Recipe: African Cauliflower Curry

African Cauliflower Curry

African Cauliflower Curry is a filling main dish served over rice or quinoa; can also be a side dish with grilled chicken. Inspired by a recipe of the same name in Vegan: The Cookbook; the original is on page 128 of that book. Serves 6 as a main dish, 10 as side.

Ingredients:
1 T olive oil
1 large red onion, diced
1 large red pepper, diced
Florets from one whole head cauliflower, broken into small pieces
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 T mild curry powder
2 t cumin seeds or 1 t ground cumin
2 t coriander seeds or 1 t ground coriander
2 t ground turmeric
1 t ground cinnamon
2-3 cloves (grind in mortar and pestle if you don’t like finding them in your food)
14-oz can cooked chickpeas, with their juice
½ c peanut butter
½ c raisins
¾ t Kosher salt

Method: sauté onion and pepper in olive oil in a large skillet until onion is soft, about 5 minutes. Add cauliflower and cook, turning, for 5 minutes. Add garlic and cook for 1 more minute. Stir in all other ingredients and simmer 25 minutes or until cauliflower is tender, checking occasionally and adding liquid if the dish becomes dry. Serve immediately.

Note: like many stews, this tastes better when reheated the next day. Also, it greatly benefits from a few dashes of a vinegary hot sauce like Tabasco or Frank’s.