Pasanda or a Korma
I’ll be honest, I don’t know the exact distinction between a korma and a pasanda as there seems to be some conflicting information on this matter. What does seem to be the case is that these lines are now more blurred. It seems that a pasanda is often milder than a curry and is a curry that is mild enough to be enjoyed by the whole family.
Both dishes have several variations in their recipes. They can be based around yoghurt, cream, coconut milk or a combination of these and often have ground almonds or cashews.
The Spice Mix of the Pasanda
Just because a curry is mild doesn’t mean it needs to be low on flavour. There is a wonderful mix of spices in this recipe. Caramon is something that I only use occasionally in curry recipes, but it adds a lovely destinctive flavour here.
This recipe uses garam masala along with coriander, turmeric and cumin. Since it doesn’t contain any curry powder it is more family friendly as curry powder tends to contain at least some chilli.
If you like spice you can add some extra chilli powder to suit your own tastes. Personally I love a little spice, so if I’m making a curry for all of the family, I just add some chilli powder, cayenne pepper or fresh chilis to my own portion.
A Plant Based Vegetable Pasanda
Many pasanda recipes contain both cream and yoghurt but this recipe is a lighter version containing just yoghurt. The yoghurt adds a lovely tartness to the flavour, which works really well with the mix of spices and slight sweetness from the ground almonds.
This is a plant based version of the dish and I have used a soy based natural yoghurt. If you are making a non-plant based version of the dish you can use a dairy based natural yoghurt in place of the soy version. There is also the option to use a coconut based natural yoghurt.
For a creamier version of the dish you can also add 60ml of a plant based cream or dairy cream.
A Family Curry
Since this curry is so mild you might want to try it with kids. I have used cauliflower and carrots as the vegetables, however if the kids or adults prefer other vegetables, you can substitute these for other vegetables of choice, or even swap in some baby potatoes.
Method:
We start by cooking the onion and garlic in a little oil. We cook for about 5 minutes until the onion starts to soften, then throw in all of the spices, stir in and cook for another few minutes. This helps the spices to release their flavour.
Then you can mix in the rest of the ingredients. Bring to a boil and then turn down to a gentle simmer for about 15 minutes until the vegetables are cooked.
Other Curry Recipes:
If you are a fan of a heathier yet still fantastic curry recipe you might also be interested in the following recipes:
- 10 Minute Chickpea Curry
- Low Calorie Spinach Chickpea Potato Curry
- Creamy Red Lentil Curry with Coconut Milk
Vegetable Pasanda
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp sunflower oil
- 1 onion (peeled and chopped)
- 2 cloves garlic (peeled and finely chopped)
- 280 g carrots (2 medium carrots, peeled and chopped)
- 320 g cauliflower (half a small head of florets)
- 1 tsp garam masala
- 1 tsp coriander (ground)
- 1 tsp cumin (ground)
- 250 g natural yoghurt (soy)
- 3 tbsp ground almonds
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp turmeric
- 4 cardamon pods
- 1 tbsp fresh ginger (grated)
- 120 ml water
To Serve
- 1 bunch fresh coriander (cilantro)
- 2 tbsp flaked almonds (toasted)
Instructions
- Open the cardamon pods and collect the little seeds inside. Grind with a pestle and mortar.
- Heat a tablespoon of oil in a pan. Add the onion and garlic and cook for around 5 minutes until the onion is soft.
- Add the garam masala, ground coriander, cumin, turmeric, salt, ground cardamon and grated ginger to the pan and stir in with the onions. Cook for two minutes.
- Add the natural yoghurt, sliced carrots, cauliflower florets and ground almonds to the pan along with 120 ml of water.
- Bring to a boil stirring regularly, then bring to a gentle simmer and cook for another 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Serve with cooked rice, some flaked roasted almonds and fresh coriander (cilantro).
1 comment