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If meat - in general - isn't your thing, here's a Cape Malay-inspired pickled cauliflower to put a veggie twist on the Easter classic.
Veggie-fied pickled fish (Cape Malay inspired pickled cauliflower) | Picture: healthformzansi.co.za
As the world prepares for the Easter Weekend, meal planning and other preparations are well underway. However, one group of foodies, the plant-based eaters, may find themselves slightly neglected during this period.
Thankfully, the people over at Health for Mzansi have thought about this and have created a veggie-fied ‘pickled fish’ recipe for that very reason.
The recipe was originally developed by Foodie Dané Vermeulen who came up with a Cape Malay-inspired pickled cauliflower to put a veggie twist on this Easter classic.
“I’m a big fan of any curry dish and I get quite excited about Cape Malay pickled fish. However, since my transition to a plant-based diet, I knew I had to find a way to recreate this yummy classic,” commented Vermeulen.
PrintCape Malay pickled cauliflower
If meat – in general – isn’t your thing, here’s a Cape Malay-inspired pickled cauliflower to put a veggie twist on the Easter classic.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Total Time: 40 minutes
- Category: Lunch, Dinner
- Method: Frying
- Cuisine: South African
- Diet: Vegetarian
Ingredients
Scale
- 1 cauliflower head
- 500ml vegetable oil (for frying)
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1¼ cup soy milk (or your choice of alternative milk)
- ¼ teaspoon paprika
- 2 teaspoons garlic salt
- 1 teaspoon turmeric
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- Pepper
For the curry pickle (to put the pickle in pickled fish)
- 30ml olive oil
- 2 medium onions, chopped
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- Thumb-sized piece of fresh ginger, grated
- 1 heaped teaspoon cumin
- 1 heaped teaspoon ground coriander
- 5 allspice seeds
- 2 heaped teaspoons turmeric
- 3 heaped teaspoons curry powder
- 1 heaped teaspoon Mother-in-law curry powder (optional for a hotter sauce)
- 1 heaped teaspoon salt
- 1 cup sugar
- 3 bay leaves
- 500ml water
- 500ml white wine vinegar
- 2 tablespoons Maizena powder
- Fresh coriander leaves
Instructions
For battered cauliflower:
- To prepare your cauliflower for the veggie-fied ‘pickled fish’ dish, cut the blooms into bite-size pieces and try to remove most of the stem. Keep in mind that they can double in size once you batter and fry them.
- Set the cauliflower blooms aside and start preparing your batter by adding all your dry ingredients into a medium to large bowl and mix well.
- Add the milk and mix the ingredients until a smooth texture. Place your cauliflower blooms in the batter and mix them until each bloom is coated with the batter.
- Place your oil in a pot on medium heat.
- Test the heat of your oil by placing a cauliflower bloom in the oil, it should reach a golden-brown colour within 1 to 2 mins.
- If your oil is too hot your batter will burn on the outside and still be raw on the inside.
- If the oil is not hot enough your cauliflower will be overcooked, so try not to cook it for more than 2 mins.
- Once cooked, place your fried blooms in a bowl lined with a paper towel to absorb any excess oil.
For curry pickle:
- Fry the onions in a large pot on high heat in olive oil until translucent.
- Add the garlic, ginger and spices and stir while frying the ingredients for about 2 mins. Lower your stove plate to a medium heat and mix in the sugar.
- Once mixed, add the water and vinegar and stir until all the sugar is dissolved. Leave the pickle sauce to simmer for 20 to 25 minutes.
- Once the curry pickle has reduced to about two-thirds, prepare the Maizena in a cup of cold water and add to the mixture and wait until it thickens.
- In two large jars start layering your sauce and deep-fried cauliflower blooms. Make sure each cauliflower layer is immersed in the curry pickle.
- It is important to pot your ingredients while the sauce is hot because this will ensure that the deep-fried cauliflower blooms will soak up all the flavour of the sauce. Close each jar with a lid and set aside to cool. Once cooled store it in the fridge.
- To serve, place your pickled cauliflower on a bed of finely sliced red cabbage and top it off with some fresh coriander leaves.
This recipe was found on healthformzansi.co.za.
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