VEGAN, VEGETARIAN, GLUTEN-FREE
There is a very popular Indian dish called Paneer kali mirch – it is a mildly spicy dish with just black pepper for spice. However, it does have a lot of other flavors such as ginger, garlic, and cardamom. Today’s recipe focused on black pepper and cilantro as the 2 leading flavors. I also incorporated oat milk to bring in some creaminess of a different variety and it gave it another new dimension.
This dish is very easy to put together – first make a very simple paste. Then in a large dutch oven cast iron pot, cook the paste along with green peas. Finally, add the tofu, a cup of oat milk for creaminess, and seal with aluminum foil and simmer. The flavors are intensified and stand out uniquely.
Black pepper is the star of this dish – I used it in 3 ways: ground in the paste, whole peppercorns seasoned in the gravy, and cracked fresh black pepper on top. Cilantro is also used in 2 ways: stalks are ground in the paste and plenty of fresh chopped cilantro leaves are garnished on top.
Oven bake the tofu cubes with oil, salt, and pepper to a beautiful golden color.
One pot dish which goes well with all sorts of Indian breads or a simple plate of fluffy rice! 😉
Tofu n peas in a black pepper n cilantro creamy sauce
Ingredients
- 2 cups Green peas fresh or frozen thawed
- 2 cups Tofu extra firm cubed
- 1 cup Oat milk
- 1 tsp Turmeric powder
- 1 tsp black Peppercorns
- 1 tsp Cumin seeds
- Salt
- Oil
For the Gravy –
- 1 Onion large
- 4-5 Tomatoes
- 1 tbsp Almonds
- 1 tbsp whole Black peppercorns
- Cilanto stalks and leaves a big bunch
For Garnish –
- 1 tsp Cracked black peppercorns
- Coriander leaves finely chopped
Instructions
- Coat the tofu cubes with oil, salt n pepper and bake at 425 degrees hot oven for 20 minutes to a golden brown color
- Grind the gravy ingredients to a smooth paste using water
- Start a large dutch oven on the stove, add few teaspoons of oil
- Add cumin seeds n whole peppercorns and fry to light brown color
- Add the paste and green peas
- Add salt and turmeric powder, mix well
- Put a lid on and cook on low heat for 10 minutes
- Open the pot, add the tofu cubes and close the lid
- Now seal the edges tightly with foil and simmer for another 10 minutes
- Turn off heat and let the pot sit for 10 minutes
- Before serving, sprinkle the cracked fresh peppercorns and cilantro leaves on top
- Enjoy with warm Indian breads or rice
1 thought on “Tofu n peas in a black pepper and cilantro creamy sauce”