Spinach Saag w/ Tofu and Pine Nuts
5-6 large bunches of spinach
3 tablespoon yellow curry powder
1 tablespoon turmeric powder
1 tablespoon cumin powder
1 dash of ginger (powder or fresh)
1 tablespoon minced garlic
3 tablespoon olive oil
2 tablespoon water
2 cups extra firm tofu, diced
1/4 cup plain soy yogurt
1/4 cup pine nuts, optional
salt & pepper or Braggs Liquid Aminos, to taste
In a medium sized pan, lightly crisp your diced tofu in the olive oil and garlic; strain extra oil and set it aside.
In a separate large pan (even a wok will work), use the extra olive oil, add the curry, turmeric, cumin, ginger, and water; simmer while stirring it with a whisk (should be very quick); add the yogurt and stir until it turns into an even creamy mixture; begin adding handfuls of spinach in small amounts and stirring in mixture until it is partially shrunken; keep stirring it until all of the spinach has been covered in the mixture.
Remove spinach mixture from heat and place into a blender; blend on low until it begins to look slightly creamy (if you need to add a little bit more water, add a dash more until blender begins to evenly mix it);
Remove from blender, return spinach mix to the pan and simmer it while you stir in the tofu and add the pine nuts.
I like it best the way it is without the salt, Bragg's will alter the taste slightly if you want...It actually is better than the saag in most Indian restaraunts.
SO HOW'D IT GO?
Turmeric problem??? When I was making this, I stopped for a sec and thought, "a TABLESPOON of turmeric??" I seemed like an awful lot! I thought for sure it should have said TEASPOON! I went against my gut and threw the whole tablespoon in and it turned out soooooo bitter!!! I fixed it with sugar, more soy yogurt, agave, lenon juice, chat masala, and whatever else I could find to try to save the dish. It is ediable now, but still retains that classic too much turmeric bitterness!
Was the measurement a mistake or did I miss something here? ???
I can't find plain soy yogurt, only fruit yogurt. Can I use something else as a substitute?
You can use plain soymilk-I like Silk's unsweetened-and add 1 tablespoon of apple cider vinegar or lemon juice per 1 cup of soymilk and let sit for 5-10 minutes. That'll make the soymilk have the thickness and tartness you're looking for.
I can't find plain soy yogurt, only fruit yogurt. Can I use something else as a substitute?
BCSH, I'm vegan and from India and I stand by Toffuti sourcream as the most suitable substitute for yogurt in Indian dishes... generally, plain yogurt back home is more sour than plain yogurt (in the US at least), and the sourcream has that creamy texture and mild sourness... maybe you can try that if you can't find plain yogurt.
I can't find plain soy yogurt, only fruit yogurt. Can I use something else as a substitute?
Yes you can use Frozen spinach, at least in my experience. I have found that spinach usually cooks down to less than half of its former size. I think a bunch of spinach is usually about 1 lb, and by the time you get the stems off about 3/4 lb, or 12oz, or 1 1/2 cups, and you get half that cooked, 6oz or 3/4 cup -ish. For this recipe, I would use at least 3 10oz packages. I havne't tired it yet, but seems an educated guess. Thaw the spinach, and squeeze as much water as possible out, then add to the creamy mixture. Cook a little, till hot. Good luck!
I'm just wondering if there's any way to use frozen spinach. Out of three grocery stores this morning, none had fresh spinach! Can anyone help? Thank you!