My Favourite Quick Vegetarian Recipe

Amidst all of my musings on vegetarianism, burgers and the texture of tofu, I realised that I haven't put up any recipes so far. Below is my favourite recipe for a quick vegetarian meal. This recipe pre-dates my current vegetarianism and I hope that it will be supplanted by something even more fantastic over the coming weeks. I should mention also that this recipe is a Crank's recipe from one of the Crank's vegetarian cook books (which I highly recommend for interesting vegetarian food) which I have altered slightly because I've forgotten the exact timings.

Tikka Roast Veg on Naan

Ingredients:

- 1 x large carrot
- 1 x large courgette (zucchini)
- 1 x large/2 x small leeks
- Roughly half a head of cauliflower - more if you are a big cauliflower fan.
- Plain yoghurt - the runny stuff, not the wobbly type (I think this is called 'stirred')
- Curry paste of your choice - I really like Patak's. Pick a variety based on the flavour profile/spice level you like. I use Tikka paste or Masala paste for a medium spiced, tomatoey flavour
- 2 x Naan breads - again, I like the Patak's ones but the President's Choice aren't bad either

(Serves 2 with a little left over for snacking)

Chop all of the veg into nice chunky pieces, roughly 2cm wide, and separate the cauliflower into florets.

Boil a large pot of salted water and pre-heat your oven to your preferred baking temperature. I cook pretty much everything at 350-400 (180-200 UK temperatures).

The idea is to par-boil each of the vegetables so that they are at the same point of cookedness (new word) - tender enough to get a fork into but not all the way through i.e. half cooked. You can do this all in one pan by adding the veg at intervals appropriate to it's cooking time.

First, add the carrot to your boiling water.
2 minutes later, add the courgette.
2 minutes later, add the leek.
1 minute later, the cauliflower
After one minute, removed from heat and drain.

(These times are rough and should be altered depending on how crunchy you like your veg.)

Return your par-boiled veg to the pot and stir in a generous tablespoon or two of curry paste - enough to coat all of the vegetables with a visible layer of paste. Again - more paste = more curryish so adjust to taste.

Transfer curried veg to baking sheet and whack it in the oven for 25-30 minutes, until the curry paste is starting to crisp up and the edges of the vegetables start to blacken.

Remove veg from oven and put in naan bread to cook according to instructions - usually 2-3 minutes after splashing with water

Transfer veg back to your original cooking pot (or another container if you have already started cleaning up you efficient thing) and stir in a generous tablespoon or two of yoghurt to make your veg creamily curry coated. Again, adjust to taste - more yoghurt = creamier taste.

At this stage you will know if you've overcooked your veg as they will fall apart a bit as you stir. The cauliflower especially can disintegrate quite quickly. This is not necessarily a bad thing though - you end up with a nice mix of soft chunky veg and a sort of roasted vegetable curry sauce. If this is the case, and you want a crisper dish, adjust your boiling/roasting times slightly. All being well, they should be tender but with a little bite.

Remove naan from oven and serve veg on top of naan. Goes well with mango chutney or soy sauce or both.

You can also fry up some sliced chicken in curry paste, stir in a bit of yoghurt and add this to your veggie mix at the end if you want to make this meal omnivorous.

Enjoy!


John