Cauliflower korma and cheat’s garlic roti paratha

Cauliflower is a terrific team player that lends itself to myriad flavours and cuisines. The family will love this creamy curry.

Yum: Alice Zaslavsky’s cauliflower korma. Photo: Guy Bailey

Cauliflower is a terrific team player, with a mild taste and texture that lends itself to myriad flavours and cuisines. You could call it the chicken of the soil. Here it’s teamed with cashews and coconut to build a creamy curry the whole family will love – and subbing coconut oil for ghee means it is more inclusive for plant-forward members of the clan too. Feel free to go heavier on the chilli to garnish, or even spike the spice mix with chilli powder.

CAULIFLOWER KORMA

2 tablespoons coconut oil

1 head cauliflower, cut into fork-sized florets

1 onion, finely sliced

4 cloves garlic, roughly chopped

1 thumb-length ginger, roughly chopped

1 tablespoon Indian curry powder

1 tablespoon garam masala

1 teaspoon ground turmeric

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1 cup tomato passata

400ml quality coconut milk (see tips)

1½ cups vegie stock or water

2 teaspoons brown sugar

200g unsalted roasted cashews, plus extra to serve (see tips)

To serve

¼ bunch coriander leaves

1 long red chilli, finely diced

1 lemon, cut into wedges

Coconut yoghurt

Steamed basmati rice and/or garlic roti

Heat half the oil in a large heavy-based pan until shimmering; stir-fry cauli florets until lightly coloured. Remove to a plate. Add remaining oil to pan and sweat the onion, garlic and ginger with the lid on for 8-10 minutes until the onion is soft and translucent. Sprinkle in spices and cook with the lid off for another couple of minutes until fragrant and canary yellow. Pour in the passata and cook for 5 minutes to reduce a little. Add coconut milk, stock or water, sugar and half the cashews; bring to the boil and simmer for 10 minutes. At this stage you can blend the sauce with a stick blender or leave it a bit chunky.

Toss the cauliflower and half the remaining cashews into the sauce; simmer for 15-20 minutes until cauli is tender and sauce has thickened. Taste and correct for seasoning. Serve topped with coriander leaves, remaining cashews, chilli and a wedge of lemon, with coconut yoghurt, steamed basmati rice and warm roti on the side. Serves 4-6

CHEAT’S GARLIC ROTI PARATHA

Store-bought roti paratha bread (see tips)

50g butter

2-3 garlic cloves, minced

Heat a pan until smoking. In a separate little pan or saucepan, melt the butter; add garlic and warm through. Place roti on the smoking hot pan and char slightly on each side, then brush liberally with garlic butter to serve.

Makes 6

Top tips

If you can’t find roasted cashews, stir-fry unroasted (unsalted) cashews after the cauli; when lightly browned, remove to plate.

Use a store-bought korma paste if you’re strapped for time. Look for one with ingredients that most closely resemble those here.

My favourite coconut milk and cream come in a tetra-pak; they have a richer flavour.

A good roti paratha is available in packs of 20 in the freezer section of many food stores. You can cook them from frozen, keeping leftovers for next time.