Good afternoon from vacation. We don’t need to talk about it. If you told me you were on a sunny beach with fine white silky sand between your toes, fluffy aqua waves lapping at the edges, palm trees swishing back and forth, scooping aquachiles onto tortilla chips and marveling at the range of available papaya hues while I was shoveling out snow for the nth time this year, I would smile politely and comment “How amazing!” on your Instagram but I would silently pout, as I probably will be a week from now. Let’s… not.
A week or so before I left, because the treadmill seems as good a place as any to think about what you want to eat next, I was overwhelmed with a craving for cauliflower cooked in a spicy tomato sauce. Gobi matar masala (cauliflower, peas, spices) is a a classic vegan North Indian recipe that fit the bill; the dotting of sweet peas adds is wonderfully complementary. When I came home and started looking through books and websites for recipes I realized that it’s more often a dry curry, made with a few tomatoes but most of the liquid evaporates, leaving a more concentrated mixture. The first time, I made it this way and it was fantastic, but my craving for a saucier version — more of a sabzi, if I understand correctly — remained. A friend confirmed that, like most traditional dishes, there’s no one agreed-upon way to make it and some days you may want it to be more of a stew than others. Feeling liberated, the next time I made it, I added a few cups of canned tomato puree and it was exactly what I’d hoped for. We ate it with rice but it would also be delicious with chapati, roti, or another flatbread.
There’s a lot of flexibility here. You can keep the cauliflower more crisp or let it relax more in the masala, depending on your preference. You can use more or less tomatoes, depending on how saucy you want the dish. You can crank up the heat with more chiles or chile powder; my kids aren’t quite there (yet!). And if you’re missing a single spice, I wouldn’t sweat it. I took note of some of the most common spices used but then went recipe-free, just cooking and adjusting to taste (and jotting everything down, dutiful food blogger that I am). It was cozy and unheavy and perfect; I froze the leftovers and can’t wait to have at least one meal all squared away when we get home.
Cauliflower and Tomato Masala with Peas (Gobi Matar)
Note: You can watch an Instagram Story demo of this recipe over here.
- 1 large head cauliflower (3 pounds)
- 2 tablespoons vegetable or olive oil
- 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
- 1 tablespoon finely grated fresh ginger
- 1 tablespoon finely grated garlic (about 2 cloves)
- 1 jalapeño or another green chile, finely chopped (use more or less to taste)
- 1 big handful fresh cilantro, stems finely chopped, leaves roughly torn
- 1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
- 1/4 to 1 teaspoon mild red chili powder (I used kashmiri), adjusted to taste
- 1 1/2 teaspoons ground coriander
- 1/2 teaspoon garam masala
- 2 to 3 cups tomato puree from a 28-ounce can
- 1 to 2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 1 cup water
- 1 1/2 cup green peas, frozen is fine
- 1/2 teaspoon amchur (dried mango) powder or juice of half a lemon
- Rice or flatbreads, to serve
Then, in a large, deep sauté pan, heat oil over medium heat. Once hot, add cumin seeds, ginger, garlic, and jalapeño and cook together for 3 minutes, until tender but the garlic and ginger are not browned. Add diced cauliflower core and finely chopped cilantro stems (save leaves for the end) and cook for another 1 minute together. Add turmeric, chili powder, coriander, and garam masala and cook for 2 minutes. Add 2 to 3 cups tomato puree — use the smaller amount if your cauliflower clocks in in the 2 to 2.5-pound range, or if you’re not sure you want dish as saucy as mine is, plus salt (1 1/2 teaspoons was just right for my 3 cups puree), and water and bring to a simmer, cook for 5 minutes. Add cauliflower and stir to coat with sauce. Cover with a lid and cook for about 20 minutes, until cauliflower is tender but not mushy, stirring occasionally. Add peas (still frozen are fine) and cook for 5 to 10 minutes, until heated through. Add amchur powder or lemon juice and stir to warm through. Taste dish for seasoning and adjust to taste. Finish with cilantro leaves. Serve with rice or flatbread.
Mmmm! Thanks for this. This dish, in one guise or another, is one of my winter staples. Sometimes I add canned chickpeas, sometimes a potato, and sometimes, when my ultra-carnivorous husband looks at me skeptically when he sees what I’m up to, I even add chicken.
