Winter Vegetable & Tofu Korma Recipe
A thick, cumin and coriander-spiced root vegetable stew. It's a free-wheeling one-pot dinner that attempts to use up whatever winter vegetables I have lingering about.
Lately I've been making a thick, cumin and coriander-spiced root vegetable stew. It's a free-wheeling one-pot dinner that attempts to use up whatever winter vegetables I have lingering about, and provides leftovers for a day or two to come. I'm not entirely sure what to call it. A curry? A korma? Either way, I took some to my sister's recently, and she asked for the recipe. Heather, here you go :). We can make it the next time I come over if you want. xo. There's quite a bit of chopping involved, but a big pot of goodness is the reward.
In the version I made for her, I used potatoes, cauliflower, and then a bit of tofu for protein and substance - but other times I trade in carrots, or parsnips, or shredded cabbage. I use a yogurt/cream blend here, which is inspired by Indian kormas, but there is no reason you couldn't substitute coconut milk for that lux-y creamy component.
You can eat this as-is. Or serve it over brown rice, or with a side of naan or flatbread. I admit, I've even had leftovers for lunch atop a scoop of farro. One other thing I've noticed is how good the sauce is in its own right - without the chunky vegetables and tofu. I can imagine it working nicely with dumplings, drizzled across a crunchy-topped frittata, tossed with egg noodles....
You can prep a lot of this ahead of time to make it a more week-night friendly. For example, go ahead and measure out the spices ahead of time, and keep them in an air-tight container. And go ahead and chop the onions, ginger, cauliflower, and tofu a day or two in advance if you like. But if you cut the potatoes early, keep them covered in a bowl of water to keep them from browning - you can cut those a day or so in advance as well.
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Winter Vegetable & Tofu Korma
HS: One shortcut, you can use a food processor to chop the onions. And like i mention up above, while I used potatoes and cauliflower here, you can add or swap other seasonal vegetables. For example: chopped or sliced green beans, parsnips, broccoli, zucchini, etc. You can also certainly play around with different spice blends or tweak the ratio of spices to your liking. This one isn't particularly hot-spicy.
1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom
1 1/2 teaspoons turmeric
1 1/2 teaspoons crushed red pepper flakes
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 3/4 teaspoons ground coriander
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon2 tablespoons clarified butter, ghee, or sunflower oil
2 medium yellow onions, very finely chopped
1 tablespoon freshly grated ginger, peeled first
4 medium cloves garlic, peeled and chopped1 1/2 pounds waxy potatoes, cut into 1/4-inch cubes
12 ounces / 340 g cauliflower, cut into tiny trees
2/3 cup / 65g sliced almonds, toasted
3/4 teaspoon fine sea salt, plus more to taste
12 ounces / 340 g firm tofu, cut into 1/4-inch cubes or matchsticks1/2 cup / 4.5 oz / 130 g greek yogurt
1/2 cup / 120 ml heavy cream
a small bunch of fresh cilantro, chopped
Combine the cardamom, turmeric, red pepper flakes, cumin, coriander, and cinnamon in a small bowl and set aside.
Heat the butter/oil in a large, thick-bottomed soup pot over medium-high heat. Stir in the onions. Cook until they soften a bit, just a minute or two. Then add the ginger and then garlic. Stir in the spices and continue cooking for a couple minutes, or until the spices are very fragrant. Stir in the potatoes, cauliflower, and half the almonds. Add 3/4 teaspoon salt.
Now stir in 3 cups of water. Stir gently, cover with a lid leaving a tiny crack and simmer for 15-20 minutes, the potatoes should be just about cooked by then. Taste, and add more salt if needed. Stir in the tofu after about 15 minutes so it has time to heat through.
In the meantime, combine the yogurt and cream in a bowl with a couple pinches of salt.
Once the vegetables are cooked through, dial down the heat to low. Now, you can add the yogurt mixture all at once and bring the pot back just to the brink of a simmer. Or do what I do, serve the yogurt on the side, so people can make their bowl as rich as they like. Either way, taste, make sure to taste the broth, and add more salt if needed. If you haven't added the yogurt to the big pot, serve each bowl with a generous dollop of the yogurt cream, and top with the remaining nuts and chopped cilantro.
