Tofu, Pepper & Pineapple Vindaloo
This recipe was borne out of a need for a hearty meal on a cold Cambridge night, plus a burning craving for Indian food. I was going to go to a second-story restaurant that looks over Harvard Square called Maharaja for a Sunday evening supper, but the noise of the wind howling from my bedroom window made me decide to '86 the whole plan and just make my own Indian dish in the comfort of my own home (where the heat was cranked up and a bottle of red wine was already opened).
Whether it’s a thunderstorm, a blizzard or even a high alert terrorist situation, I’ve learned that my apartment is a cozy place to be stuck during times of crisis. This is partially because my fridge and pantry are usually stocked with plenty of items, both common and rare. My mother has a similar setup in her house, although hers would be the place to go if the world was about to end because she is a nut job with a whole entire section of our basement that is known as "the storage room" that is dedicated to this strange kind of food hoarding habit. One section of her beloved "storage room" looks like she is afraid that she will one day run out of pasta (God forbid), so she has enough stocked up for the next two years... I am looking pretty normal right about now compared to the house I grew up in and at least I can make an Indian dish on a whim and not face the cold!
Making Indian food at home has serious advantages. First of all, I don’t have that horrible busting-at-the-seams and ready-to-unbutton-my-pants type of full feeling when I make it in my own kitchen. The reason being, my dishes aren't oily on top and they aren't over salted. Many people associate Indian food with a doubled over bellyache, but it doesn't have to be this way. Indian food is delicious and can leave you feeling healthy.
I am not dissing Indian restaurants. I grew up down the road from a place called Jaipore, and I would argue with anyone that it’s the best Indian food in America. However, many Indian restaurants prepare their food very differently than Indian families do in their own homes. As a private chef, I work for an Indian family and their food is a lot lighter than the food I usually get at restaurants. That got me thinking about what it would be like to eat amazing Indian food and not have a tummy ache afterward... what could be better? That is how I got into making my own Indian food. It is also a perfect way to warm up my innards during a really cold winter.
The Spices: It is a bit of an investment to stock up your kitchen with a bunch of spices, but it is worth it in the long run. I suggest finding an Indian market to buy all of your supplies. If you like Indian food, you will be so happy that you made the trip and bought the goods. They will come in handy more than you realize and once you play around and learn how to work with these spices, they will take your cooking skills and street cred. in the kitchen up a few notches.
Tofu, Pepper & Pineapple Vindaloo
Author: Michele Wolfson
Tofu, Pepper, and Pineapple Vindaloo based the spices for the Vindaloo off of a recipe by Jamie Oliver and then added or subtracted depending on what I had in my own kitchen.
Ingredients
For the Sauce:[br]
[br]1 TBS coconut oil
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 thumb-sized piece fresh root ginger, peeled and sliced very thinly
4 dried red chillies
1 tablespoon turmeric
½ teaspoon sea salt
2 tablespoons tomato puree
1 teaspoon coriander
1 teaspoon garam masala
1 teaspoon dried chili powder
2 teaspoons coriander seeds
2 teaspoons fennel seeds[br]
[br]Preparing the Vegetables:
1 cup mushrooms, sliced
1 cup broccoli, chopped
1/2 red pepper, chopped
1/2 yellow pepper, chopped
1 onion, thinly sliced
2 cups tofu, drained and cubed
1/2 cup pineapple, cubed
1 cup kale, stemmed and chopped
1 avocado, cubed
Instructions
If the sauce is too thin, reduce by cooking uncovered for a few minutes. If too thick, add a little water.
I like to serve this with whole wheat couscous and a lentil or bean side dish.
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