Looks lovely. Question on tomato puree – do you mean a simple tomato sauce that’s usually sold canned or boxed? Here in the UK, ‘tomato puree’ generally describes the heavily concentrated stuff you get in a tube and 2-3 cups of that would be interesting!
Ps if you don’t already have them I think you’ll love Meera Sodha’s books, Deb.
No, she means tomatoes that have been puréed. If you can’t locate I would go with crushed tomatoes. The ones you’re describing as puréed tomatoes is called tomato paste in the US.
I think the Brits call this product tomato passata – that’s what I’ve seen it called in recipes. It’s often sold in those box-like containers (one of which you can see in the second recipe in this post, Pomi brand in this case). It’s sieved tomato sauce.
And I second the recommendation of Meera Sodha’s books! Fresh India, her first one I think, is my favorite.
Whenever I have a query about Deb’s recipes (I also had a “TWO CUPS of tomato puree??” moment), I always check the comments because some helpful person has ALWAYS asked my question and had it answered super helpfully. Normally the internet is a terrible dumpster fire, but I think this might be the exception…
I just used tinned chopped tomatoes from Morrison’s and it was delicious
I love Meera Sodha’s books.
Sabzi just means vegetables, cooked, but any style – it doesn’t denote saucier. Regardless, this looks delicious and super in line with my lazy-second-generation-Indian-home-cooking style! I even think my mom would approve ;) Side tip: do basically the same treatment with tomatoes, peas, and mushrooms for a mushroom matar – it will be unspeakably delicious!
caveat to my own comment – i am not suggesting your recipe is “lazy” or inauthentic! that was supposed to be a compliment about your work to make indian food accessible to home cooks!
This is my first visit to your site–I love it. I’ll be back to explore your other vegan recipes.
I’m smitten (sorry, I couldn’t resist) with the pot you used to make this dish. Does it have a name? Or can you share a link?
Thank you!
I think its a staub dutch oven
I think you’re right, June–I see the name now on the handles.
Thanks very much!
Instead of serving with rice, could I add (waxy) potato to the stew? Diced small and added to the fry-pan before the cauliflower? Probably increase the liquid slightly to allow for cooking?
I’m not Deb (duh..and I wish haha) but in my part of India, we add cut up potatoes to a curry of this sort.
What would you suggest to replace peas? We hates them, precious.
As an Indian who has grown up eating this dish every season, you can skip peas and add potatoes. During summers when green peas were out of season we would do potatoes or even totally skip it. Oh and this sabzi pairs beautifully with poori and cucumber raita.
Adding potatoes – par boil first or just throw them in?
also green beans or carrots
Nope, can’t include the cauliflower stems/core, the dogs demand them as tribute! :) (2 beagles and a husky)
Lol
Very excited to make this! Just thought it’s worth a mention this could also be tagged as Gluten Free!
Hi Deb, this looks like an easy, delicious and authentic version of gobi matar. Just FYI, sabzi means ‘vegetables’ in Hindi. I haven’t heard it used to mean vegetable-based sauce, but I guess it could be. I make a lot of cauliflower-based dishes because my country (New Zealand) does great cold-weather vegetables. One of my favourites is to cut a cauliflower into florets and roast them with some baking spray, whole cumin seeds, and smoked paprika.
Does anyone know how this could be done in a slow cooker?
Do you think frozen cauliflower would work, or would the texture be wrong? It comes frozen in florets, which would make it easier and my 2 year old could help pour the ingredients in (when it’s not hot of course). Thanks! :)
Just made this tonight with frozen cauliflower florets and it was delicious! Didn’t bother to thaw out the florets first – just dumped them in frozen. I cooked my florets (about 2-3 inches in length) for ~15 minutes total and ended up with a slightly firm/almost soft but not mushy texture. Hope this helps!
Yes thank you! Got the ingredients and excited to try it!
I always use frozen cauliflower for this type of dish and the texture comes out fine. I typically partially thaw the cauliflower in the microwave for a minute and then brown it in some hot oil with curry powder before proceeding with the recipe.
I am one of those who cannot abide cilantro in any form whatsoever. Is there a good substitute for cilantro, or should I just leave it out? I also have some physical problems with food that is too spicy. Is this very spicy/hot, and will it completely spoil the dish to reduce the amount of peppers and chile powder?
I admit to being a wimp, but I do love the taste of Indian food—just not so hot and spicy! LOL Thanks!
