Sculpin

No, it’s not a description of cauliflower’s mental abilities. It’s what I made for dinner last night. The original recipe is from Mangoes and Curry Leaves, another beautiful (and heavy) coffee table cookbook from Jeffrey Alford and Naomi Duguid. Below I’ve rewritten the instructions to suit myself; Alford and Duguid write much longer and more detailed instructions.

It’d probably be pretty easy to adapt this to a less caloric model by roasting instead of frying the cauliflower and using less fat in the spice paste. And I think you could finish it in a solar oven. The general method is a lot like that of Eggplant Oop. A heavy enameled cast-iron pot is perfect for this.

Cauliflower Dum

1 cauliflower, about 1 1/2 pounds
1/4 cup ghee, vegetable oil, or peanut oil
1 teaspon cumin seeds
1 or 2 bay leaves
1 teaspoon garlic, minced or mashed to a paste
2 teaspoons ginger, minced or mashed to a paste
1 cup grated onion
1 cup diced tomatoes (fresh or canned)
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon coriander
1/2 teaspoon garam masala
1/4 teaspoon cayenne
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
2 green cayenne chiles
scant 1 cup water
2 or 3 tablespoons cilantro leaves, optional, to garnish

(I started to grate the onion, and quickly decided that a very, very fine mince was a much less miserable alternative. I wouldn’t try that again except with a food processor or while wearing goggles. Ye gods. Also, I thought it could use more tomato, though tomato-hater Josh disagreed. And maybe a touch of dry ginger as well as the fresh.)

Cut the cauliflower into largish florets and fry it in the oil in a heavy, ovenproof pot at medium heat, stirring every two or three minutes, until the florets are browned on every side. Remove the cauliflower to a bowl.

Now throw in the cumin seed and bay leaves, and fry them until the seeds start to pop, about a minute or less. Add the ginger and garlic; stir-fry for a moment. Add the onions and cook until they turn light brown, about 10 minutes or less.

Now add the tomatoes, salt, and ground spices and stir to blend in. Cook until the oil rises and starts to gleam on the surface of the paste, about 6 or 7 minutes. Add the chiles and cook for another 2 or 3 minutes. (I didn’t have any, so just added extra cayenne, and it was fine.)

Stir in the water and bring to a boil. Then simmer, uncovered, for five minutes. Add the cauliflower and gently stir until all the pieces are well-covered with spicy goop.

Put a piece of aluminum foil over the pot and put the lid on to create a tight seal. Bake at 350 F for about 20 minutes.

Supposedly this serves 4 to 5. It might, as a side dish. But with rice, as a main dish, it serves 2 hungry people with just enough leftovers for a good midnight snack.

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