One Cauliflower, Three Ways
Eating root-to-stalk and nose-to-tail is not a new fad. Certain culinary cultures are on built on this philosophy. Toonika Guha writes about the cauliflower, and the many delicious ways it lends itself to no-waste cooking.
Long before millennials expounded the benefits of nose-to-tail, Bengali cooks spent a fair amount of ingenuity in the kitchen, coming up with delicious ways to use every part of a vegetable. Lau-er chaal er chorchori (stir fry with bottle gourd skin), aloo-r chaal bhaja (fried potato skins), labra (a stir fry made with left-over vegetables), macher matha diye dal (dal with fried fish head) and many more, are popular dishes that often showed up at our dining table when I was growing up. The unusual flavoures and textures of these chorchoris (vegetable dishes) piqued my interest, and several have become favourites. Years later, when I moved out of my parents’ home in Kolkata to work at a publishing house in Delhi NCR, I found myself craving these simple dishes that were little-known outside of Bengal. So I decided to try my hand at making them in my own kitchen.
The simple phoolkopi or cauliflower has always been a vegetable that I loved eating. Growing up, I’d noticed the various ways in which each part of the vegetable could be used to make interesting dishes. One of the first recipes I tried was one made with the cauliflower leaves and baby stems. Next of course, had to be my mother’s famous roast, which she would often whip up in the microwave, when we had guests. I then began to wonder if the rest of the stems could be used to make a chorchori. I found a few recipes on the internet and after a bit of trial and error, came upon my own chorchori recipe with the stems of cauliflower, thus contributing to my family’s repertoire of cauliflower dishes.
Phoolkopi Pata Bata
Many food writers attribute the culture of zero-waste cooking in Bengali cuisine to the Bengal famine of 1943 when millions died due to food shortages and malnutrition. The meticulous use of every part of the vegetable, in this case the leaves, reveals a deep need to not waste — a tendency that this dark period in history led to. It has left such an indelible mark on the collective consciousness of Bengalis that even today, dishes such as these are commonly found in many households.
Ingredients
1 cup cauliflower leaves and tender stems
1 large clove of garlic
1 fresh green chilli
1 tablespoon mustard oil
Half a teaspoon panch phoran
Half a dry red chilli
Salt to taste
Method
Pluck the leaves and tender stems of the cauliflower and wash them thoroughly.
Put them in a mixer, along with a clove of garlic and green chilli. Grind it to a paste, adding water to avoid the leaves from getting too dry.
In a wok, heat mustard oil. Add the panch phoran, a dried red chilli and heat it until they crackle. Add salt to taste.
Add in the leaf mixture to the wok and cook till the water in the mixture evaporates and it has a tight, paste-like consistency.
Wait for it to cool and serve with warm rice.
Phoolkopi data-r chorchori
This is another recipe that probably also has its roots in the quintessential Bengali attitude of minimal waste, although as I mentioned, I have, through trial and error, made it my own. The stems of the cauliflower give this dish an earthy taste, that when complimented by the phoron, makes for a delicious first course in a Bengali thali.
Ingredients
Cauliflower stems (cleaned and chopped into thin slices)
Pumpkin (diced into small pieces)
Half a teaspoon of turmeric powder
Half a teaspoon of cumin powder
Half a teaspoon of coriander powder
Half a teaspoon of panch phoran
One large clove of garlic (finely chopped)
One dried red chilli
1 tablespoon of mustard oil
Salt to taste
Method
Finely chop the vegetables so that it is easier to cook.
In a wok, heat the mustard oil. Add the panch phoran and dried red chilli and heat until it splutters. Add salt, turmeric powder, cumin powder and coriander powder into the wok, followed by the garlic, cauliflower stems and pumpkin.
Stir fry till the vegetables are coated in the spice mixture.
Add 1/4th of a cup of water and cover the wok for 2-3 minutes.
Uncover and check if the vegetables are cooked. Once they are done, remove the lid and allow the water to evaporate.
Serve hot with rice or roti.
Phoolkopi Roast
While the first two recipes are steeped in Bengali heritage, roasted cauliflower is by no means a new dish to any Bengali. However, to me, what is striking about this dish is that it came into my family as a result of globalisation. I remember when my mother was pregnant with my brother in the late 1990s, our house (and all of India) saw an influx of international luxuries come into our lives as a result of the Narasimha Rao government’s liberalisation laws. The microwave was one such amenity. And these appliances have now become so essential to our lives that I cannot remember a time when my mother would make this without the microwave. In fact, it became one of those ‘fancy’ or ‘special’ dishes that would be cooked solely in the microwave.
Ingredients
1 whole cauliflower (cut out the stems and leaves for the recipes above but keep the flower intact) (smaller cauliflowers work better for this dish)
2 tablespoons of posto (khus khus)
2 tablespoons coconut milk
1 teaspoon ginger-garlic paste
½ teaspoon cumin powder
½ teaspoon coriander powder
½ teaspoon turmeric powder
Salt to taste
Method
In a microwaveable bowl, put the whole cauliflower and sprinkle it with a handful of water. Microwave this for 3-4 minutes (depending on your microwave) till the florets become soft.
Grind the posto into a thick paste and mix it with the coconut milk, salt and spices.
Pour the mixture over the cauliflower and put it back in the microwave for another 2-3 minutes.
Serve hot.
Although this is an exercise in eating root-to-stalk of a cauliflower, many vegetables lend themselves to this philosophy. All it takes is an imagination and a willingness to experiment.
Toonika is a full time audiobook creator. Outside of work, she writes on themes of food, gender, culture and mental health.
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