I, too, can’t physically tolerate much heat and I have found that just leaving out the chilis and hot spices like cayenne or pepper flakes doesn’t ruin the dish’s overall flavor — just makes it edible for me. My husband who loves spice usually just adds a chopped pepper or dash of something equivalent to what I’ve had to leave out to his portion and we’re both happy.
any suggestions for substituting cilantro, I just can’t eat it but this looks great and I’d love to make it. Any suggestions are appreciated
I also do not care for cilantro.
When a recipe calls for it I will substitute it with parsley.
good idea thank you, just wasn’t sure if there was a particular replacement that was most complimentary to the rest of the dish. Parsley is a good neutral so I’ll give it a try
Especially flat parsley works great!
I too dislike cilantro.
When ever a recipe calls for cilantro I will subside it with fresh parsley.
Hi Marsha,
Is the reason you don’t like cilantro because of the strong flavour (Australian spelling)?
If you buy dried cilantro leaves in the spice isle you’ll find the flavour is not as strong as the fresh herb.
Just curious if you tried that already.
Personally I’d eat cilantro for breakfast, lunch, AND dinner. lol…
It’s genetic! I’m also a cilantro-hater, despite having tried VERY hard to get myself used to it (I don’t necessarily need to love it, but I wish I didn’t immediately balk at the taste of it in any dish; it’s such a bummer!). I felt better when I learned that it’s not a personal failing on my part. If you google “genetic aversion to cilantro” you’ll find studies.
i like cilantro, but if i don’t have it in the fridge, i use parsley. green onions/scallions would probably be good, too.
Hi!
I’m a college student from Maine and have been reading Smitten for about six years (extremely enthusiastic fan/avid cook/baker), and although I have made many dishes from the blog, have only commented a few times. This dish is fantastic! Made to the letter (with the addition of chickpeas) for a warm, brightly flavoured dish enjoyed by everyone!
Thank you so much Deb for this blog, it has brought me an incredible amount of joy over the years.
Hi – I was just thinking about adding chickpeas and/or lentils to get some protein to the dish. Did you just put canned ones in at the end with the peas?
Yes I just added a 15oz can with the peas at the end and let it all warm up :) Definitely a good addition, made it into more of a meal!
Thanks! Tried it last night and was great – definitely easier than making an a dal for the side which was my original plan! (Though my Indian boyfriend says this makes it very unauthentic…¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Hi just to be clear you added chickpeas and the green peas to the recipe?
I did yes – basically once everything was cooked, I added a can of chickpeas with the green peas (I used frozen) and cooked til they were warmed through, another 10 ish minutes.
Hi Deb,
Suggested tag for this post: gluten-free. I love going through your GF tag, and this would be a great addition!
Thanks!
Just delicious and extremely satisfying. Perfect for our no-meat night dinners. Used a 2 lb cauliflower with a 14.5 oz can of fire roasted tomatoes. Sauce to cauliflower ratio was perfect. Enough for 2 with leftovers.
Yummy.
looks simple and nutritious.
Long story short, I meal prep for my grandfather, so I’m always on the hunt for flavorful veg rich food. I tried this out last night for him. Such a good option! I went with crushed tomatoes (which I assumed I would need to puree, but the texture looked good out of the can) and ground cumino. No seeds to be found when I did the shopping, so I upped the amount to 1 1/2 tsp with good results.
Sounds delicious! I’ll be making this tonight!
I made this last week and had to come back and rave about it! The whole family loved it! I’ll be making this again!
Folks have no idea just how delicious vegan meals can be…Delicious meal! Thanks so much!
Eating this as I type and it’s DELICIOUS!!!! I added paneer and a splash of cream at the end. Make this as soon as possible – it’s a winner :)
I made this for dinner tonight and it was fantastic! Served with rice and daal.
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wow looks so delicious!
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What is this website? Went nowhere, made me nervous …
This looks absolutely delicious, can wait to try it! I love Jalapeno’s so it sounds like it has a nice kick!
This looks great! I’ll definitely be giving this a go.
This dish is delicious! I made it for family dinner last night, served it with naan and it was a succes. Was hoping for some leftovers but… no luck. I did go easy on the chili powder because of the kids but next time I might switch it up a bit after all.
