Thai Curry with Vegetables!

Happy New Year to all my readers and followers! May this new year brings whatever you wish for!

Let me start off by declaring the intention of posting at least a recipe per week for the rest of the year. This is one of the resolutions that I have set for myself for the year 2015. I love the refreshing start of the new year, where everyone has opportunity to reflect on their goals for the last year, change any if needed and then try to stick to the new ones you have on the list. It's a wonderful process!

On that note ....let's move on to the first recipe for the year 2015!!!

A couple of my friends have been asking for the thai recipes. So here I am making their wish come true, posting one of the simple thai curries I make at least once every 2 weeks. It's delicious and perfect for those busy weeknights. I don't use tofu every time I make this curry because of the all the controversies around it. Also I don't really enjoy tofu very much. I replace it with chicken or sometimes just vegetables with more mushrooms in it to give the dish a meaty consistency.

Just cook up some rice in a presser cooker and make this delicious, versatile Vegetable Thai Curry in less than 20 minutes.

Thai food in general is very easy to make especially with the help of thai curry pastes that are available in the market. All of the flavors are packed in those bottles and when blended with thick coconut milk, all that is needed is good appetite :)


INGREDIENTS

• 1 can of coconut milk
• Thai curry paste- about 4-5 tbsp. red/ yellow/ green. I used red for this recipe
• 1 tbsp of fish sauce
• 2-3 tbsp roasted grounded peanuts 
• 1 tbsp of lime juice
• 2 tbsp of brown sugar
• 1/2 cup of water or vegetable broth.
• Chopped vegetables of your choice- I used broccoli, bok choy and mushrooms
• Tofu cut into cubes.
• Salt to taste.

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Mix the sugar , lemon juice and fish sauce in a bowl and keep aside. 
2. Pour in the coconut milk in to a pan and heat it up. When the coconut milk reaches a gentle simmer stir in the thai curry paste.
3. Then add the vegetables and let it all cook up for about 7-8 minutes until the veggies are almost done. Also add in the tofu at this point and the peanuts as well.
4. Add the sugar and fish sauce mixture and let it all heat up for about 2-3 minutes.
5. Add the water or the broth to thin out the curry as much as needed. Bring to a simmer again.
6. Serve over rice or noodles.

NOTES

• You can also use carrots, snap peas, onions, bell peppers, bamboo shoots, baby corns, potatoes, eggplant.....you get the point!
• Adding fish sauce might put some people off. But don't worry it doesn't taste like all fish. It just gives more deeper flavor to the dish with a little bit of extra saltiness.
• The more you simmer the curry, the more thick and creamy it becomes so if you want to simmer it for a longer time, don't add the vegetables to early in the process. Just add them in for the last 8-10 minutes or so. Then thin out the curry with water as needed.
• If you are a vegetarian or a vegan, try swapping soy sauce, hoisin sauce for the fish sauce.

Scrambled Tofu Cauliflower

Ingredients-:

• Cauliflower- cut into florets according to the size you want
• Tofu- Chop the tofu in half inch squares.
• Cilantro for garnishing

For the marinade-:

• Pav-bhaji masala
• Salt
• Cumin powder
• Turmeric powder
• red chilly powder
• Amchur Powder
• Olive oil

Just eyeball all the ingredients to fit to your taste and the quantity you need.

Method-:

• In a bowl, toss in all the marinade ingredients and  mix well. Get rid of all the excess water from tofu by placing the tofu in between couple of paper towels and putting two cans or something heavy over the tofu. Chop the tofu into half to one inch squares. Don't scramble the tofu, it will get scrambled while sauteing in the pan later. Coat all the pieces of tofu with the marinade. Keep aside.

• Add some oil in pan and add cumin seeds as the oil gets hot.
• Add the marinated tofu squares into the pan and mix.
• keep sauteing, for about 5-6 minutes.
• Add Cauliflower florets and mix well.
• Cover the pan and let the cauliflower get cooked.
• Adjust the salt as per taste. Remember that I have already added the salt while marinating the tofu.
• The tofu gets scrambled enough when you are sauteing the tofu. The final preparation will have few chunks of tofu and few scrambled tofu as well. It gives a nice consistency to the dish, if you ask me.

Enjoy with a nice whole wheat roti or rice!!

I thought I should do enough justice by uploading a close-up!! Hence the second pic....:)

Back with Sesame Tofu!!

A big hello to everyone! Posting after almost 6 months. My apologies!!!

These days I have been trying to eat more healthy, nutritious food for the only reason to be more fit and healthy. My blog as a result, needs some changes in order to be in sync with my eating habits. Cravings is all about what I experiment with food. I have decided to make Cravings a health food blog. I strongly believe that healthy and nutritious food doesn't have to be boring.  You can make it interesting by using your endless creative ideas.

I am going to start off with some sesame tofu which was Friday night's dinner.

It was a stir fry with vegetables and I served it over brown rice. So forget about the Chinese takeout/delivery which probably has more oil in it. Instead cook yourself a great sesame tofu. This way you can control the ingredients going in. Way more healthy and thoughtful than just ordering it over the phone.Gives you a great feeling of doing something good for you.

Ingredients I used-:

Firm tofu 8 oz- drained and pressed to remove excess water.
Low sodium Soy Sauce- 1tbsp
Olive oil- 1 tbsp
Garlic - 2 cloves
Ginger- about 1/2 inch
Vegetables - whatever veggies you have on hand, which suits stir fry.
Sesame seeds- about 1/2 tbsp

For the marinade-
Low sodium Soy sauce
Teriyaki sauce- just a dash
Black Pepper
Salt.
Red pepper flakes

Tofu is really like a sponge, you can be absolutely creative when it comes to marination. It will be delicious. I marinated it with some soy sauce, teriyaki sauce, black pepper, and some salt for about half an hour. The longer it sits the better it is absorbed.

I pan fried tofu with some olive oil in a non- stick pan. You can use wok if you happened to have one.
It took about 15 minutes on a medium flame to cook tofu completely and had that brown chewy texture outside and softer inside. Then I added chopped garlic in to the same pan. After a minute, I added the Soy sauce and the vegetables. Saute everything for 3-4 minutes. Do not overcook the veggies. It should have it's crunch. Sprinkle with the sesame seeds. Turn off the heat and serve it as a side dish with Brown rice or whole wheat pasta. You can also serve it with couscous or the great Quinoa.

It is delicious and healthy with the protein packed tofu and the goodness of all the vegetables in it. Soy sauce and teriyaki marinade gives the dish great taste, and the sesame seeds add a nutty taste. All in all, a good weeknight dinner in very less time....:)

Enjoy..:)


Brown Rice- WHFoods
                      Nutrition Facts

Tofu-   Nutrion facts