My kids would absolutely never get near anything “curried” and it was not this meal that turned the tide. All props are entitled to the kindness of a stranger from Dosa Factory in Central Square, Cambridge. Let me share with you how all this came to be.
Over the summer, the kids and I manned the CSA stand, strictly pro-bono, while members came to collect their weekly harvest. One particular night, the universe rewarded my good deeds in the form of a worker from aforementioned Indian grocer/cafe passing by with several fresh baked miniature calzone-looking items which he graciously offered to each of us. Upon declaring their love (and after collecting myself off the pavement) I explained that they were eating curried peas, potatoes and other veggies. With big smiles they exclaimed “well, this is real good, I guess we like curry”! Imagine my surprise. I am sure any parent reading this can identify with the situation: you make something that is declared total garbage and next thing you know, a similar item is served at a friends house and is all Aces.
Newfound revelation at hand, I decided to test the waters with something simple: curried baked tofu. Huge hit; pickiest kid jumped out of his seat with two thumbs up declaring “best tofu I had ever made”. Secretly wanted to kill him (not really) as I have certainly tried to serve Indian fare before to total dissapointment and frustration. The main subject of this post, Seitan cutlets in Curry Gravy, was the next Indian meal I risked since the “revelation”. Fabulous success. More suprisingly, the Brussels sprouts in the background were also eaten with zero complaint, zip, zilch, nada. The sprout recipe was taught to me by an Indian friend I lived with for six months. Roasted after being tossed in oil and coated with a mixture of cornmeal and Indian spices, the cabbage flavor completely disappears into a succulent little breaded morsel of perfectly spiced goodness. Seriously, these sprouts are one of the crazy things I find myself eating cold out of the fridge at 11 PM. FYI: broccoli roasted in olive oil is another crazy.
This whole discussion reminds me of a similar theory I have regarding kids & vegetables I like to call “veggies in through the back door” discussed in my recipe for Seitan and Fava with Mixed-Vegetable Gravy. Basically, the success rate is greatly increased when picky eaters don’t know what they are eating.
Regarding this meal, it is really a quick and easy warming dinner on a cold night. Seitan cutlets are flour-coated and pan-fried for a crisp crust then doused in a creamy curry-spiked sauce. I don’t make it very spicy but you could certainly add a little cayenne to raise the heat. Best to use homemade seitan, (check out my Slow-Cooker Seitan recipe for the tastiest, fuss-free preparation) because store-bought comes in small clumps which don’t produce sizeable cutlets. If you don’t have any homemade seitan on hand, you could cut store-bought into strips following the same directions for the cutlets. To keep things simple, serve over brown rice with Curry-Crusted Roasted Brussels Sprouts for a complete meal.
INGREDIENTS:
- 1/2 c. raw and unsalted whole cashews
- 1 1/2 c. no-chicken broth (such as Imagine brand)
- 2 Tbsp. curry powder
- 1/2 tsp. cumin powder
- 1/4 tsp. asafoetida
- 1/4 tsp. black pepper
- 1 onion, diced
- 1 c. frozen peas (rinse under warm water to remove any frozen ice)
- 1 lb. seitan cut into cutlets
- app. 3 Tbsp. sunflower oil
- flour for coating seitan
- Add cashews to food processor and blend with 3/4 c. water 3-5 minutes until creamy; add 1/2 c. more water and blend 3 minutes more until creamy and non-granular. Add broth and give a quick pulse to combine. While cashews blend, combine curry powder through black pepper in small dish and set aside.
- Heat a tablespoon of oil in a saute pan over medium heat, add onion when hot. Saute 4 minutes or until onion is soft and golden. Sprinkle combined spices over onion and stir to combine. Cook for like 30 seconds, raise heat to high then add broth/cashew cream mixture to pan. Bring to a healthy simmer, stir in peas and cook 2-3 minutes until thickened. Note that the gravy will not start to thicken until lightly boiling. Remove from heat, cover and set aside.
- Put seitan cutlets in microwave-safe bowl and cover with seitan liquid. Microwave a few minutes to warm through and tenderize. The amount of time will depend on your microwave and how much seitan and liquid you do at a time. Remove from liquid and coat in flour.
- Heat roughly 2 Tbsp. of oil in a cast-iron pan over high heat (if using a non-stick pan, the oil will heat up faster and you probably won’t need high heat, more like medium). Test oil by sprinkling a little flour in the oil, it is hot enough when the flour sizzles. Cook seitan for 1-2 minutes per side or until nice and crisp. Serve over rice topped with curry-gravy; there is plenty of gravy to top the rice too!
Serve 6
Seitan
