Delicious gobi matar or the cauliflower and peas curry – my take on the vegan version of the popular matar paneer replacing paneer with cauliflower! A great side for rice and flatbreads.
Like potatoes, cauliflowers are very versatile and can be used for many recipes. It has fewer calories but rich in fiber and nutrients. No wonder cauliflower rice and pizza crust are popular. We love cauliflower, and I have assorted cauliflower recipes on my blog. Do check them out.
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No onion – no garlic curry
Now coming to today’s recipe, as mentioned before, this is my vegan take on the popular Indian dish – matar paneer. Okay, I have mushroom matar on my blog, but this cauliflower and peas curry is totally different. I did not use any onion or garlic in this recipe, and also it’s nut-free, and I didn’t add any cream as well. But hey, no compromise on taste, and that’s for sure!
The dried melon seeds, tomatoes, whole spices make this curry delicious. You can find dried melon seeds in your local Indian groceries, but you can always use almonds or cashews if you can’t source them.
Now, are you wondering why no onion and garlic? We try to avoid onion and garlic during auspicious days, festival days, and Thursday as they fall under rajasic and tamasic foods. (You can check more about the food categories on the Healthline website.)
I have explained about this on my no-onion and no-garlic pulav post. So I always explore and make gravies without any onion and garlic. And that’s how I tried and prepared this gravy. Some popular recipes without any onion and garlic from my blog are the pulav, baingan bharta, kadamba sadam, chana masala, and qubooli biryani.
Preparation time
We need to soak the melon seeds for half an hour. I always soak my cauliflower in hot water mixed with salt and turmeric, especially for curries. So consider the soaking and plan accordingly. The recipe is straightforward after that, and you can make it in less than 30 minutes.
PS: I used fresh peas for the matar nimona and asparagus, broccoli, and pea soup. But for this recipe, I used frozen peas.
Dietary specifications and serving suggestion
This gobi mater is a vegan, gluten-free, and nut-free dish. This curry goes well with roti, naan, and kulchas. You can also pair it with rice.
A mini thali with ragi roti and gobi matar:
I served this curry along with cholar dal (Bengali-style chana dal), jeera rice, and ragi roti topped with some pickle and made it a complete filling meal.
Now without any further ado, let’s see how to make this gobi matar with detailed step-wise pics.
How to make gobi matar
Prep-Work
- Rinse and soak the melon seeds for atleast 30 minutes
- Add the salt and turmeric powder to the hot water and mix well. Then add the cauliflower and let it sit for 15 minutes. Make sure the cauliflowers florets are fully covered with water. After 15 minutes, drain the water and set it aside.
Prepare the masala/spice paste.
- In a blender or mixer jar, add the tomatoes, cardamom, cloves, cinnamon, red chili powder, cumin powder, green chili, and the soaked and drained melon seeds.
- Add 2 tbsps of water and grind it into a smooth paste.
Prepare the gobi matar curry.
- Heat a pan or kadai and add the oil. When the oil is hot, add the panch phoron spice mix.
- When the spice mix sizzle and splutter, add the ground paste slowly and carefully. Rinse the mixer jar/blender with 2 more tbsps of water and add that too.
- Add salt and mix well. Cover the pan partially and cook for 7 to 8 minutes over medium-low heat. Mix it in between. The ground paste splashes out; that’s why we partially cover and cook.
- Remove the lid and add the jaggery (optional) and cook for 2 to 3 minutes until the moisture is partially absorbed. You don’t need to cook until the ground paste becomes dry.
- Now add the cauliflower florets and peas. Add ¼ cup of water and mix well—cover and cook for 5 minutes over medium heat.
- And then, remove the lid and cook for 3 to 5 minutes or until the cauliflower is fork-tender.
- At this stage, crush the dried fenugreek leaves and add them to the curry, followed by cilantro and garam masala. Mix well and turn off the heat.
- Serve warm with rice or any flatbread of your choice. I paired it with ragi roti.
Recipe Notes
- Panch phoron spice mix is optional. I love the flavor, so I went with that. You can make your own by adding an equal measure of yellow mustard seeds, cumin seeds, fennel seeds, nigella seeds, and fenugreek seeds. But this is not a mandatory ingredient. You can also use 1 tsp of cumin seeds or a combination of cumin and fennel seeds.