Absolutely delicious but the 1/2 lemon was a bit too much acid for us. Is there a volume amount for lemon juice that would work better and be more in line with the amchur (since all lemons release a different amount of juice)?
You could probably start with a teaspoon of lemon juice at the end and then taste and adjust if necessary
This was a delicious dinner, with basmati rice. I added shrimp because my daughter wanted some protein and shrimp seemed like an easy add (used a bag of frozen peeled deveined shrimp), and green beans when I added the cauliflower. It reminded me of shrimp creole, Indian style. I wasn’t sure about the chili powder, so I used the stuff I have for chili recipes. It seemed fine though I’d love to know whether there are chili powders used specifically for Indian cooking.
Is this one of those things I could make, freeze and then reheat (or leave another human with instructions for said re-heating) or would the vegetables lose their structure and turn to mush? Thanks!
Really delicious and fun to make. The spices made the kitchen smell wonderful. The lemon at the end perks the whole dish up. As a cilantro lover, I liked the two ways it is in the recipe. Highly recommended!
This looks amazing. Looking forward to making this at the weekend!
This was delicious and really hit the spot on a snowy winter’s day! I served it as a main dish over rice, but it would be equally good as a side, maybe served with Indian-spiced sheet pan chicken. My cauliflower was on the small side, so I added a can of drained and rinsed chickpeas for volume, and 2 cups of tomato puree was plenty. Thank you for great recipe!
Delicious hit with my family
Made this, it was fabulous.
This looks really good, such a big fan of masala. Will definitely give this a try later in the week!
Ohh this is an awesome post. Pls keep it up.
My husband just loved it. Let recipes like this keep coming
This is very delicious and turned out amazing.
But I added a little more turmeric, Cumin and ginger. I love strong flavors.
Holy cow- this was utterly delicious! I made this exactly as written, except at the end I added some panner that I had pan fried, and a little teaspoon of butter at the end to finish it. Served it with some tomato and cucumber raita. Wooooo! Killer recipe, thank you. This one is going in the rotation!
Thanks for sharing such a delicious recipe. I love Indian Food.
Made this with potato instead of peas. Diced up the potatoes and added at the same time as the cauliflower core. Put in the entire can of tomato (used crushed tomato). So yummy! Had it over rice.
Looks so yummy! Gonna try it. Thank you!
We made this tonight for an openhouse at a local community center and fed 50 happy people! In lack of giant pots and pans we roasted the cauliflower in the oven and then tossed it in the tomatosauce.
Thanks for sharing the recipe idea.
Greetings from Germany!
Lotte
OMG that sounds delicious, I could eat this all day. What a great recipe, after eating this as much as one can handle i might need a towtruck to drag me home:)
thanks for the recipe
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Looks really awesome. Sharing it!
Made this last night and it was quite tasty! Such a good weeknight dish. I would maybe add a bit of butter or cream at the end to round out the flavor profile. Also it was a little tomato-y. I used San Marzano pureed tomatoes and would do a canned tomato that’s less pronounced flavor-wise next time.
thanku so much for sharing this racipe . this racipe will help me in making Cauliflower and Tomato Masala with Peas (Gobi Matar). thanku….
I was not a fan of this version of masala…found the combo of seasonings to be off and tomato purée, sickly sweet. I usually read over a couple of recipes and cherry pick best flavors, but made this as printed. (With addition of chickpeas as my cauliflower was small) Lots of leftovers, hoping the flavors are melding as I write and second time around will be more pleasing.
We made this tonight and it was lovely. I doubled the ginger and garlic, because I was using pre-prepped from Aldi. I also left out the cup of water for a thicker sauce and that worked perfectly.
I forgot to add the lemon juice, but it was tasty without it. The roommate has demanded that this go on regular rotation. It’s an unqualified hit.
So I am dairy free ever since I had my second child a bit over a year ago. I’m not much of a cook either because boy does it take a lot of time to make some great dishes. But this dish is a-m-a-z-i-n-g. My 5 year old needs to be tricked into trying veggies EXCEPT when tomato sauce is involved, then she will gobble it up. I love how she can get so many nutrients with this dish!
We also live in Germany and a lot of these items are super easy to find when we travel around Europe, sometimes we stay at places where we have use of a stovetop and oh gosh its always good to have an easy recipe like this that we can ACTUALLY find in France or the Netherlands.
Thank you!!!
thanku for sharing this useful racipe. this racipe will help me in how to make cauliflower and tomato masala with peas.
