Curried Coconut Quinoa and Greens with Roasted Cauliflower
Quinoa cooked in coconut milk with spicy Indian flavors, mixed with greens and topped with roasted cauliflower. A simple, vegan and gluten-free meal.
Updated by Kathryne Taylor on August 29, 2024
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Afternoon forecast: too many decisions up in the air. I stayed up to an ungodly hour last night trying to plan out what I need for my new [rent] house and where to put everything. I don’t know why I didn’t drag my blinky-eyed self to bed earlier, as my subconscious sorted some things out while I was asleep. Isn’t that how it always goes?
So today, in addition to sucking down two mugs of strong coffee and stumbling across a promising oatmeal cookie recipe, I’ve made some executive decisions. I’m feeling good about my pendant lamp choice for the dining area and can’t wait to hang this big print on the living room wall.
I’ve also been searching Craigslist for a used washer/dryer set (is buying used a bad idea?). Speaking of Craigslist, I feel compelled to tell you about an app I found called Craigslist Pro. For two bucks, you can save searches and get notified when there are new results! Major time saver.
Maybe I should publish a post about all of my favorite tech tools soon. Would that be helpful? I could also post some before and after pics of my new space. Any takers?
I’m sorry, my mind is all over the place. Please be patient with me over the next couple of weeks. I’ll be going nuts trying to pack and unpack and get organized in my new place. At least I have lots of quinoa leftovers for sustenance. This dish is a new favorite. Although it definitely doesn’t qualify as authentic Indian food, the Indian flavors of turmeric, curry powder and coconut milk complement quinoa nicely. Dinner’s ready!
Curried Coconut Quinoa and Greens with Roasted Cauliflower
Quinoa cooked in coconut milk with spicy Indian flavors, mixed with greens and topped with roasted cauliflower. A simple, vegan and gluten-free meal.
Ingredients
Roasted Cauliflower
- 1 head cauliflower, cut into bite-sized florets
- 2 tablespoons melted coconut oil or olive oil
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- Sea salt
Curried coconut quinoa with greens
- 2 teaspoons melted coconut oil or olive oil
- 1 medium yellow onion, chopped
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1 teaspoon ground turmeric
- ½ teaspoon curry powder of choice (optional)
- ½ teaspoon ground cardamom
- 1 can (14 ounces) light coconut milk
- ½ cup water
- 1 cup quinoa, rinsed well in a fine mesh colander
- ⅓ cup raisins
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- 4 cups baby arugula or chopped chard, spinach, maybe even kale*
- Optional garnishes: 2 green onions, chopped, and a sprinkle of red pepper flakes
Instructions
- Roast the cauliflower: Preheat oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit. Toss the cauliflower florets with coconut oil, cayenne pepper and a light sprinkle of sea salt. Roast for 25 to 30 minutes on the middle rack, turning halfway, until the cauliflower is tender and golden on the edges.
- Cook the quinoa: In a large pot with a lid, warm the coconut oil over medium heat. Add the onion and cook until it is turning translucent, stirring often, about 5 minutes. Add the ginger, turmeric, curry powder and cardamom and stir until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Pour in the coconut milk, water, rinsed quinoa and raisins. Bring the mixture to a boil, then cover and reduce heat to a simmer. Cook for 15 minutes, then remove the pot from the heat and let it rest, covered, for 5 minutes.
- Fluff the quinoa with a fork. Stir in the salt, vinegar and greens (if you intend to eat this dish as leftovers, I recommend storing leafy greens separate from the quinoa, as the greens don’t reheat well). Divide the quinoa into bowls and top with roasted cauliflower. Garnish with green onions and red pepper flakes if you’d like.
Notes
- Loosely inspired by the sweet potato wrap at The Mixx in Kansas City, which also inspired this quick roasted Brussels sprouts dish. If you like curried cauliflower with coconut, try this soup.
- *Greens: I’m pretty sure chopped spinach or chard would work great in this recipe. If you’d like to try kale, remove the ribs first. To soften the chopped kale, you might want to sauté it in a little coconut oil or massage it first, like you would for a raw kale salad.
- For added protein, mix in some cooked chickpeas or pre-steamed lentils. For what it’s worth, though, I find this dish to be very filling as is.
Nutrition
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice. See our full nutrition disclosure here.
I subbed coriander for spinach/kale. Beautiful recipe.
We made this tonight. It was fun to make, and it was absolutely delicious. We used spinach (because that’s what we had), and it worked perfectly. Thank you.
Delicious, but do use *light* coconut milk. I used full fat and it’s a bit greasy.
Thank you, Kate, for all the wonderful recipes. I don’t think there’s a recipe site anywhere with as delicious, healthy, vegetarian recipes as yours. Never overloaded with sugar, cheese or other fats. No premade ingredients. Lovely to look at. It doesn’t get any better than that. Bravo!
You’re welcome! I’m delighted you are loving my recipes, Sharon.
We have made this several times, and we absolutely love it. We’re having guests tomorrow night, and this curry is our choice to serve our guests. Thank you for all your wonderful recipes.
This one went a little awry for me. I ended up with way too much liquid for my quinoa to absorb, even though I followed the specified amounts. Should I skip the water next time? The end product turned out quite bland, I assume because of the water issue. I really like the concept of the dish, so may attempt again in the future and amp up the seasoning and reduce the liquid.
I also found the portion to be very light. I should have checked the calorie information beforehand, but 350 calories was definitely not enough for us for a main as a couple of active adults.
I’m sorry to hear that! Next time, either drain the excess water off or keep it cooking. Sometimes it can vary depending on type of water and/or age of quinoa.