Tofu-Chickpea Curry
1 large onion
2 cloves garlic
1 block regular tofu (frozen and thawed if you like the texture)
1 can chickpeas
curry powder (I used S&B golden curry mix, found it at the grocery store)
A few tablespoons oil for frying
I was visiting my sister in western Alaska and had to improvise a dinner that two carnivores and a vegetarian would enjoy (and for which I could find the ingredients at a very rustic market in an Inuit village). I was a bit he'sitant about the combination of tofu, chickpea and curry, but it came out really well (if I do say so myself).
Add finely chopped onion to medium pot with oil (I used olive). Fry at medium heat until tender. Add finely chopped garlic cloves and fry until the onion starts to brown, make sure heat is low enough not to burn the garlic. Add tofu cut into strips. I used thawed tofu to give it a chewier texture and to ensure it wouldn't fall apart in the curry (my sister had tried tofu recently and thought the texture was too mushy, so I wanted to show her that she could prepare it in different ways). Fry the tofu strips and onion/garlic mixture until the tofu starts to brown. Add 2 1/2 cups water and 1 can of drained chickpeas. Bring to a boil. Once at boil, reduce heat, cover pot, and simmer for 5 minutes. Add curry spices/mix. Simmer, stirring constantly for 5 minutes--this is the time when your tofu and chickpeas will absorb the curry flavor, so you don't want to rush this stage.
Serve over rice. If the curry is spicy, serve with a green salad and plenty of cucumbers.
SO HOW'D IT GO?
There are different types of tofu textures. When you're using tofu as a meat substitute, you want to get the extra firm tofu. You can also freeze it before use to get an even meatier texture. That's what they're referring to when they say regular tofu. Just get the stuff you see in the produce section at your grocery store. Make sure it says extra firm or hard.