Gobhi Musallam sounds like a mouthful—and it is: A magnificent one! A vegan roasted cauliflower dish from the Uttar Pradesh region of Northern India, it tantalizes the taste buds with the exotic and tropical flavors of turmeric, ginger, cumin and coconut. For a perfect, tender texture, the whole head of cauliflower is parboiled—or lightly boiled for just a short amount of time—before roasting. Serve it as a main course along with chapati or naan bread for a unique, authentic Indian dinner any night of the week.
Vegan Gobhi Musallam
Serves 4
Ingredients
1 head cauliflower
1 purple onion, coarsely chopped
2 tomatoes, coarsely chopped
4 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped
2 Tbsp. raw cashews, soaked for two hours
2 Tbsp. coconut oil
½ tsp. turmeric
½ tsp. powdered ginger
1 tsp. cumin
1 tsp. coriander
1 tsp. red chili powder
1 tsp. sea salt
1 tsp. garam masala
1 red chili, de-ribbed, de-seeded and sliced
1 tsp. crushed fenugreek leaves
Chopped cilantro for garnish
½ cup water (or more as needed)
Directions
- Fill stock pot with water. Add salt and turmeric. Bring to a boil over high heat and gently submerge entire head of cauliflower. Tip: Ease into water using a slotted spoon. Reduce heat to medium and simmer for 4 minutes, then flip the cauliflower and simmer for another 4 minutes. (Use a slotted spoon to keep the cauliflower submerged.) Strain and set aside.
- In a large skillet, heat coconut oil over medium heat until shimmering, about two minutes. Add onion, chili pepper, and ginger and sauté until the onion softens, about 5 minutes.
- Add garlic and cumin, coriander, salt and red chili powder; sauté until aromatic, about 30 seconds.
- Add chopped tomatoes and simmer until the tomatoes soften, about 5 minutes.
- Add cooked sauce mixture, soaked cashews and water to high-speed blender or food processer and blend until smooth.
- Return mixture to skillet and simmer over med/low heat, covered, until darkened, about 10 minutes. Stir in garam masala and crushed fenugreek leaves, cover and simmer for another 5 minutes. (Note: Add water if sauce gets too thick.)
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Place cauliflower in a baking dish and pour sauce over cauliflower.
- Bake about 30 minutes, until sauce starts bubbling rapidly and the cauliflower starts to brown.
- Garnish with cilantro, slice and serve.
Recipe courtesy of Russ Crandall, the talented home chef behind The Domestic Man, a leading blog in the paleo, gluten-free and whole foods communities. In his 20s he suffered a number of life-threatening illnesses, was diagnosed with a rare autoimmune condition–and was sent home with a lifetime’s worth of medications. Disenchanted with modern medicine, Crandall started searching for his own answers and quickly discovered that eating a nutrient-rich diet alleviated most of the medical issues that had plagued him for years. Learn more at: https://www.thedomesticman.com.