VEGETABLE, TOFU & COCONUT CURRY

I love curries and am a little sad that the warm weather is upon us, as I feel that I did not make enough curries throughout winter. I had so many vegetables in the fridge this afternoon that I decided to whip up a purely vegetable curry. I didn't use any rice as I will be eating this meal late at night after work and am trying to limit my complex carbs after lunch. If you want more flavour, feel free to add chilli flakes, chilli powder, ground coriander and/or other spices in step 1 of cooking. The Indian spice blend garam masala is a great way to pack lots of spices in to a dish without adding numerous individual spices, as it often contains a combination of turmeric, black & white peppercorns, cloves, cinnamon and ground cumin. Garam masala can be found in all major supermarkets. (This recipe has been loosely based on a Michelle Bridges recipe). 

Ingredients

• 1 heaped teaspoon coconut oil / rice bran oil 
• 1 teaspoon curry powder
• 1 teaspoons garam masala
• 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped or crushed
• 1 large sweet potato (450g), chopped into even 2-3cm pieces 
• 2 medium carrots (175g), chopped into even 2-3cm pieces
• Optional - 1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves
• water
• 1 x 400ml light or full fat coconut milk
• 2 heads of broccoli (400g), stalks and florets chopped
• 1 large zucchini (230g), chopped into even 3cm pieces
• 250g firm tofu, sliced into even small pieces
• Optional- 2 finely chopped green onions, to garnish and / or fresh coriander leaves. 

Cooking 

1. Heat the oil in a large deep saucepan over low-medium heat and swirl to coat the pan. Add the curry powder, garam masala and garlic and stir constantly until it makes a runny paste. 

2. Add the sweet potato, carrots and thyme if using to the pan and stir well to coat with the paste. Pour in half of the coconut milk (200ml) and 1 cup water. Bring to a simmer over medium-high heat, covered, then reduce the heat to low and cook for around 8-10 minutes or until the potato and carrot is just tender. 

3. Add the broccoli and zucchini to the pan and stir well. Add the rest of the coconut milk and more water if you like. Cover and cook for 3 minutes or until the broccoli and zucchini is just tender. 

4. Add the tofu to the pan and stir well to combine, seasoning with sea salt and ground black pepper. Remove from heat and divide into four bowls. Top with chopped green onions and/or fresh coriander leaves, if desired. 

Serves / 4 

Total Preparation time / 15 minutes 

Total Cooking time / approximately 20 minutes 

x Emily