Cauliflower and Quail Egg Curry (Punjabi Style)
I’m dying right now. Not literally of course, but this Minnesota girl can’t handle the sudden heat out there. I need time to acclimate… four weeks ago was a wicked snowstorm and today it’s mid-80’s. With this gorgeous sunshine happening, I planted about half of my garden and am looking forward to heading to the greenhouse tomorrow to peruse the selection of unique flowers and veggies that I might need to add to my yard or garden that I don’t already have. Cauliflower is something I’ve grown before and haven’t had much luck but I’ll try again because I keep finding amazing ways to use this great cruciferous chameleon of the vegetable world. This time, I’ve discovered that by using cauliflower in a simmer sauce, like in this egg curry, much of the curry flavor is absorbed by our vegetable superstar during cooking leaving barely a hint of the true nutty cauliflower flavor behind so even cauliflower haters will LOVE this combination.
Cauliflower and quail egg curry blends my love of North Indian curries with a touch of my Scandinavian roots. Curries from the northern states in India have a different flavor profile than those of the south. This Punjabi style cauliflower and egg curry bases its ingredient list from the Northern region of the Indian peninsula which tend to feature tomato based sauces with garam masala. To give this a unique flavor blend, I’ve added a touch of cardamom and mustard seed which are used heavily in my Scandinavian heritage. Cardamom is commonly used in other Indian cuisine as well and I happen to adore the twist of something different that cardamom and mustard provides for this dish. I’ve also used adorable nutritious quail eggs (mostly because they’re super CUTE!!!….and they are more similar in size to the cauliflower florets) but you can use hard boiled chicken eggs as well for the same flavor experience!
- ¼ cup coconut oil
- 1 onion, diced
- 1 teaspoon mustard seeds
- 4 cloves garlic, chopped
- 2 pods cardamom (or use a pinch ground cardamom)
- 2 small hot chilies, finely chopped (or use small dried hot chilies, crushed)
- 4 tomatoes, chopped
- 1 small head cauliflower, cut into florets
- 1 tablespoon minced ginger
- 1 teaspoon coriander
- 1 teaspoon garam masala
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- ½ teaspoon turmeric powder
- 1 bay leaf
- ½ teaspoon pink himalayan salt*
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
- pinch of cayenne pepper, to taste
- 16-20 hard boiled quail eggs (or 8 hard-boiled chicken eggs) peeled and cut into halves
- Cilantro, chopped, for garnish
- Combine coconut oil, onion, mustard seeds, garlic, cardamom and chilies in a large sauté pan and cook about 10 minutes until onions begin to soften.
- Add the tomatoes, cauliflower, ginger, spices, bay leaf, salt and pepper and cook until cauliflower begins to soften about 10-15 minutes.
- Gently add the eggs. Season with additional cayenne pepper to taste.
- Cook another 5 minutes and serve hot with chopped cilantro as garnish.
- Serve on its own, or with rice, naan or lentils!
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