Cauliflower and Chickpea Curry

super easy for when no thought is required

picture includes some leftover roasted carrots from some other meal

things you’ll need: Curry powder or masala blend of your choice, garlic and ginger, onion, can of tomatoes, can of coconut milk, can (or two) of chickpeas, one head of cauliflower, salt, pepper, butter or oil, cilantro to garnish, and a nap.

incidentally gluten-free and vegetarian, easily vegan

basic principles pulled from this

Chapter 123

At some point, sometime, you will get your golden ticket (if you haven’t already) and it will be your turn to get a vaccine. Even if you have to drive 6 hours or wait 2 hours, if it means keeping you and your beloveds safe, you do it.

There will be anxiety and excitement, relief and trepidation, a sense of freedom followed immediately by the reality of second doses and the many weeks of additional waiting for whatever partial immunity that your body will develop.

The world is supposed to open wide for you, but not yet. Almost. It’s been a year, what’s another few weeks anyway.

The exultant relief you feel is also coupled with minor flu symptoms, which are still better than getting full-on COVID. However, you aren’t much into cooking or food or thinking. Your pantry, curated by the You of many weeks ago, is once again there for you.

Go ahead and heat up your trusty dutch oven and get some kind of fat nice and hot (butter, ghee, or neutral oil). Chop an onion well enough, abandoning your usual joy in precision. Add the onion to the hot fat and sauté until softened. Grate in about an inch of fresh ginger and a clove or more of garlic. Once that’s all fragrant, add however much of whichever curry spices you please (you can always add more later) plus a little salt and pepper.

Open a can of tomatoes and dump them in. Open a can of coconut milk and dump that in. Stir it about lazily until it’s hot and smells good. Grab an immersion blender and blend away. (Alternately, get it into a regular blender, in batches, and then blend away) Taste it. Add stuff that you like (curry powder blends or additional coriander, turmeric, cumin, cinnamon, ras el hanout, more ginger, more salt, whatever) and leave it on simmer.

Open a can or two of chickpeas. Rinse them. Toss them in a hot frying pan with a little salt and fry until a little browned. Add them to the pot.

Dissect a cauliflower into florets. Since they will simmer in the sauce and break down a bit (and you are tired and do not really want to be cooking anyway), don’t obsess about the knife work. Add them to the pot.

Let it simmer, covered, until the cauliflower is fork-tender. Serve with rice (or naan). Garnish with cilantro. Drink more water. Go back to bed.

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