Mixed Review: Arora Creations Gobi Cauliflower
Every once in a while, a girl's got to take a break from baking cookies, cakes, and brownies and start cooking some vegetables. For this week's Mixed Review I decided to prepare an uber-healthy cauliflower dish using an Arora Creations Indian spice mix.
Like a lot of people, I love to eat Indian food in restaurants but am intimidated to make it at home because of the numerous and unusual spices required for many dishes. Fenugreek? Nigella seeds? Where am I going to find them? And what am I going to do with the leftovers?
What attracted me most to the Arora mix was the fact that it was made entirely from organic, exotic spices, including ground turmeric, ajowan seeds, and amchur powder. For $4.99—plus the cost of some vegetables—I could sample a spicy new cuisine without making a trip to a specialty foods store, and without adding additional bottles to my already overcrowded spice cabinet.
In addition to the contents of the spice packet the Arora mix required some olive oil, a head of cauliflower, a couple of plum tomatoes, a knob of ginger, and a handful of fresh cilantro. Chopped green chilies were optional, but recommended for those who like extra heat.
After sautéing the ginger and tomatoes in the oil for a couple of minutes, I added the spices and then the cauliflower. It seemed like a lot at first—I was a bit afraid I was overloading my pan—but cauliflower cooks down, and after a few minutes everything was simmering away nicely.
Twenty minutes later my cauliflower was tender and the sauce was bubbling, fragrant, and thick. I made a quick sauce of plain yogurt, ground cumin, and chopped mint, and heated a piece of naan from Trader Joe's in the oven.
The results were incredibly satisfying and rich with flavors, yet also light and healthy-tasting. The tender, slightly crunchy florets of cauliflower were the perfect vehicle for the fiery spices, and the fresh bites of ginger and cilantro brought everything together. I will definitely be making this again, on its own, or as a side with Quick Tikka Masala.
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6 Comments:
I tried a few of these and I did not like the gobi one. I did however like the chicken tikka and the tandoori ones.
JerzeeTomato at 8:12PM on 04/23/09
Tasty, yes. Healthy, I'm not convinced. Did you see the sodium content on that package? Those prepacked Indian meals are loaded with salt. Check your blood pressure before purchasing.
ohmygod at 7:42AM on 04/24/09
I used half a bag of this to make aloo gobi, it came out okay. I thought there were too many seeds in it. But it didn't come out too bad.
wonders at 12:22PM on 04/24/09
I have the same package and the sodium content is very low compared to most prepackaged spice packets -- which is one reason I purchased it. I haven't tried it yet but I am anxious to taste it after reading this review-- thank you.
yumporchetta at 1:21PM on 04/24/09
That seems overpriced to me...especially considering that traditional aloo gobi requires very few spices and at those common spices - garam masala, chili powder, turmeric, coriander and cumin. At about $2.99 a pop, you could buy a bag of each from an Indian grocery store and be able to make gobi (and other yummy things) a few times over. As for tikka masala and tandoori spices, I would recommend a Badshah or MDH packet from an Indian grocery store - not organic, but more more for your money (unsure of the sodium content) since you get multiple uses.
Btw here's a list of ten essential Indian spices that I put together, which you find useful.
All of that being said, your gobi looks delicious! I will admit that I used the tikka masala package on unchicken on a pinch once so these packets get a few points for mainstream availability/convenience.
nithya at hungrydesi at 2:26PM on 04/24/09
I have tried this mix, too, and decided to use half. It was okay, a little overpowering, and musty tasting. I preferred my old way of fewer spices and a little more fresh stuff.
cindyvan22 at 12:18PM on 04/25/09