slow cooker veggie curry

Ever since we ate at Vij's in Vancouver we have been dying for more Indian fare. The problem with good curry is that it takes time, usually lots of it. Luckily we have a slow cooker! We started it in the morning before we went to work, and then finished it up when we got home. The long simmer time was able to really infuse the tofu with lots of flavor, and give it a nice firm texture.

Ingredients:
1 block super firm tofu, cubed
2 onions, sliced
3 heirloom tomatoes, seeded and chopped
1/2 pint cherry tomatoes, sliced in half
2 Tbsp curry powder
4 cups water
1/4 cup vegetarian chicken broth powder
1 medium head cauliflower, broken into florets
1/2 pound green beans, ends trimmed, and cut into 1 inch pieces
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
Juice of 1 lime
1 cup coconut milk
1 Tbsp. canola oil
2 Tbsp. garam masala powder
salt and pepper to taste

Add onions, tomatoes and tofu into your slow cooker. Whisk the chicken broth powder into the water then pour into the slow cooker. Add the curry powder and cook on low for 6 hours. Start a large pot on the stove on medium heat, and add the canola oil. With a slotted spoon remove tofu, tomatoes, and onions from the liquid and put them into the pot on the stove. Reserve the extra liquid on the side. Toss in the cauliflower, coconut milk, lime juice, and garam masala; cover and cook for 6-7 minutes until the cauliflower is almost cooked through. Add in the green beans, and a little of the reserved cooking liquid if necessary. Cover again, and cook for 4-5 minutes until green beans are finished cooking. Stir in the cilantro, and season with salt and pepper.

We served this with long grain white rice that we added 6 cardamom pods, and about 15 coriander seeds to in the rice cooker. It was super flavorful and really paired well with the curry. The leftover cooking liquid from the slow cooker can be used for a lot of things, making rice, another curry, or some lentil daal; which is what we tried, except I forgot about it and it didn't come out so well. Meh, next time.