Hen Angara (North Indian Smoky Creamy Curry)

It is a vegan model of wealthy, smoky Indian rooster angara. This restaurant-style curry has an fragrant chili sauce with wonderful, fiery flavors! Serve with naan, flatbread, or rice or over baked potato for a scrumptious meal. gluten-free with nut-free and soy-free choices

Hen angara is a well-liked dish in some North Indian eating places. It has this thick sauce made with fried onion, yogurt, a lot of spices, and both dried entire Kashmiri chilis, common Indian chilies, or Kashmiri chili powder. The chilis add to the fiery pink shade of the sauce in addition to to the warmth.

Angar means hearth, and also you’re incorporating hearth into this dish by including numerous warmth and shade from the Kashmiri chilis and smoking it with some dwell hearth on the finish. The signature smoky taste is integrated utilizing a smoking meals secure charcoal. However We smoke it utilizing a cinnamon stick. Simply warmth the cinnamon stick (or charcoal) till it’s pink sizzling, then put it in a warmth secure ramekin, drizzle with a bit of little bit of oil. The ramekin truly goes into the pan of completed rooster angara, and also you cowl the pan with the lid, so the smoke infuses the dish.

That is one other recipe in my collection the place I veganize historically meat-heavy Indian dishes. Take a look at my recipes for Salli Boti ( western Indian curry with potato sticks), Rara Hen(North Indian onion cardamom curry), Goan Peri peri Chikin tofu, and Pahadi curry (Mountain onion pepper curry), for extra from this collection.

As with a lot of Indian curries, the flavour is within the sauce, so you should use your plant-based protein of alternative and it’ll nonetheless style completely scrumptious. For those who don’t wish to use tofu, you should use chickpea tofu, chickpeas or different white beans, veggies, vegan rooster, or seitan. And as with many restaurant fashion curries, it’s about endurance on letting the whole lot toast and toast rather well at every step and letting the flavors develop! Let’s make this incredible tofu Angara!

Why You’ll Love Angara Hen

• wealthy, smoky, plant-based North Indian restaurant curry with so many wonderful spices!
• enjoyable to make! Play with hearth!
• scrumptious one-pan meal
• naturally gluten-free with straightforward soy-free and nut-free choices

Elements and Substitutions

• floor spices – For the angara spice combine, you will have floor coriander, cumin, black pepper, cloves, cinnamon, and cardamom. Additionally, you will use Kashmiri chili powder to season the tofu and within the sauce. You’ll additionally want fenugreek leaves for the sauce and smoked paprika for ending.
• almond flour – Offers the angara spice combine texture. Omit for nut-free.
• tofu – Pressed agency or additional agency tofu torn into bite-sized items is your vegan rooster. You should utilize different meat subs, like chickpeas, seitan, chickpea tofu, or vegan rooster, should you want.
• cornstarch – Helps the tofu crisp up within the pan. Use different starch sauce as tapioca or arrowroot instead
• oil – To crisp the tofu, saute, and to smoke the angara rooster curry sauce.
• aromatics – Onion and ginger garlic paste give the sauce a tremendous taste! You should utilize minced ginger and garlic as an alternative, should you don’t have the paste.
• entire spices – You’ll season the sauce with a black cardamom pod, bay leaf, and entire clove. To smoke the sauce, you’ll use a cinnamon stick or a bit of meals secure charcoal.
• tomato – Each chopped tomato and tomato puree add moisture, umami, and provides the sauce extra fiery pink shade.
• non-dairy yogurt – Makes the sauce creamy.

The way to Make Hen Angara

Add all the spice combine substances in a small bowl, combine rather well, and put aside. 

Press the tofu, should you haven’t already, after which tear into items. Add the tofu to a bowl together with 1 1/2 to 2 teaspoons of the angara spice combine and the salt, Kashmiri chili powder, and cornstarch.

Toss properly to coat, then warmth a big skillet over medium-high warmth. Add a teaspoon of oil, then as soon as the oil is sizzling, add the tofu and unfold evenly.

Proceed to cook dinner for two to three minutes, then flip the tofu and cook dinner the opposite facet for one more 2 to three minutes. Take away the tofu from the skillet, and put aside.

Warmth the identical skillet over medium-high warmth. Add 2 teaspoons oil, and as soon as the oil is sizzling add the onion, salt, black cardamom pod, bay leaf and entire clove, mixing properly. Proceed to cook dinner till the onion is golden brown, including splashes the water in between to assist the onion brown evenly. Stir continuously, in order that the onion doesn’t burn, about 5 to eight minutes.

As soon as the onion is golden brown, scale back the warmth to medium, and blend within the remaining angara spice combine. If the onions have dried out a bit of bit, add a splash of water to combine within the spices.

Then, add within the ginger garlic paste, fenugreek and blend in for just a few seconds. Then add tomatoes, tomato puree,  Kashmiri chili powder, yogurt, remaining salt, and water. Press and blend in all the substances, then cowl with the lid and let it cook dinner for 8 to 10 minutes, stirring as soon as in between, in order that the sauce doesn’t follow the underside of the pan. 

Fold within the tofu, tossing properly to coat. If the sauce has thickened an excessive amount of, combine in additional water or inventory. Cowl with the lid, scale back the warmth to medium-low, and let it simmer for 10 minutes or longer to infuse numerous taste into the tofu. Then, style and modify salt and taste, including extra salt, if wanted. You’ll be able to add in additional warmth, should you like, by including a bit of little bit of cayenne or Indian chili powder. 

Cut back the warmth to low, and sprinkle the smoked paprika on high of the angara rooster, and let it simmer.

Nestle a warmth secure ramekin that may suit your cinnamon stick, into the pan the place you’re cooking the curry, and add the 2 teaspoons of oil to it.

Then, maintain the cinnamon stick with tongs over an open flame till not less than 1/2 of the cinnamon stick is blackened and it catches hearth. Put it into the ramekin with the oil, in order that the oil begins to smoke. Cowl the pan with the lid. Let the smoke from the cinnamon stick infuse the sauce.

Relying on how a lot you heated the cinnamon stick, it might smoke actually rapidly. If it doesn’t smoke sufficient the primary time on your style, you possibly can redo the smoking step or use a small meals secure charcoal as an alternative of the cinnamon stick. For those who use the cinnamon stick, it’s also possible to drizzle the smoked oil over the completed dish for an excellent deeper smoky taste. For those who’re utilizing charcoal, please don’t use that oil.
After smoking for five minutes, open the lid, change off the warmth, and garnish with some cilantro and lemon juice and serve with naan, flatbread, rice or quinoa.

What to Serve with Hen Angara

Serve this with rice or quinoa or with naan or flatbread.