posted on Nov, 14 2006 @ 07:13 PM
Vegan update of the Indian classic dish. [The original version is very high fat, with sour cream and ghee.] The specifically Indian ingredients in
this dish (brown mustard seeds and garam masala) can be bought at either Indian or Middle Eastern food supply stores. If you cannot find garam
masala, then make your own by combining 1/2 tsp. each of ground cumin, cinnamom, cloves, and cardamom with a pinch of your favorite type of ground
pepper; mix well to combine and store in a small covered glass jar in a cool, dark cupboard. Total preparation time is 35 minutes. Serves at least 2
people.
1 large brown onion, chopped
1/2 tsp. whole brown mustard
1/2 tsp. ground cumin
1 bay leaf
1 clove garlic minced (about 1 tsp.)
One 15-oz can of tomato sauce -- the original recipe called for this, but I avoid tomatoes, so I substitute 1 and 1/2 cups of unsweetened applesauce
with excellent results.
2 tsp. ground coriander
1 tsp. garam masala
1/2 tsp. ground tumeric
1/2 tsp. paprika
1 10-oz. package frozen peas, thawed
3 tbsp. soy yogurt
1 package of soft tofu, drained, cut into 1/2 inch cubes. (One package of tofu should contain at least 10 ounces of tofu to as much as 15 ounces
tofu.)
1/2 cup vegetable broth, if extra liquid is needed.
Chop the onion. Add a few drops of olive oil to a medium-sized cooking pot and coat the inside bottom of the pot with the oil. Turn on a low flame
and add the mustard seeds, stirring with a wooden cooking spoon for approx. 2 minutes until the seeds start to pop from the heat. Then add the
chopped onion, turn up the heat to a medium flame, and stiir occasionally until the onion is softened and beginning to brown, about 10 minutes. Add
the cumin, garlic and bay leaf, mixing them in. Stir in tomato sauce (or the substitute ingredient of unsweetened applesauce), coriander, garam
masala, tumeric, and paprika. Heat through, and then fold in the cubed tofu, and heat through again. Add up to 1/2 cup of vegetable broth if the
sauce is too thick. Cover the pot and let it heat up until it starts to simmer. Remove the bay leaf and mix in the frozen peas; reheat to simmering
but do not overcook the peas. When the matter paneer is simmering once again, turn off the burner and mix in the 3 tbsp. of soy yogurt. (The fat in
the yogurt is a crucial ingredient in this dish; without it, the spices taste flat and a little bitter; with it, the dish is sublime; thus, if you
loathe yogurt, substitute 1 tsp. of olive oil.) Fold the yogurt gently into the matter paneer and then serve with rice or traditional Indian naan
bread.