IN PROGRESS

Ingredients

• 397 g extra firm tofu (press out the water, then cut into ½-inch cubes)
• 20 g cashews (use pumpkin seeds if nut-free)
• 454 g frozen spinach (substitute with two large bunches of fresh spinach*)
• 15 ml avocado oil or any neutral oil
• 4 cloves
• 1-inch piece cinnamon
• 5 green cardamom pods
• 2 g cumin seeds
• 1 large onion (finely diced)
• 3 cloves garlic (thinly sliced)
• 34 g ginger-garlic paste
• 3 medium tomatoes (finely diced)
• 1 g turmeric
• 2 g cayenne (adjust up or down based on your taste)
• 5 g ground coriander
• 2 g ground cumin
• 5 g garam masala
• 4 g kasoori methi (dry fenugreek leaves). Optional, but I strongly recommend it.
• Salt to taste

For optional tadka finish

• 15 ml avocado oil or any neutral oil
• 1 tablespoon ginger (julienned)

Instructions

• If you’d like to bake or air-fry the tofu cubes before adding them to the recipe, do so in advance.
• Make cashew cream by blending the cashews with 3 tablespoons water until very smooth. Set aside.
• Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the cloves, cardamom and cinnamon and, when they start to color, add the cumin seeds. When the cumin seeds begin to darken and become aromatic, add the onions and the garlic. Add a pinch of salt. Saute for a few minutes until the onions start to turn golden-brown.
• Add the ginger-garlic paste, saute for a couple of minutes, then add the tomatoes. Add the turmeric, cayenne, cumin and coriander powders and mix well. Cover and let the tomatoes cook until they are very soft and pulpy.
• Add the kasoori methi, if using, and mix well. Add the spinach puree, mix, and let the sauce come to a boil. Lower the heat and continue cooking the spinach for 10 minutes. Add some vegetable stock or water if it looks too thick, but don’t add too much liquid at this point– you want the spinach to cook thoroughly and lose any raw flavor.
• Add the garam masala, then stir in the tofu cubes. Let the sauce simmer a couple of minutes. Add the cashew cream, add salt, stir in, and turn off heat.

Make optional tadka

• In a small skillet, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the julienned or grated ginger and saute for a minute, stirring constantly. Carefully pour over the cooked palak paneer. Serve.

Notes

IN PROGRESS

For the quinoa “rice”

• 170 g quinoa (rinsed thoroughly in a fine-mesh strainer)
• 532 ml water
• 1 inch cinnamon stick
• 3 green cardamom pods
• 3 cloves
• 2 g caraway seeds (black cumin or shahi jeera. Use cumin seeds as a substitute)
• Salt to taste

For the kala chana biryani sauce

• 5 ml oil (any neutral oil, including avocado oil, sunflower oil, grape seed oil, etc.)
• 1 large onion (finely chopped)
• 1 heaping tbsp ginger garlic paste
• 237 ml tomato puree (preferably made with fresh tomatoes, but you can substitute canned tomato puree)
• 1 g turmeric
• 1 g paprika
• 5 g ground coriander
• 1 g dried mint (use 2 tablespoons if using fresh mint)
• 2 g dried dill (use 2 tablespoons if using fresh dill)
• 178 ml vegan yogurt
• Juice of ½ lemon
• 14 g fried onions (divided)
• 168 g dried kala chana (black chickpeas)
• 2 heaping tbsp biryani masala (tweak the amount according to your preference)
• ½ cup cilantro (finely chopped, plus more for garnish)
• Salt to taste

Instructions

Make the quinoa rice

• Add 2 ¼ cups water to a saucepan. Add cinnamon stick, black cumin seeds, green cardamom pods, cloves and bay leaves to the water. Add salt to taste.
• Add the washed quinoa to the water with spices and bring to a boil over medium heat. Lower heat to a simmer, cover the saucepan with a tight lid, and let the quinoa cook 12 minutes. Turn off heat and let the quinoa stand until it has absorbed all the water. Then fluff it with a fork.

Make the biryani sauce

• Cook the kala chana in advance until tender in the Instant Pot (35 minutes on high pressure), or in a stovetop pressure cooker or in a saucepan covered with two inches water.
• In a larger pot or Dutch oven, add a teaspoon of oil. Add the salt with salt and ground black pepper. Saute until the onions brown. If the onions start to stick, add some water and scrape up any brown bits from the bottom of the pan.
• Once the onions have browned, stir in the ginger garlic paste and sauté for a couple of minutes.
• Stir in the tomato puree and mix well with the onions. Add turmeric and cayenne and mix it in.
• Stir in the ground coriander, dill and mint. Let the sauce continue cooking for 5-10 minutes over medium high heat, stirring frequently, until it has darkened visibly and most of the moisture has evaporated. Add the vegan yogurt and lemon juice to the pot and stir them in.
• Next add the kala chana followed by the biryani masala. Let the sauce come to a boil, lower heat, and simmer for a couple of minutes. Add a little more water, no more than ½ cup, if the sauce is too thick. Check for salt and add more if needed. Stir in the cilantro and half the fried onions, if using. Turn heat down to the lowest point and mix everything well.

Assemble the biryani

• Layer the cooked quinoa over the biryani sauce in an even layer. Sprinkle the remaining fried onions over the quinoa, and a bit of dried mint. Cover the pot with a tight lid and cook over low heat for 15 minutes. Turn off the heat and let the quinoa biryani stand 10 minutes before serving.