Cauliflower Rendang Curry

Cauliflower Rendang is a vegan version of the spicy flavorful Malaysian curry made with lemongrass, red chillies and coconut milk.

Have you ever wondered how a fire breathing dragon feels? Fire in it's belly, fire in it's throat and fire on it's lips. I felt exactly the same way when I made this curry the first time. I was so excited with the bright red chilli paste that I ended up adding all of it and made this curry so hot that I felt like a fire breathing dragon for almost half the day. My tummy burned, by throat burned and my lips were literally on fire. Water didn't cool it off, neither did cold milk. 

Ever felt this way? What did you do to calm the fire?

Like lightening, in this case, the fire definitely did not strike a second time. I wised up. I used less red chillies. It was still hot, a Rendang is meant to be hot, but it was heat that I was comfortable with. Let me warn you though, I do eat spicy food at least 2-3 times a week, so I am spice tolerant. If you are not used to spicy food, I'd say go light on the chilli paste. You don't have to use all the chilli paste. You can store it in a glass jar in the fridge and use it to make some Honey Chilli Sauce or to add heat to other meals you cook.

I'll let you in on a little secret - I absolutely LOVE Asian curries!!! Yeah, well, no secret...

I was a big fan of Thai curries for a looong time, until I tried the Vegan Amok in Cambodia. And I kinda changed favorites. I've made that a couple of times with the Amok Powder I picked up in Siem Reap, it is sooo tasty, I feel like I'm cheating on Thai curry when I have it.

The only Asian curry that I had heard for a long time, but never had a vegan version was the Malaysian Rendang. Usually Rendang is made from Beef or Chicken, but since I consume neither, I wanted to make my own vegan version of it. I added Cauliflower, Cauliflower greens, and Sweet Potato to replace the beef or chicken in the curry. And girl... it was goooooood...

Have you ever tried sweet potato in a curry? If not, you really really should. I'm not such a big fan of boiled or roasted sweet potato, but when boiled in a curry, it is super tasty. I put it first in the Amok and now the Rendang, I've loved it both the times. Raj assumed he would be getting all the sweet potato in the curry, he was taken aback when he realised he had to compete with me in fishing them out in the curry.

To complement the curry, I made a simple cumin rice where I cooked short grained rice with salt and cumin. It went really well with the Cauliflower Rendang. Next time you feel like having curry, try this rendang out and take pictures and tag me @oneteaspoonoflife on Instagram, or @OneTeaspoonLife on Twitter or share with me on Facebook.

If you liked this, you may also like:

• Mushroom Cafreal - Vegan curry from Goa made by cooking mushrooms in a coriander sauce.
• Punjabi Dum Aloo - Vegan curry made from baby potatoes.
• Corn Tomato Bharta - Vegan curry made from grilled tomatoes and sweet corn.

Cauliflower Rendang Curry

Cauliflower Rendang is the vegan version of the Malaysian Rendang curry where Cauliflower and sweet potato are cooked in a spicy lemongrass, red chilli and coconut milk based sauce.

Recipe Type:  Main
Cuisine:            Asian
Prep Time:     20 minutes
Cook time:     45 minutes
Yield:                Serves 2-3

Ingredients:

1/2 Cauliflower
1 small Sweet Potato
200ml Coconut Milk
4-5 Lemongrass Stalks
5-6 dry Red chillies
1 tsp Cumin powder
1 tsp Coriander Powder
1/2 tsp Turmeric Powder
4-5 Garlic cloves
1/2" Ginger
1 tsp Tamarind Pulp
1 tsp Sugar
2 Tbsp Oil
2-4 Tbsp Water
Salt to taste

Method:

Soak the dry red chillies in a cup of hot water and keep aside for 10 minutes
Remove the outer layers of the lemongrass stalk until you reach the soft white center.
Break the cauliflower into florets and cut the sweet potato into chunks.
Drain out the chillies and remove the seeds.
Grind 3 of the lemongrass stalks, chillies, cumin powder, coriander powder, turmeric powder, ginger, garlic, tamarind and sugar along with a little water to a fine paste.
Heat oil in a pan and fry the paste for 3-4 minutes.
Bruise the remaining lemongrass and add it to the pan along with the cauliflower and the sweet potato.
Add salt and mix well.
Cover and cook on low heat until the cauliflower and sweet potato are almost done. They should be slightly undercooked.
Add the coconut milk and simmer on low heat uncovered for 8-9 minutes until you get the desired consistency and the vegetables are cooked. Adjust the sugar and salt as required.
Serve hot with rice.