My husband won’t eat cauliflower, so I made this with broccoli instead. Still delicious! Just thought I’d mention that in case anyone else was wondering if it would work with this switch.
Thank you! I detest cauliflower on a very deep level (I can’t even deal wit the smell), and was perusing to see if anyone had tried a variation on that (important) ingredient.
Great, I have a broccoli that needs to vanish :) and this recipe sounds soo good!
Thanks for the comment….
Thank you very much for this excellent recipe!
Made this yesterday and we loved it.
Thank you for the recipe – this was great and made wonderful lunch leftovers for the week. Like some others, I added a can of chickpeas with the peas at the end. I also added a few handfuls of baby spinach with the peas for a bit more green. I used the entire can of tomato puree. I generally prefer a lot of flavor and spice so I did 1 jalapeno and 1 serrano and then doubled the dried spices. Thanks again!
Awesome recipe. I made it for my parents, who are born/raised in India, and they loved it. The cauliflower was perfectly crisp/tender when cooked as directed, even though it sat in the pot for 1-2 hours before we ate it. I used one serrano chile which was spicy- for milder palates, I would use 1/2 serrano, deseeded, instead.
this looks really nice. I’ve been trying to eat more vegetables. This one would be a good choice to make!
This was outstanding, I had to use frozen cauli because we’re 4 hrs round trip to the grocery store ( BC mountains, LOL) but it’s a keeper. And I have just realized how many of your recipes have become a staple in my house…fudge sauce, cauliflower fritters, black bean feta tacos, red bean curry, apple spice cake, ginger-carrot salad dressing and more. You have been a go to for kid food too . Always a great read, thank you!
Thanks for sharing this receipe
Healthy, comforting, warm… I can’t wait to eat the leftovers for lunch today. Next time I’ll add paneer or maybe try the recommendation of chickpeas to make it more substantial. It is also delicious as-is, and I love that Deb uses the whole cauliflower head, core and all.
That looks good. I’ll have to try it.
I once made aloo gobi with sweet potatoes — definitely worth doing again.
Thanks for this recipe. This is something I can prepare really fast for my family especially on those days when I’m very tired. I like its simplicity yet nutritious and looks delicious too. I will try this today.
Outstanding recipe. I did add the chickpeas at the end and served it on spiralized baked butternut squash, Such great flavours! Can’t wait for the leftovers tomorrow.
This looks beautiful, I love the combo of curry, chickpea and couliflower. perfect!
My husband doesn’t like spices these overwhelm the food. Sigh. But, all the things going on in this even with only garlic and some chili powder and a tiny bit of cream masala, this is crazy good! Thanks!
this is the 2nd time I have made this dish, it is spectacular. I followed the recipe as written and family loves loves loves it. Deb never disappoints.
I made this for a family lunch after church on Sunday. It was a hit! Very tasty…lots of flavor. I used parsley instead of cilantro since cilantro tastes like soap to me. I never hesitate to make a SK dish to serve to others without a test run since I know I can count on any SK recipe to be delicious 😊
I made this for my kids and add paratha bread and it was a huge success. Thanks for sharing
Whoaaaa this is so good. I made it with a couple of pieces of fresh turmeric, and chopped the turmeric, ginger, and garlic and sauteed it all together. Also put in a bit of smoked paprika (I can’t resist the smoky taste; please don’t tell any Indian people) and some roasted cashews for fat/protein/texture (so good!). Left out the cilantro (which I sadly can’t stand) and topped it with fresh chives from my garden. SO GOOD. And so kosher for Passover! Thank you Deb!
Made this last night and we really enjoyed it (together with my 8yo son and husband). I skipped the jalapeno pepper, but added the powder chili and the spiciness level was just weak enough for my son to eat it. Thank you to other commentators for suggesting to add chick-peas, I added them and together with rice was great.
This reminds me of a dish my mom makes. I’m Indian so we use a lot of the ingredients you used too. Totally trying this yummy dish soon!
This was delicious, I didn’t have any chili powder on hand but it still had a kick to it!
I saw this recipe and literally every ingredient is one of my favourites (apart from amchur powder which I’d never heard of but now have to find!) so I had to make it – and DELICIOUS! One of my new faves – thank you! The only thing I added was turmeric as I seem to put that in everything :)
This one, dare I say, was life-changing. SOOO delicious! Super easy! Good number of leftovers for two. Making us more vegetarianish than before. Thank you! (We added chickpeas, which makes it more of a filling main course for us. Yum!)
