Cauliflower with Potatoes (Aloo Gobi) | Madhur Jaffrey

I like cauliflower. I like it even more when the price drops to less than $2 for a head at the local market. My go-to recipe is a whole-roasted cauliflower. Roast until black and crusty and serve it with a chimichurri or a pesto sauce. It is easy to do and utterly satisfying. However, as good as it is, I need to expand my cauliflower repertoire. Cauliflower with potatoes (aloo gobi) comes to mind. Very rarely would I skip aloo gobi at Indian restaurants. Spicy, deeply flavored, and it’s all vegetarian.

I looked up Madhur Jaffrey’s Vegetarian India: A Journey Through the Best of Indian Home Cooking for inspiration. The book is a treasure trove for vegetarians, using some rather common Indian spices to flavor vegetables, dals, grains and chutneys. Surprisingly, I have most of the spices I need for the aloo gobi recipe; no shopping is necessary other than the fresh ingredients. Way to go!

The spices you need, besides the main ingredients of cauliflower and potatoes, are: cumin seeds, turmeric and dried fenugreek leaves, which I substituted with mustard seeds. The other fresh spices and herbs are: garlic, ginger, green chilies and coriander leaves. Borrowing the French approach of mise en place, I started by lining up the myriad of ingredients on the sheet pan. Yes, there are quite a few more than usual. Getting organized makes the cooking process go a bit faster and smoother. Sometimes, I tend to forget an ingredient or two. Lessons learned? Can’t go wrong following the best practice of mise en place.

Jeffrey’s recipe starts with deep-frying the cauliflower and the potatoes. (That’s greasy and, using a big word, oleaginous.) Set them aside and sauté the onion for a few minutes. Then toss in the spices and fresh herbs until the mixture comes together. For the sauce, actually, there is not much of a sauce. The recipe keeps repeating: “Add a little water if the pan seems to dry out.” I ended up adding more water and more water. I used a Dutch oven and maybe the temperature was too high.

It seems unfair to compare this dish with the restaurant-quality cauliflower with potatoes (aloo gobi) I come to expect. Can’t help it though. This recipe is OK. But that didn’t stop me from having a second helping. The leftovers actually tasted better. If I have to do it again, I’d skip the deep-frying entirely. Cook the cauliflower and potatoes all at once in the pan. Let the flavor meld together and go for a slow braise over a longer period. In addition, I want to develop a thicker and creamier sauce, like that of the curry-like sauce served in restaurants. Wipe the plate clean and pick up all the flavorful sauce in it with a piece of naan in my hand. That’s the ultimate delight eating Indian food.

Mise en place

Print Recipe

Cauliflower with Potatoes / Aloo Gobi

Serves: 6

Ingredients

• For the deep frying:
• 700 ml olive or sunflower oil, to deep fry
• 600 g florets of cauliflower, about 1-inch wide, and stalk and leaves, chopped
• 450 g (2 medium) waxy potatoes, peeled and roughly chopped
• For the aloo gobi:
• 2 tbsp olive or sunflower oil
• 1 medium onion, finely chopped
• ½ tsp cumin seeds
• 1 tsp garlic, finely grated or crushed
• 1 tbsp fresh ginger, peeled and finely grated
• 1 medium tomato, finely chopped
• 3 hot green chillies, finely chopped
• 1 tsp dried fenugreek leaves (I substituted with mustard seeds)
• ¼ tsp turmeric
• 2 tbsp coriander leaves, finely chopped

Instructions

1

For the deep frying: Pour the oil into a wok and set it over a medium-high heat. Wait for it to get very hot.

2

Fry the cauliflower florets in two batches, for about 2 minutes per batch, or until light brown all over. Remove and drain on kitchen paper. Ensure the oil has time to reheat between batches.

3

Now carefully add the potato to the oil, standing back in case of splashes, and fry for 6 minutes, or until golden all over. Remove and drain on kitchen paper.

4

For the aloo gobi: Set a clean wok or heavy-based pan about 20cm in diameter over a medium heat. Pour in the oil and when it's hot, add the onion.

5

Sauté for 2 minutes, then add the cumin seeds. Stir for 3 minutes, or until the onion is light brown.

6

Spoon in the garlic and ginger. Stir for 2 minutes, adding a splash of hot water if it starts to stick. Add the tomato and cook for 5 minutes, or until completely integrated.

7

Sprinkle in the chillies and 1¼ teaspoons of salt. Stir for 1 minute. Crumble in the fenugreek leaves, and stir for 1 minute. Spoon in the turmeric and mix well.

8

Add another splash of water if necessary, then tip in the cauliflower stalks and leaves and cook for 6 minutes, or until soft.

9

Add a little water if the pan seems to dry out, then add the deep-fried cauliflower florets and potato and the chopped coriander. Mix gently and cook for a final 2 minutes, then serve.

Notes

Adapted from: https://goodfood.uktv.co.uk/recipe/cauliflower-with-potatoes/