tofu curry over vegetable noodles Dinners & Recipes

When Darren and I moved in together into a bright, sunny apartment in Portland, we discovered that we were very close to a local treasure: Rosemont Market. For those outside of the Portland/Yarmouth area in Maine, it would be hard to describe just how amazing this little store is. Almost everything in the store is local, from the produce, dairy and spices to the meat, coffee and baked goods. (Minus, of course, the vast and unique selection of imported wines.) The space is painted in colorful and bright oranges, greens and yellows.

Sunday afternoon, I took a short stroll – it really only takes me 5 minutes to walk to Rosemont – to pick up some produce. Onions, zucchini, summer squash, rainbow carrots. This is probably the best I’ve ever done “just winging it.” I created this recipe initially because I had an extra package of tofu in the fridge that I hadn’t used for a different recipe and a co-worker mentioned wanting Indian food while at work. That was all I needed. I immediately began planning my dinner for that night. I had curry on my mind.

Before I started baking, I had planned to use a Trader Joe’s curry sauce that I bought months before, (which is delicious, by the way) but I really wanted to try my hand at a homemade curry. So before even beginning to experiment, I typed up my own instructions to follow. Coconut milk, curry powder, flour, olive oil. Simple enough.

And it was just that. Extremely simple. I’ve also been really into using my mandoline. It’s just a fun instrument and never fails to impress me with its pristine veggie-chopping abilities. My mandoline (a gift that Darren bought for me on our one-year anniversary) is my favorite kitchen appliance! Fries, veggie noodles, chips – you name it. This mandoline can do it!

Alright so I have to admit something. Traditional curry sauce usually has fish sauce in it. I created this curry recipe to work with the items that I had in my pantry at the time and I wouldn’t change a thing. It’s comprised of four ingredients and this sauce is delicious. It’s just so easy and inexpensive to make. Darren and I both took what was left to work the next day and it tasted even better! Once the sauce has had time to sit for a while, covering the vegetable noodles, the flavor really comes out!

I should also mention, for those who are interested, that this dinner is both vegetarian and vegan! If you want to make it gluten-free, all you have to do is substitute the flour in the roux with a gluten-free flour or almond flour.