Aloo Gobi at Avatar Indian Grill in Salinas, California by Ruth Paget
The antioxidant powerhouse called aloo gobi at Avatar Indian Grill in Salinas, California is similar to korma, a braised vegetable dish, which dates back to the Mughal Dynasty in India according to Julie Sahni in Classic Indian Vegetarian and Grain Cooking.
Basically, aloo gobi is made up of sliced cauliflower and potatoes cooked in a tomato sauce flavored with fennel, coriander, and ground almonds among other ingredients.
The dish starts out like many Indian dishes with onion being caramelized in oil and seasoned with garlic, fresh ginger, coriander, fennel, pepper, and turmeric.
Once the onions and seasonings have cooked, a cook adds tomato purée to the mixture along with water, sliced cauliflower, and sliced potatoes and lets the mixture simmer for 30 minutes. At the end of cooking, cumin powder or garam masala (curry powder) is stirred in for additional flavor.
The huge antioxidant in this dish is Vitamin C along with significant amounts of other nutrients, notably:
Percentage of recommended daily nutrients in one cup –
-Cauliflower:
-potassium – 50%
-dietary fiber – 48%
-vitamin C – 472%
-vitamin B6 – 55%
-Potatoes:
-potassium – 15%
-vitamin C 30%
-vitamin B6 – 10%
-Tomatoes:
-Vitamin C – 28%
(Nutrition information sources: USDA – US Department of Agriculture, Potatoes USA.com, and healthline.com)
It is easy to dwell on the outstanding antioxidant benefits of aloo gobi, but the taste just makes you think of how delicious the dish is.
I love ordering aloo gobi from Avatar Indian Grill in Salinas, California for an out-of-the-ordinary lunch that is really good for you and vegan, too.
By Ruth Paget, author Eating Soup with Chopsticks and Marrying France
