spicy cashew curry

How do you like tofu?  Growing up, I knew of a lady who ate tofu.  And did yoga and milled her own flour.  Until a couple of years ago, I'd never had it much, because I love and eat meat and had no need for it.  Shortly after moving to Atlanta, though, I ate some that was hidden in a salad from Whole Foods.  It was an accident!  Remarkably, though, I liked it, and started eating it with some regularity, and did not, in fact, start wearing sandals with socks or chain myself to a tree.  

I enjoy the texture of extra firm tofu, and the ability to flavor it any which way you choose.  But you may not, and that's okay, because the beauty of this curry is that you can substitute things to personalize it to your taste.  I used tofu this time, but if you don't want to go there, use chicken, or shrimp.  The original recipe from 101 Cookbooks called for just green beans and cauliflower, but I also added snow peas, because I'm CRAZY LIKE THAT.  Carrots would be good too. 

I can't tell you how pleased I was that this turned out to be edible.  I generally stay away from cooking Asian food at home, because I just don't know what I'm doing at all, and figure curries and dumplings and tikkas are best left to experts.  So the fact that I actually made something that resembled Thai food at home, and in a decidedly cheaper and probably healthier way than the neighborhood noodle house, sort of blew my mind.  Feeling all crunchy granola with the tofu, I packed in the vegetables, and used light coconut milk I found at Trader Joe's.  We had this curry over rice on a very cold night last week, and with a liberal (borderline excessive) amount of spice, it was just the right thing.

Recipe below . . . 
spicy cashew curry

recipe adapted from 101 Cookbooks

1 cup whole or light coconut milk

2 tablespoons red curry powder

scant 1/2 teaspoon fine grain sea salt

1/2 large onion, chopped

2 garlic cloves, minched

1/3 cup water

4 ounces firm tofu, cut into small cubes (optional)

1 cup green beans, cut into 1-inch segments

1 1/2 cups cauliflower, cut into tiny florets

          1 cup snow peas

1/3 cup cashews, toasted deeply

a handful of cilantro, loosely chopped

          1 tablespoon olive oil

Cut the tofu (in block form) into the 1/2 inch rectangles you see above.  Heat 1 T olive oil in a pan over medium-high heat and sprinkle with a pinch of salt.  Sear the tofu in the salty olive oil until golden brown, five to seven minutes per side.  Remove tofu from heat and cool, then chop into cubes and set aside. 

Bring half of the coconut milk to a simmer in a large skillet or pot over medium-high heat. Whisk in the curry powder and salt, working out any clumps. Stir in the chopped onion and garlic and cook for a minute. Stir in the remaining coconut milk and the water, and then the tofu. Cook down the liquid for a couple minutes before adding the green beans, cauliflower, and snow peas. Cover and simmer for just about one minute, maybe two - or just until the cauliflower and beans lose their raw edge and cook through a bit. Remove the pot from heat and stir in the cashews. Taste and adjust the seasoning (salt / curry powder) if needed. Serve with a bit of cilantro topping each bowl.