Gobhi Szechuan

Indo Chinese or Chindian food is a product of the huge Chinese community that lives in India. The delicious flavors of their food have been taken and adapted to the Indian palate. This easy recipe uses previously prepared Indo Chinese Szechuan Sauce that can be made ahead and stored in your fridge for future use. Gobhi Szechuan can also be served as an appetizer, simply omit the gravy if that's what you would like to do. Serve this tasty vegetarian dish with fried rice or noodles.

Ingredients

• 1 large cauliflower washed, stems removed and cut into medium sized florets
• 5 tbsps all purpose flour
• 3 tbsps cornflour
• Salt to taste
• 1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
• Cooking oil for deep frying cauliflower (I use a deep fryer)
• 3 tbsps vegetable/ canola/ sunflower cooking oil
• 3 spring onions chopped coarsely (bulb and leaves)
• 1 cup Indo Chinese Szechuan Sauce
• 1 large green bell pepper seeds removed and chopped into 1" squares
• 2 cups vegetable stock
• 1 tbsp cornflour (for thickening gravy)

• Prep Time: 10 minutes
• Cook Time: 30 minutes

• Total Time: 40 minutes
• Yield: Serves 4-6 people

Preparation

• Start to heat the cooking oil for deep frying. The temperature should ideally be between 170-180 degree Celsius/ 338-356 degree Fahrenheit.
• While the oil is heating, put the flour, cornflour, salt to taste and pepper into a large mixing bowl. Add a little water at a time to the mix to make a medium thick batter - the same consistency as pancake batter. Mix well till there are no more lumps and the batter is smooth.

• Add the cauliflower florets and stir to coat them well with the above batter.
• Once the oil is hot, gently add a few battered cauliflower florets at a time and fry till crisp and golden in color. Drain well and remove from the oil. Keep aside on paper towels for later use.
• In another pan or wok, heated on high, add the 3 tbsps vegetable/ canola/ sunflower cooking oil. When the oil is smokey hot, add the spring onions (reserve a little to garnish the dish later). Saute for a minute.
• Now add the Indo Chinese Szechuan Sauce and chicken stock. Mix well. Cook for 2 minutes.
• Omit this step if you want the dish to be a dry one or would like to serve it as an appetizer: Mix 1 tbsp of cornflour with 1/2 cup of cold water and stir to mix well. Make sure there are no lumps in this mixture. Pour into the above gravy and stir well. The gravy will start to thicken. Once this happens, turn off the heat.
• Now add the previously fried cauliflower florets and the chopped bell pepper to this gravy. Stir well to coat all the chicken and peppers with the gravy. Spoon into a serving dish, garnish with reserved, chopped spring onions and serve.