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Wednesday, January 03, 2007

Eggplant & Tofu Curry


Wow ! This is my favorite use of eggplant to date (except those Vegetable Towers were awfully good). I've never been a huge fan of eggplant (aubergine), but perhaps I just wasn't using enough garlic.

Anyway, this is the first time I've salted the eggplant slices and let them sit for an hour in a colander before rinsing and patting them dry. And, heck, the eggplant plumped when I sauted it in a modest amount of olive oil with lots of minced garlic. Supposedly, the salting helps prevent the thirsty eggplant from absorbing too much oil. I have to say the juicy texture was perfect for this curry.

The eggplant was joined by tofu, cauliflower, red pepper, white beans, cilantro and cashews in Trader Joe's Korma Simmer Sauce. I served it with Naan (from the Trader Joe's freezer), raita (plain yogurt with grated cucumber), and cilantro chutney (made by a local vendor). So good!

Eggplant & Tofu Curry:
1 large eggplant, sliced into 1/4" rounds
salt
2 tbsp olive oil
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 large pinch of cumin seeds
pinch of coriander seeds
1 red pepper, chopped into 1/2" slices
1 cup cauliflower, cut into small florettes
1 jar TJ's Korma Simmer Sauce
4 oz tofu, cubed
1/2 cup white beans (red kidney beans would be great too or chickpeas)
handful of cashews
small bunch cilantro leaves, chopped


Salt the eggplant slices and place in a colander. Leave for 1 hour. Gently rinse and pat dry. Cut into 1" pieces.

Heat the olive oil and add the minced garlic. Cook gently for 1-2 minutes. Add the cumin and coriander seeds. Cook 1 minute. Add the eggplant, cover, and cook for 5 minutes, stirring as needed to prevent sticking. Add the red pepper and cauliflower, stir well, cover and cook for another 5 minutes. Add the Korma Simmer Sauce and tofu and simmer for 10 minutes until the eggplant is tender. Add the beans and cashews for the last 5 minutes of cooking. Add the chopped cilantro for the last 2 minutes of cooking.

Serve with naan or over rice.

5 Comments:

Anonymous Anonymous said...

This is beautiful Catherine! My husband loves eggplant and would eat it everyday if I kept it around. I'll have to make this for him. I so love naan, but it doesn't love me. Or maybe it loves me so much it just wants to stick to my hips! :)

On another note, is there an easy answer as to how you put the recipe dropdown menu on your sidebar?
I haven't a clue how to go about it but would like to do one.
Thanks!!

5:23 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hi Catherine,beautiful recipe!Most people don't like like Eggplants and I love it.I have so many eggplants dishes in my blog,you can find them all in my recipe Index!Nan looks great.
I loved Jamie Oliver's quote about having a window over the sink.I do have it and enjoy looking out!:)My kitchen is in my latest post.
Thanks for the recipe!

5:10 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

That looks delicious! I think eggplant requires a lot of garlic.. they pair together so well..

Happy New Year!

11:39 AM  
Blogger Catherine said...

Hi Christine - I emailed you about the drop down list.

Asha - I'll check out your recipes! Thanks!

Melody - Happy New Year! They do pair well. I'm thinking a sticky asian eggplant dish next.

1:14 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Yummm, I love eggplant and this dish looks and sounds delicious!!
I will have to stop by Trader Joes and find this sauce now so I can make this!
By the way, have you tried this with another type of sauce?
I absolutely like everything in this dish, only the sauce I have never had before...
Ana

10:30 AM  

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