Spice Junction: Butter Gobhi - cauliflower curry in a buttery gravy

Found this recipe of Kulsum on Pintrest and was drooling over it ever since. I found some gobi on sale that day and stocked up with a single minded mission to try it out. My sister and I love gobhi and are always up for trying different versions of it. I was particularly drawn to this one because of how both the gobhi and the masala are cooked separately in masalas and then combined together for a slow cooked end.

But the biggest surprise out of this curry was the fact that VJ ate gobhi. Yes, VJ. The guy who swore off gobhi as a stinky, smelly vegetable that tastes like mulch. And now, he asked me to make the same curry again and wants to eat the whole batch with my mutter pulao.

I tell you, this curry has the miraculous power to cure. I witnessed it myself. It cured VJ.

Anyways, without boring you further I'll get down to the recipe itself. I followed her recipe truthfully with a few exceptions:

1) I skipped the black cardamom and tomato paste since I had none.

2) I also substituted the kala jeera with normal jeera.

3) I had no cream at home and used a extra 1 tbsp of butter in 2 tbsp of 2% milk, microwaved together for about 30 seconds (3 turns of 10 seconds each)

4) The chilli powder I use is kashmiri and hence it didn't pack the punch. So I chopped one green chilli and added it to the curry at the last stage.

5) I also made the gravy first and set it cool while frying the gobhi.

Ingredients:

Gravy:

Onion - 1 large

Tomatoes - 2 large

Ginger garlic paste - 2 tsp

Red chilli powder - 1 tsp

Coriander powder - 1 tbsp

Garam masala - 1 tsp

Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp

Cashew nuts (crushed) - 1 tbsp

Butter - 3 tbsp

Bay leaf - 1

Green cardomom - 1 (crushed)

Cumin - 1/2 tsp

Cinnamon - 2 inch piece

Cloves - 2

Salt - to taste

Water - 1 cup

Gobhi:

Cauliflower - 1 head

Ginger garlic paste - 1 tbsp

Red chilli powder - 2 tsp

Garam masala powder - 1 tsp

Salt - to taste

Water - 1/2 cup

Butter - 1tbsp

To finish:

Green chilli - 1, chopped

Half and half - 2 tbsp

Kasoori methi - 1 tsp

Method:

Gravy:

1. Chop the onions and tomatoes finely and set aside.

2. Heat the butter in a thick bottomed pan and add the bay leaf, cardamom, cloves, cumin and cinnamon. Fry for about 10 secs until you can smell the aroma of the spices.

3. Add the onions with a pinch of salt and fry until golden. Then add the ginger garlic paste and fry until well blended and the raw smell fades.

4. Now add all the masalas (turmeric, red chilli, coriander, garam masala and crushed cashews) and mix well. Add the tomatoes and salt and cook until it forms a well blended, mushy paste.

5. Now add 1/2 a cup water and let it boil for about 10 mins. Transfer to a wide bowl and set it to cool completely.

In the meantime, we will fry the gobhi.

Gobhi:

1. Peel off the leaves and break/cut the cauliflower in big pieces. Wash in a colander under hot running water for about 2 mins.

2. Drain and transfer to a big bowl and add the ginger garlic paste. Mix into the florets uniformly. Now add the red chilli, garam masala and salt and mix well until well blended.

3. Using the same pan, heat the butter and add the florets to it. Fry until lightly browned.

4. Add the half cup water to it and cook with the lid on for about 7 mins. Take care not to overcook and make the florets mushy. It has to just cook through.