Chinese Schezwan Curry

Overview:

The Asian cuisine is probably one of the most popular food among all age groups. Its ingredients are a variety of vegetables, sauces and meat. High on proteins and essential minerals, this cuisine can be an extremely healthy eating experience. Although I cannot vouch for the Asian restaurants on the health factor, but then if you have a known recipe and count of calories and fat in the food then cooking it for your family is worth the effort ! And trust me they will enjoy it.

Schezwan is a spicy Chinese gravy generally served with boiled and "Starch-drained" rice. Mostly a vegetarian dish, schezwan is a good source of protein from tofu, minerals and roughage from the vegetables and a little carb from the rice.

Cooking time : 40 mins including pre-cooking preparations.

Ingredients:

You will need :

• 250 g Tofu (standard pack at all grocery stores).
• Broccoli Florets (about 500 g)
• 2 diced red bell peppers
• 3 bundles of scallions (chopped).They are also called Spring onions.
• 2-3 cups of boiled rice(starch-drained)
• sugar
• salt
• Any readily available "schezwan sauce". I use "Ching's Schezwan Sauce"
• Lemon juice
• cooking oil ( you can use any :vegetable oil/olive oil )
• little cornstarch.

Recipe :

1. Cut tofu into rectangular pieces. You can also shallow fry this tofu  for better taste, but that will add a few grams of fat from oil, but the taste is worth it. Set it aside.

2. Heat some oil in a large skillet and add all the cut vegetables : scallions, diced onion, pepper and broccoli florets in it. Toss gently, just to stir fry.

3. Add some salt according to taste over the veggies. Toss again and now add around 3 tablespoons of sugar. You can replace sugar with any artificial sweetener if you are very carb conscious.

4. Cook covered for approximately 5-7 mins.

5. The veggies will strain some water. Add a litlle more hot water and around 3 tablespoons of "Schezwan Sauce"

6. Cook covered for another 5 mins. Open carefully and stir gently. 

7. Add a pinch of cornstarch in 3 tablespoons of cold water. Mix well and add it to the thin schezwan gravy. In a minute the gravy will turn thicker.

8. Add the diced (fried) Tofu to the vegetable gravy and toss or turn gently. Add the lemon juice evenly over the gravy and stir gently so that the vegetables and Tofu remain intact in the gravy.

Its almost done now !

Serving/Presentation Instruction:

Make a heap of rice in a platter. Create room to put gravy right in the middle of the heap. You can shape the heap of rice according or in contrast to the shape of the platter. I personally like contrasting the shapes of dish and platter while serving. Raise a couple of Tofu pieces in gravy and serve hot !!