- As always, adjust the spices and salt as per your preference. Jaggery is optional too. But it helps to balance the flavors. So do give it a try with jaggery.
- If you don’t have melon seeds, you can use 10 cashew nuts or almonds instead. If using almond, after soaking them, make sure to peel the skin.
- I did not use any onion or garlic. If you plan to use it, you can add up to 1 cup of chopped onion and 1 tbsp of chopped garlic. Saute them both before adding the ground paste.
Explore other popular Indian curries
PS: If you try this matar gobi, please don’t forget to comment and rate this recipe. If you have any questions, please leave a comment, and I will get to it ASAP. Make sure to follow me on my Pinterest for more healthy and delicious ideas! Follow me on Instagram or join my Facebook Group for more gardening and recipe updates! You can also sign-up for my newsletter for weekly updates.
📖 Recipe
Gobi Matar | Cauliflower and Peas Curry
Equipment
- Saucepan or kadai
- mixer jar or blender
Ingredients
- 1 cauliflower cut into medium-sized florets (approx 365 grams)
- ½ cup peas if using frozen thaw it to room temperature
For blanching the cauliflower
- 4 cups water or more as required. Hot water is required
- ½ tsp turmeric powder
- ½ tsp salt
To grind
- 3 to matoes chopped (approx 275 grams)
- 3 green cardamom
- 3 cloves
- 2- inch cinnamon
- 2 tsp coriander powder
- 1 tsp red chili powder
- ½ tsp cumin powder
- 1 green chili optional
- 2 tbsp melon seeds soaked for 30 minutes (refer notes for substitutions)
- 4 tbsp water divided
Instructions
Prep-Work
- Rinse and soak the melon seeds for atleast 30 minutes
- Add the salt and turmeric powder to the hot water and mix well. Then add the cauliflower and let it sit for 15 minutes. Make sure the cauliflowers florets are fully covered with water. After 15 minutes, drain the water and set it aside.
Prepare the masala/spice paste.
- In a blender or mixer jar, add the tomatoes, cardamom, cloves, cinnamon, red chili powder, cumin powder, green chili, and the soaked and drained melon seeds.
- Add 2 tbsps of water and grind it into a smooth paste.
Prepare the gobi matar curry.
- Heat a pan or kadai and add the oil. When the oil is hot, add the panch phoron spice mix.
- When the spice mix sizzle and splutter, add the ground paste slowly and carefully. Rinse the mixer jar/blender with 2 more tbsps of water and add that too.
- Add salt and mix well. Cover the pan partially and cook for 7 to 8 minutes over medium-low heat. Mix it in between. The ground paste splashes out; that’s why we partially cover and cook.
- Remove the lid and add the jaggery (optional) and cook for 2 to 3 minutes until the moisture is partially absorbed. You don’t need to cook until the ground paste becomes dry.
- Now add the cauliflower florets and peas. Add ¼ cup of water and mix well—cover and cook for 5 minutes over medium heat.
- And then, remove the lid and cook for 3 to 5 minutes or until the cauliflower is fork-tender.
- At this stage, crush the dried fenugreek leaves and add them to the curry, followed by cilantro and garam masala.
- Mix well and turn off the heat. Serve warm with rice or any flatbread of your choice. I paired it with ragi roti.
Notes
- Panch phoron spice mix is optional. I love the flavor, so I went with that. You can make your own by adding an equal measure of yellow mustard seeds, cumin seeds, fennel seeds, nigella seeds, and fenugreek seeds. But this is not a mandatory ingredient. You can also use 1 tsp of cumin seeds or a combination of cumin and fennel seeds.
- As always, adjust the spices and salt as per your preference. Jaggery is optional too. But it helps to balance the flavors. So do give it a try with jaggery.
- If you don’t have melon seeds, you can use 10 cashew nuts or almonds instead. If using almond, after soaking them, make sure to peel the skin.
- I did not use any onion or garlic. If you plan to use it, you can add up to 1 cup of chopped onion and 1 tbsp of chopped garlic. Saute them both before adding the ground paste.
Nutrition
I am not a nutritionist. The nutritional information is provided as a courtesy and is an estimate only. It varies depending upon the product types or brands.
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