Kadai Vegetable Recipe
Kadai vegetable or Kadai sabzi is a delicious and healthy Indian dish made with a variety of vegetables cooked in a flavorful kadai sauce. Learn how to make this easy veg kadai that's perfect for a weeknight dinner.
Author: Sheeba
Ingredients
Kadai masala
- 1 tablespoon coriander seeds
- 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
- 1 teaspoon peppercorns
- 1 dry red chilli
- 1 Kashmiri red chilli
- ½ inch cinnamon
- 2 cloves
- 2 pods cardamom
- 1 bay leaf
Vegetables
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 onion
- 1 bell pepper (capsicum)
- ½ cup carrot 1½-inch long batons
- ½ cup potato 1½-inch long batons
- ½ cup beans 1½-inch long pieces
- ½ cup cauliflower small 1½ inch florets
- ¼ cup green peas
Gravy
- 2 teaspoons olive oil
- 1 bay leaf
- ½ teaspoon cumin seeds
- 1 onion
- 1 teaspoon ginger-garlic paste
- 1 large tomato
- ½ teaspoon chilli powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ¼ cup yogurt
Garnish
- 1 teaspoon kasuri methi
- 3 tablespoons coriander leaves finely chopped
STEP BY STEP IMAGES
Scroll back to find detailed recipe photos!
Instructions
Make kadai masala
- Dry roast the following whole spices on low flame for 5 minutes: 1 tablespoon coriander seeds, 1 teaspoon cumin seeds, 1 teaspoon peppercorns, 1 dry red chilli, 1 Kashmiri red chilli, ½ inch cinnamon, 2 cloves, 2 pods cardamom and 1 bay leaf.
- Let the spices cool. Grind them using a spice blender. Grind until you get a coarse texture.
- Use "pulse" mode if possible. DO NOT BLEND all the way into a fine powder.
Roast the vegetables
- Dice 1 onion and 1 bell pepper into 1-inch cubes. Separate the onion petals.
- Heat 1 teaspoon of olive oil in a kadai. Stir-fry the onions and peppers for 3 to 5 minutes until they are browned but still retain the crunch. Remove from the kadai and keep aside.
- Heat 2 teaspoons of olive oil in the same kadai. Add ½ cup carrot, ½ cup potato, ½ cup beans chopped into 1½-inch long batons. Roast on medium flame for 10 minutes.
- Add ½ cup cauliflower (chopped into small florets) and ¼ cup green peas.
- Cook for 5 to 8 minutes until the veggies are half-cooked. Transfer the veggies and keep aside.
Make the gravy
- In the same kadai, heat 2 teaspoons olive oil1 bay leaf Add 1 bay leaf and ½ teaspoon cumin seeds.
- Finely chop 1 onion. Saute until browned.
- Add 1 teaspoon ginger-garlic paste. Saute for a couple of minutes on low flame.
- Puree 1 large tomato and add. Cook on high flame until the gravy becomes thick and saucy.
Add the vegetables
- Add the half-cooked vegetables, ¼ cup yogurt, ½ teaspoon chilli powder and 1 teaspoon salt. Optionally, you can add a couple of slit green chilies.
- Saute for 5 minutes until well combined. Add 1 cup of water and bring it to a boil.
- The veggies should be cooked, but still have a crunch. If they are not cooked to your satisfaction, cover and cook for 5 more minutes.
Add kadai masala
- Add the roasted onions and bell peppers along with the kadai masala prepared earlier.
- Mix well and simmer for 5 to 10 minutes until you get the desired consistency.
Garnish
- Garnish with 1 teaspoon kasuri methi and 3 tablespoons coriander leaves. Turn off the flame. Enjoy with roti, naan or rice.
Video
Notes
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- Kadai masala: Roast the spices on very low flame. Ensure that you blend them coarse. Use “pulse” mode of your blender if possible.
- Chillies: I've used 2 types of chilies for kadai masala: Kashmiri red chili (not so hot) for the flavor and color and regular chili (for the heat). If you don't have Kashmiri chili, you can skip it.
- Vegetables: Onions and bell peppers are the most common veggies. You can use a mix of different colored bell peppers like green, red, and yellow to add color and flavor to the dish.
- You can choose to add any other vegetable like carrot, beans, broccoli, cauliflower, etc. You can also add paneer/mushrooms in addition to the vegetables.
- Ginger-garlic paste: You can substitute 1 teaspoon of ginger garlic paste with ½ teaspoon each of grated ginger and garlic.
- Kasuri methi: These are dried fenugreek leaves that have a nutty pungent flavor. Crush them with your palms to release the flavors, before adding to the curry.
- Consistency: After you add the kadai masala, cook for a couple of minutes only, if you want kadai vegetable to be saucy. Cook longer if you want your veg kadai dry.
- Storing: Kadai vegetable keeps well for 4 days in the fridge. If you want to store it longer, freeze it. It can be frozen for a couple of months.
- Reheating: The vegetables may become softer when reheated. If you want to retain the crunch, reheat on microwave at high power for shorter periods of time. (Do not thaw.) You might have to take it out and stir half way through heating.
- Variations: Using the same basic ingredients and kadai masala, you can switch the veggies with paneer or mushrooms to make kadai paneer or kadai mushroom.
