Chitra's Creative Cuisine: Stir-fried Tofu with Bean Sprouts, Cilantro and Ginger Root

In my upcoming novel, Before We Visit the Goddess, about three generations of women–a grandmother, mother and daughter who love, support and battle each other–Tara the daughter says that she likes cooking things that require only 20 minutes of time, from the chopping board to the table. I often feel that way, and on some of those days I create my own dishes. Today was one such day because I'm getting really busy with pre-publicity for the novel, which is coming out in April 2016. Below is the recipe I cooked up, stir-fried tofu with bean sprouts, cilantro, and ginger. I was really pleased with how this healthy low-carb dish turned out, and I hope you will be, too.

stir fried tofu with bean sprouts and cilantro

Ingredients:  One 16 ounce pack extra firm tofu, 16 ounces bean sprouts, half inch ginger root, grated, quarter cup chopped cilantro, four T peanut sauce, two T soy sauce (more for taste if you like soy sauce), one t Sriracha sauce, 1 T sesame oil, garlic powder, onion powder and salt to taste.

Cut the tofu long and thin, as in the photo above. Sauté for two minutes in a nonstick pan. Add all of the seasonings. Sauté for one more minute. Add the bean sprouts. Sauté for one minute. Take off the stove and mix in the cilantro and ginger.  Serve by itself if you want a low-carb dish. Otherwise serve over hot brown rice.

The whole thing took me 10 minutes!

Let me know if you try it and how you like it, and if you have your own favorite 10 to 20 minute dish, please post it below.

 

Chocolate Sandesh: A Dish from My Upcoming Novel, Before We Visit the Goddess

My new novel, Before We Visit the Goddess, will be out in April 2016.

The birth of each new book is a very exciting event for me. I think I'm looking forward to this one as much as I did to my first collection of stories, Arranged Marriage!

Here is a preview of the book jacket.

 

The book is about three generations of women–grandmother, mother and daughter–who must each examine for herself what it means to be a successful woman. Here's a link to a more detailed description: http://books.simonandschuster.com/Before-We-Visit-the-Goddess/Chitra-Banerjee-Divakaruni/9781476792002

To advance-celebrate the publication of the novel, I thought I would post a recipe that's important in the book. The grandmother, Sabitri, is a renowned sweet-maker in Kolkata and owns her own sweet shop, Durga Sweets. Her daughter's favorite sweet is chocolate sandesh. It used to be one of my favorite desserts when I was growing up, too. I guess life finds its way into art!

I tried various recipes of chocolate sandesh, including one from my mother, but the best one came from this website, Manjula's kitchen. (Sorry, Mom!) I decided I would share it with all of you today. It's an excellent website – you'll find many good recipes there.

Chocolate sandesh, Manjula's recipe

Chocolate sandesh, Manjula's recipe

 

 http://www.manjulaskitchen.com/new-chocolate-sandesh-truffles/

I did not add pistachios to mine, as I like the flavor of chocolate by itself. I also cheated and used store-bought paneer, and mashed and warmed it in a heavy, nonstick pan on the stove until it became soft! It made the process very quick. The chocolate sauce drizzled on top is optional. The sandesh tastes delicious even without it.

Enjoy – and let me know what you think. As always, I'd love for you to share your recipes with me.