young kitchen hand at the restaurant Attica, in Melbourne, Australia, made for staff meal, and that the photographer Per-Anders Jorgensen included in "Eating With the Chefs," his collection of photographs of top restaurants around the world. It is wildly luxurious. Serve with basmati rice and mango chutney, with papadums or naan if you can find them, with extra rice if you cannot.

Ingredients

1-½   cups full-fat Greek yogurt
2       tablespoons lemon juice
1-½   tablespoons ground turmeric
2       tablespoons garam masala
2       tablespoons ground cumin
3       pounds chicken thighs, on the bone
¼      pound unsalted butter
4       teaspoons neutral oil, like vegetable or canola oil
2       medium-size yellow onions, peeled and diced
      cloves garlic, peeled and minced
3       tablespoons fresh ginger, peeled and grated or finely diced
1       tablespoon cumin seeds
1       cinnamon stick
2       medium-size tomatoes, diced
2       red chiles, like Anaheim, or 1 jalapeño pepper, seeded and diced  Kosher salt to taste
      cup chicken stock, low-sodium or homemade
1-½   cups cream
1-½   teaspoons tomato paste
3       tablespoons ground almonds, or finely chopped almonds
½      bunch cilantro leaves, stems removed.


Preparation
  Whisk together the yogurt, lemon juice, turmeric, garam masala and cumin in a large bowl. Put the chicken in, and coat with the marinade. Cover, and refrigerate (for up to a day).
  In a large pan over medium heat, melt the butter in the oil until it starts to foam. Add the onions, and cook, stirring frequently, until translucent. Add the garlic, ginger and cumin seeds, and cook until the onions start to brown.
3.  Add the cinnamon stick, tomatoes, chiles and salt, and cook until the chiles are soft, about 10 minutes.
4   Add the chicken and marinade to the pan, and cook for 5 minutes, then add the chicken stock. Bring the mixture to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer, uncovered, for approximately 30 minutes.
5.  Stir in the cream and tomato paste, and simmer until the chicken is cooked through, approximately 10 to 15 minutes.
6   Add the almonds, cook for an additional 5 minutes and remove from the heat. Garnish with the cilantro leaves.




Whole roasted cauliflower
Recipe by Eyal Shani and Miri Hanoch.
Haaretz

Serves 4

Ingredients:

1     whole medium-size, fresh, white cauliflower, florets tightly packed and covered in bright green leaves
3     tbsp. olive oil
mineral water
sea salt

Directions:

·    Preheat the oven to 220 degrees Celsius (430 degrees Fahrenheit).
·    Place the cauliflower in a metal pot and fill until 3/4 full with mineral water. Add about 10 grams of salt per liter of water. Cover with a lid, bring to a boil, lower to a moderate boil and cook for 10-15 minutes, depending on the size of the cauliflower.
·    Drain.
·    Brush the cauliflower with olive oil and sprinkle with a little salt. Place in a baking dish, place the dish in the center of the oven, and bake until the top turns golden brown (about 30 minutes).
·    Serve to the table in the baking dish. The outside of the cauliflower should be crisp and the inside as soft as butter. Separate the florets with a spoon and serve.




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