We made this last night Deb! Delish. I love how the cumin comes through in the finished dish. I roasted my cauliflower (400 for 30 minutes or so) rather than cooking it in the sauce, and it added another welcome layer of flavour. I threw in some fresh cooked chickpeas too for some protein and served it with a yogurt cucumber raita. Yum! Thanks for the inspiration!
In Canada we don’t have what the US calls tomato purée. Is either tomato passata or tomato paste the same? Thanks Deb
Excellent, made precisely as detailed. Added an Indian chili powder which really helped along the authenticity. Everybody really enjoyed! Thanks Deb!
Just made this in all its saucy glory! Completely delicious! This will go in the regular rotation for sure.
Made this for my college-age daughter and husband who are newly practicing vegans. It was a huge hit and made enough for left-overs, which I appreciated! I also made your roasted sweet potato wedges with chickpeas and (almond) yogurt. It took me about 90 minutes to do both. Next time, I will try to consolidate the prep, make notes so she can make at school in less time. I wonder if you might include a “prep” section in future recipes to facilitate? We love your recipes!
I can’t use the mango powder, because of an allergy and I didn’t have a lemon, so, I threw in a dried black lime that I bought as my local spice store. It was perfect. I learned to puncture the lime after it softens up so the wonderful flavor seeps out.
I made this with some modifications, based on other reviews, and it came out wonderful. I used one 15-ounce can of tomato sauce, I found that adequate. I roasted the cauliflower for 25 minutes in a 475 degree oven, then I cooked it on the stove in the sauce for 10 minutes, adding the peas in the last 5 minutes. I added paneer cubes at the end, but chickpeas would also be good instead. I did add a splash of cream and two spoons of ghee along with the peas as well. Came out great and my family enjoyed it a lot.
Looks so delicious and comforting! Do you think tofu might be a good addition? And if so, at what point of cooking?
We cook this a lot (we are an Indian household) and I agree a juicy gobhi dish is lovely. One tip is to sauté and very lightly brown the cauliflower and keep it aside *before* you make the tomato masala. It concentrates flavour just a bit and the cauliflower is so much tastier than in the more “boiled in sauce” version here. The rest is a super authentic recipe!
“mild red chili powder (I used kashmiri)” I haven’t been able to get kashmiri chili powder. Can you expand on what you mean by mild red chili powder?
I mean chili powder (in the US) can mean that blend that’s used for tex-mex cooking or a single chili (ancho or chipolte come to mind). What would you suggest? (as I continue my search for kashmiri)
Chili powder is a spice blend for Tex-Mex chili. Chile is just ground dried hot peppers. Kashmiri is more common in Indian cooking; it’s just what I had around. There are many kinds of chilis that are more mild. If your jar or packet of chile powder doesn’t say it’s mild, and you wish the dish to be, just add it more judiciously.
Made this just now for lunch and it was tasty and delicious! I sauteed the cauli first in high heat, I think it’s made such a difference! I also added 1 tbsp tomato paste, 1 tbsp curry powder, 2 tsp brown sugar and a pat of butter in the end! I’ve cooked a number of your recipes, they’re all so good! Thank you for sharing! Regards from Singapore.
Delicious!!! So easy to make and a pleasure to eat!!!
I’m making this tonight and I’m adding diced sweet potatoes in addition to the cauliflower and peas. I can see this as being a base for many vegetables — green beans, winter squash, mushrooms as someone already mentioned, and for some meatless protein, cashews.
I made this with 3 cups of tomatoe sauce, and it was pretty acidic flavoured. I even skipped the lemon because of that.
I’ve made this a bunch of times, both the way it’s written and with some slight changes. Everyone eats this, which is a relief in itself.
The way it’s preferred in my house is to roast the cauliflower florets (at 400 for about 25 min), adding them to the prepared sauce along with a can of chickpeas in lieu of the green peas to simmer for a bit. I add an onion for the sauce, dicing and sautéing it before I add the cumin seeds, etc. I use a whole teaspoon of garam masala too.
This looks and sounds incredible! Definitely going on the top of my list of next things to cooK!
