Stuffed tomatoes

Stuffed Tomatoes

Gravy

Stuffed tomatoes with gravy

Stuffed tomatoes (serves 4)

Small tomatoes- 8


For the stuffing


Boiled potatoes (peeled and mashed) - 1(medium sized)
Finely chopped onions -1 big
Coriander finely chopped - ¼ bunch
Green peas - 2 table spoons   
French beans (finely diced) - 8-10
Carrot( peeled and finely diced) - 1 big
Ginger( peeled and diced) -1 inch piece
Garlic( peeled and diced) - 1 clove
Oil - 1 table spoon


Masalas


Dhaniya powder - 2 teaspoons
Turmeric powder-1 pinch
Chilli powder - to taste
Garam masala -  ¼ teaspoon
Salt to taste


Oil for cooking the vegetables finally   1.5 table spoons


Gravy(optional)


Onions - 2 large
Tomatoes - 2 large
Ginger -1 inch piece
Garlic-1 clove
Oil for cooking - 2 table spoons
Dhania powder -1 spoon
Red chilli powder - to taste
Salt (to taste)
Coconut milk( from a carton not the  powdered one) -100 ml
Garam masala -1 pinch
Green coriander (destalked and finely chopped) -a handful.


Prepare the stuffing by heating the oil and frying the onions till soft and then add dry masalas and the ginger. Microwave the peas, beans, carrot on high for four minutes along with a  little salt and 1 tablespoon of water or steam them lightly for 5-6 minutes without adding water. Add the mashed potatoes, the cooked vegetables and coriander leaves. Mix well, taste to make sure the salt is adequate.


Prepare the tomatoes by cutting off the tops and scooping out the innards, If doing this is difficult then the slice the vegetables into half lengthwise and scoop out the innards,


Stuff the mixture into the hollowed vegetables and cook the same in the cooker pan by heating the oil and placing the stuffed vegetables flat on the pan. Move them from side to side to make sure it is completely cooked. This should take about 6-7 minutes. You could garnish it with a little grated cheese before serving it to the children.


Gravy


Blend the onions, tomatoes, garlic and ginger roughly in the mixer. Heat oil and cook the mixture for 10- 15 minutes on low heat till the raw smell is gone, add the dry masalas and cook for 3 more minutes. Add the coconut milk and stir till you get a rich look. Add a pinch of garam masala and garnish with coriander.    


To complete the dish place the stuffed and cooked tomatoes on top of the gravy and serve hot with hot rotis or jeera rice.


Note: You can substitute the coconut milk with tender curd or fresh cream. But curd  does not produce the same results and cream is too rich and heavy. Another substitute for making the gravy more well rounded is blanching 8-10 cashew nuts or almonds( need to be peeled after blanching) and grinding them to a paste and adding to the gravy.  You can also add sweet corn, paneer etc into the stuffing if preferred. You can use the same stuffing for small capsicums and cook them the same way. For a better visual effect you can alternate stuffed tomatoes with stuffed capsicums.