Gobi ka Kheema: The art of 'ahem' Seduction!!!

Gobi ka Kheema

Curly haired, little pot bellied, fair and of course handsome! He was there again that night surrounded by his family and friends. I tried to move away from his sight before he could see me and rushed to move past him. But alas, that was not to happen and he was beside me in within few seconds.

“Take me home with you tonight” he whispered into my ears.
“I don’t think that’s a good idea” I said and tried to move away from him.
“Why not? Don’t you fancy me anymore?” he pleaded.
“Err, something of that sort” I said without looking into his eyes.
“Please tell me, what is it that you don’t like about me is?” he demanded!
“Well, there are quite many things I don’t like about you and I don’t think you would like to them in front of your family and friends”, I said.
“I don’t care about anything or anyone. All I want is to know the reasons as why you have been avoiding me since last two months! Please, be considerate!” he pleaded again.
“OK, if it this is what you want hear!” I took deep breath.
“Yes! I am tired of seeing you avoiding me whenever we are in same room and I can’t help but see you favouring that new guy in block!” he said.
“I don’t like how inconsiderate you are when it comes to sharing space. Remember last time you came home with me? You occupied so much of space in my tiny home without even considering what others may think or feel!” I blurted.
“Oh! I am sorry about that. I will try not to occupy too much of space and be friendly with others from now on” he said trying to hide his smile.
“I have never been fond of you. Remember the days when we were kids? You would visit our home at least once a week and make my life miserable as my mother favoured you always?” I said, bit to loudly perhaps.
“Is it? I knew your mom was fond of me. I remember her telling one of your aunts how pleasant little boy I am and always doing right! But I never knew you were jealous of me”, he said sounding almost relieved.
“I was not jealous! It’s just that you never smelled nice like others. Well, to tell you frankly I think you stink a lot”, I shouted back.
“What??? Come again! I stink?” he shouted back.
“We stink?” shouted all his family members in chorus, who were eavesdropping all along and pretending to be busy with their own affairs.
“Yes, that is the main reason why I have been avoiding you. I tried to like you but your stench that comes from miles makes me run away from you” I told him and his family who didn’t look that friendly anymore.
“That’s because you don’t know how to use me like her. Why not take few tips from her as how one should treat me with respect/dignity that I deserve? Learn from her how to cook me not just slaughter me with overdose of spices and other unnecessary ingredients. And more importantly, learn to appreciate the health benefits you get from me. After doing all this if you still think I am not good enough for you then we will end our relationship. So, how about taking me home tonight?”


And I took him home that night and yes, he won!!! He wooed me and seduced me that night. He looked good, he tasted better and more importantly he smelled divine!

Gobi ka Kheema

Thank to dear Ashwini for her brilliant recipe for Gobi ka Kheema, I am ‘kind’ of cauliflower convert now! For someone who tries to avoid cooking and eating cauliflower as much as possible, I must say that this recipe is a keeper! The secret is pan frying the grated cauliflower till they turn golden brown and then cooking them with very few ingredients. And oh boy! It smelled and tasted divine. The aroma of sautéed grated cauliflower was something that I didn’t expect! I was even considering of opening all the doors and windows open, in spite of outside temperature close to freezing point, just to make sure that our home wouldn’t smell like some dead rat! ;) But surprise, surprise!!! It smelled divine! (Did I say divine again?) Gobi ka Kheema is definitely one of the best Cauliflower dishes I have ever tasted and I don’t know how to say this, I will be making this again tonight ;)


P.S: Before some of you ask, I seriously don’t fancy any curly haired or little pot bellied men ;) So please, don’t start teasing me!

Grated Cauliflower for Gobi ka Kheema

Print This Recipe

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Gobi ka Kheema (Grated Cauliflower cooked with sweet Green Peas and spiced Tomato puree)
Prep Time: 10-15 mins
Cooking Time: 15-20 mins
Serves: 4-6
Recipe Source: Food for Thought

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Recipe Level: Medium
Spice Level: Medium
Serving Suggestion: With any Indian flat breads or with flavoured/steam cooked Rice

Ingredients:
1 medium Cauliflower
½ cup Green Peas (I used frozen)
2 medium Onions, grated or finely chopped or pulsed in a blender
2-3 Tomatoes, blanched and pureed *
1 tsp Ginger-Garlic Paste
1-2 Bay Leaves
¾ tsp Garam Masala
½ tsp Red Chilli Powder (I used Kashmiri Chilli Powder)
1 tsp Jeera/Cumin Seeds
Big pinch of Hing/Asafoetida
2 tbsp Oil
Salt to taste

Gobi ka Kheema

Method:

Clean the cauliflower and separate it into large florets. Grate them coarsely by hand or using food processor.
Next, heat about 1 tbsp of oil in a pan and add grated cauliflower to it. Sauté it on medium flame for 8-10 minutes till they start to turn golden brown. Keep it aside till needed.
Heat another tbsp of oil in a pan and add cumin seeds, hing and bay leaves to it. When cumin starts to sizzle and turn golden red in colour, add onion and ginger-garlic paste and stir fry them till raw smell from onions and GG paste disappears and onions turn light golden brown.
Reduce the heat and mix in tomato puree. Add chilli powder, garam masala, green peas and salt to taste and mix well. Let the gravy simmer for 2-3 minutes.
Mix in sautéed cauliflower and adjust the seasonings. Cook for another 5-7 minutes on reduced heat and ensure that cauliflower is coated well with spices.
Serve this delicious Gobi ka Kheema, garnished with finely chopped coriander leaves, with any Indian flat breads or Rotis and enjoy.

Spiced Tomato Puree

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Note:

* You can simply use blanched and pureed tomatoes for this recipe or use this recipe that I made following Ashwini’s recipe for this delicious and aromatic tomato puree. All you need for this Tomato Puree is 3-4 roughly chopped Tomatoes, 2-3 Green Cardamoms, 2-3 Cloves, 1-2 Bay Leaves (Optional), 1 tsp Ginger-Garlic Paste, and 2-3 slit Green Chillies. Place all these ingredients in a stockpot along with 1-2 cups of water and cook it on reduced heat till tomato is reduced to pulp (about 10 minutes). Discard whole spices and green chillies and let it cool. Now either you can mash the pulp and strain the puree into another pan or simply pulse in your food processor. Transfer this puree into a stock pot and add about 1 tbsp Kasuri Methi, salt to taste and little cream if desired and bring it to a gentle boil. That’s it!!! Let it cool and pour it into ice cube moulds and pop them in your freezer. Once frozen, remove from moulds and store it in zip lock bag and use them as and when needed. I have started using them quite a lot in curries, gravies and even I have replaced vegetable stock cubes with this healthy homemade spiced tomato puree.