Hmmm, I wonder if our tomato puree in Europe is different than yours across the pond. Ours is concentrate, so my mixture was very dry looking when I reached the reduction stage. I thought better of it and through in a chopped heirloom tomato (it was lonely, the others spoiled and missed their destiny of being in your Mathilde tomato tart) and a cup of water.
SO GOOD!
I browned the cauliflower and used 1/2 tsp of chili powder from The Shed in Santa Fe (the BEST). Flavours were wonderful!
I think I’d add chickpeas next time simply for some protein.
This is delicious – and served with a spoonful of yogurt….mmmm!
This was a delicious, frugal meal. We enjoyed it! I didn’t have peas on hand so I subbed lentils but either way this is pantry friendly, fresh tasting meal.
This was delicious. Even my kids liked it. Next time I’ll try adding some paneer. Yum.
Could this recipe be done in a slow cooker potentially?
Could I add chickpeas or lentils to get some protein to the dish our will that ruin it?
I was skeptical of a recipe with no onions but this was delicious. I too roasted my cauliflower in a very hot oven and I finished with half and half to give it some richness.
I made this recipe and it was amazing! I had some left over white cooking wine and added that to the recipe, it added a nice taste. This recipe has such a lovely complete taste! Thank you so much for posting, I will make this again and again.
Great recipe. I would freeze the sauce with the peas and add fresh cauliflower next time. It doesn’t have a great texture thawed.
This was a very rare Smitten Kitchen miss for me. Something about the cauliflower doesn’t work to my taste. It seems like it should be roasted with onion? garlic? first before adding it to the tomato mixture. It’s very “earthy” tasting as written.
We made SO many substitutions and this was still amazingly delicious: tomato sauce, no jalapeño, added chopped cashews before I realized garbanzos would make more sense, so then we added garbanzos too, and left out the peas because we were out. I added red pepper flakes to my own plate. Delicious, can’t wait to make again!
wow, what a delicious food.
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This is ridiculously good and quite forgiving. I had to improvise a bit on the spices but got close enough for me to be happy with it. I added chickpeas at the end and roasted the cauliflower in the oven before adding to the sauce. I’m hoping it will freeze because it made a lot! I will definitely make it again.
I love all your recipes! I’ve been following you for years and years. I will definitely make this soon, and pray that my children will eat it. I just have one request from you. I would love to have the option to print the image on the recipe.
I’m making this now—and it occurs to me that it would be lovely to roast the cauliflower florets while making the rest and throw that in at the end.
One of my biggest SK fails! I made this to a tee and it just tasted like boring plain tomato puree. No evidence of all the spice and seasonings.
I too thought it was under-seasoned as written.
Per others, I roasted the cauliflower @400 for 30 minutes. I used a two cans of diced tomatoes and pureed them with a stick blender. I used entire large jalapeño (ribs and seeds) and still needed a 1/2 tsp cayenne. A solid vegan recipe. Uncommon to see SK recipes w/o cheese.
WHY is cilantro – aka: Devil Weed – ALWAYS added to Indian meals? It’s not even FROM India; it’s native to southern Europe and was introduced at a later time to other places in the world!!
For those of us who taste it as SOAP, I suggest one of the following substitutes (depending on the flavor that you are trying to achieve): basil, Italian parsley, mint, papalo, coriander (from which – strangely enough – cilantro comes from but tastes entirely different), rau ram, curry powder, cumin, caraway, oregano, or garam masala.
Good luck.
Is there a good substitute for tomato purée if one only has whole tomatoes and tomato paste?? 🙏🏼
I made this recipe with kale instead of frozen peas (to use what was in the fridge–added at the same time your recipe says to add the frozen peas), and added a can of chick peas along with the cauliflower for a protein boost. It was delicious even though I didn’t have a green chile or lemon juice. Thank you!
I made this last night and really enjoyed it after a few tweaks. I had about 2 lbs of cauliflower and pureed my own homegrown canned tomatoes. I rarely measure spices, but this time I did, and it was under-seasoned to me. I ended up tripling the amount of spices and adding quite a bit of black pepper and Madras curry powder. I also thought the sauce was a little thin so I whisked in a can of tomato paste. The recipe made what I thought was a huge amount of food, way more than 4 servings. Next time I might sauté some yellow onion along with the garlic, etc. at the beginning along with my other adjustments. Overall a really solid recipe for one of my favorite vegetables.