Schezwan Cauliflower

Schezwan Cauliflower

Believe it or not but this and the fried rice recipe that follow were taught to me by an ex sous chef from the House of Ming, Taj , Delhi. A decade back, House of Ming was considered one of the best chinese restaurants in the city, and perhaps India. I learned this during a cookery workshop I attended with some friends at his house in Delhi. This is how it goes:

Cauliflower florets 8 to 10

Maida 1/4 cup

cornflour 1/4 cup

water 1/3 cup approxiamately

1 tbsp Chilli garlic paste (This one minus cumin is versatile and great)

2 tbsp light soya or 2 tsp dark soya

bell pepper 1 small

Spring onions 2

Ginger, garlic chopped 1 tsp each

green chillies slit 2

2 Shallots/1/2 Red onion

Method

1. Blanch the cauliflower lightly and keep aside

2. Make a thick, pakora type batter with maida and cornflour.

3. To get a deep brown colour in the restaurant, they add soya sauce to the batter. I skipped this.

4. Here's his chef's tip: The proportion of maida to cornflour depends on the texture desired. For a crispy, crunchy effect keep cornflour proportion high ( around 40 to 60% and for a more spongy texture, keep maida : cornflour ratio 3:1)

5. Dip the blanched cauliflower in this batter and deep fry.The remaining batter can be thinned with 1/2 cup water to be added to the sauce.

6. For the schezwan gavy, fry the dried chillies, followed by ginger garlic and green chillies. Add shallots, bell pepper and chilli paste.Add soya and the thinned batter and boil.

7. Taste the sauce to check for seasonings

8. Turn off the flame and and add the fried cauliflower. Mix gently and serve with fried rice.