Happy Whip It Up Wednesday! 🙂

If you’ve been following my blog over the past week you would have read a great article from my good friend and Naturopath Mark Kibyuk about protein intolerance and the importance of cycling your protein.

If you didn’t get a chance to read this article I highly recommend you check it out:  http://www.courtneyrowsell.com/2013/01/protein-cycling/ so you can appreciate why we are sharing this deliciously comforting Tofu & Lentil Curry Dish with you today.

Enjoy!

Tofu and Lentil Curry Stew

Makes 4 – 6 servings

Ingredients:

1 large onion – finely chopped

4 cloves garlic – finely minces

2 inch piece of ginger root – peeled and grated

½ green chilli pepper (I used jalapeno) – finely diced

3-4 Tbsp Ghee divided (clarified butter)

1 Tbsp olive oil

1 package of extra firm tofu (350gm) – cut into 1.5 cm cubes, water removed by pressing between paper towel

½ cup dried whole lentils (red or green) – soaked in water for at least 4 hours

Small head of cauliflower cut into florettes

Small head of broccoli cut into florettes

Small bunch of fresh cilantro/coriander – chopped with most stems removed

28oz can diced tomatoes

1 1/4 cups of water

1 1/3 tsp ground coriander

2/3 tsp turmeric

¼ tsp cayenne pepper

1 tsp mustard seeds

1 tsp cumin seeds

1 tsp sea salt + more to taste

Greek yoghurt for garnish

INSTRUCTIONS:

In a large sauce pan heat 2 tbsp of ghee over medium heat.  Add onions and sauté for 2 minutes.  Then add garlic and ginger and continue to cook until onions are translucent – about 5-7 minutes.

Add water and lentils, and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat, cover and simmer for 15-20 minutes or until lentil are tender and most of the water is absorbed.

Meanwhile, heat the remainder of ghee in larger stock pot, over medium heat.  Add mustard and cumin seeds and cook until fragrant, just about 1 minute, stirring constantly.

Add remainder of spices and salt and continue to stir for another minute.  Then add cauliflower, broccoli, and chilli pepper and stir until evenly coated with spices.  Add entire can of diced tomatoes with juices, and fresh cilantro, reserving some cilantro for garnish. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover and simmer until vegetables are tender, about 10 minutes.

To prepare the tofu, heat oil on skillet, and toss in cubes of tofu.  Brown tofu on all sides, turning regularly.  Set aside.

Finally, combine lentils and tofu with vegetable and tomato curry.  Continue to cook with cover off until sauce thickens.

Serve garnished with a dollop of Greek yoghurt and fresh cilantro.