Serves 6+
Prep time: 40 minutes - Cook time: 20 minutes
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Comments
Funny, I came on here tonight looking for a cauliflower recipe and here this was. Fab! We just ate. It was absolutely delicious. I made a sort of liberal interpretation of your recipe. I had a tiny can of coconut milk sitting around so I did end up using that instead of the cream and yogurt as you suggested. It turned out very nicely. Also, just the other day I made a ridiculous quantity of the roasted spice mix from Skye Gyngell's "A Year in my Kitchen" so I subbed that for the other spices too. Yum! Thank you Heidi!
I love dishes like this--use up everything in the fridge kind of recipes.
to those who are wondering whether the choice to use almonds (ground, or their milk) affect the authenticity of a curry, they'll be happy to know that ground almonds are a part of many traditional approaches to making a korma.
That is simply gorgeous, I'm loving all the flavours in there!
Donna love that tip of the chickpea flour and yogurt. I like to eat my yogurt on the side, but I see where you are going with that and also prefer my curries to be on the creamy side and usually use coconut milk. I recently bought frozen coconut milk that I have to highly recommend as far as texture and flavour. Curry, cauliflower and potatoes perfect combination
This looks wonderful. There have been more Indian cooking shows on lately and I picked up a tip about adding yogurt to hot dishes. In some regions it's traditional to mix some chick pea flour in with the yogurt and that stops it from breaking.
Oooh the color on the sauce is just stunning. I've been eating a lot of cauliflower lately and this sounds like a great way to use it that I wouldn't have otherwise thought of.
This looks so warming and hearty Heidi. I like that you make your own spice blend... that way you can make it to taste easily. I'm always looking for ways to use cardamom. I just love it. The bbest part of this recipe is that its a one pot meal. Can't beat that.
great! i was just fussing about we got nothing to eat in the house. now i got an idea.. =)
Thanks for the recipe Heidi. I make a vegan. Korma which we have often and this'll be a nice change. Yummmm!
Hi Heidi! I wanted to add that I also like the idea of being able to comment on how the dishes turn out after making them. My two favorites so far are the Carmelized Tofu and the Red Lentil Curry Soup. Delicious! Love your recipes and photos. :)
I, too, love the looks and sound of your recipes, Heidi and would really enjoy hearing from more folks who have actually made the items and have some feedback regarding the changes they've made.
What a perfect winter dish! It looks so hearty and delicious!
This is exactly what I want to eat every day.
Looks fabulous- will have to try it! Since it has been suggested that it is more beneficial nutritionally to eat as many "whole" foods as possible, I've been more inclined to substite the tofu for shelled edamame. It's readily avaiable in the frozen foods section, and although it won't absorb these wonderful flavors as tofu would, I think it is soy in a less processed state. Any thoughts?
I recently made malaysian beef curry from Bon Appetit which used some of the spices you mention here. I ended up going to whole foods and buying spices in their bulk bin. That way you don't have to buy a jar of it and not use it, or if its a new spice and you are not sure you will like it, you won't go broke buying a ton of spices. I bought literally a few teaspoons each of cardamom, ground ginger, ground coriander, 1 cinnamon stick and 2 star anise and spent around a dollar. I love the versatility of this dish!
Hi Heidi, I would just like to echo Janine's remark about having a section for comments related to the actual preparation of the dish. I, too, find it incredibly helpful to read what has or hasn't worked for others and I find myself gravitating towards recipes that do have that type of feedback. Thanks, as always, for the great recipes and gorgeous photos. -Holland
I swear I was just thinking about making a winter Minestrone tonight. I've been craving soup for the past week , made two batches of meatball soup this weekend and now it must be a sign, lol: Winter Vegetable Soup Tonight ! Thanks for the idea !
Heidi - I recently started cooking your recipes with great success. I am a big quinoa fan and found some recipes on your side that turned out excellent. Today I am having the leek soup for lunch that you recently posted. Sad thing is that your comments are always closed by the time I get around to cooking the dish so I can never offer my feedback. I see you get lots of comments on how delicious the recipes looks but when I read the comments I am always looking for feedback on what other people experienced when preparing the dish. Maybe there could be separate comment section for those that have feedback after they cooked. Just a thought, but I wanted to let it out since I am always thinking of providing feedback but never get the chance to.
Hi Heidi, Have used your cookbook for a while but just discovered your blog. Love this recipe. I think you should call it 'Good Korma'. : )
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