Last updated on March 3rd, 2021 at 07:09 pm
Meal maker curry – a great alternative to meat-based curries, goes wonderfully with rotis and parottas. This curry is super easy to make, it gets done within 30 minutes.
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So I spent this week watching Marvelous Mrs. Maisel season 3. Do you watch it too? I really like the show and the ample Jewish content, it gives a lot of perspectives. Not like what you think I only care about the food, like Brisket, Babka, hamantaschen that they casually mention in the show.
Though I’ve tasted and regularly make Challah and Babka at home, I have never tasted the other Jewish specialties. You might have seen Challah recipe on the blog as well. I think I will like these Hamantaschen, it sounds interesting. If you know how it tastes, drop me a comment and let me know!
So I watched the show and I was pretty upset with the season finale. I wonder if this is the last season and this show would stay with a bad ending. Yeah, I’m really into TV shows; movies not much but I love TV shows.
Anyway, I made this meal maker curry, let’s get on to the recipe!
What is a meal maker?
Before we get on to it, I wanna say that meal maker is also known by a bunch of other names. It is known as soya chunks, or soya nuggets, or soybean meal.
Meal maker or soya chunks is a Texturized vegetable protein and is a by-product of extracting soybean oil. You can read more about it here and here if you’re interested.
Soya chunks are rich in protein and almost minimal fat content. Which makese it an excellent protein source when you’re trying to lose weight or simply eat healthy.
What to cook soya chunks?
Meal maker or soya chunks are very versatile. Since its texture looks like meat and almost tastes like meat, its an excellent alternative to meat for vegans, vegetarians and occasional vegetarians (like us lol). And with their protein content, it is an added advantage.
You can pretty much make anything with it, a friend of mine makes bolognese with it and one can not find that it is not meat. And there are meal maker stir-fries, curries like this one and we often use this while making briyanis. Honestly, there are lot of possibilities if you like meal maker.
How to make this curry:
This curry is really simple but very flavorful. All you do is sauté some ingredients, add the masala paste, then the meal maker and simmer for 15 minutes! So let’s see the steps below:
Softening the meal maker:
- Soya chunks are very dry and when cooked by itself, it doesn’t quite absorb the flavor very well and the texture isn’t as soft as we would like. So we precook it or sorta blanch it.
- To do this, heat enough water well enough to cover the soya chunks, in a saucepan. Bring it to a boil
- Add the meal maker; these wouldn’t sink so gently push it down with a ladle and cover with a lid.
- Switch off the heat and let it stay covered for 10 minutes.
- After it has been soaking in hot water, drain the meal maker chunks in a colander and discard the water.
- Once the meal maker nuggets are cool to touch, squeeze the water from each and every meal maker. You can just grab 3-4 in each hand and squeeze them. NOTE: While you’re squeezing the water being squeezed from it might be hot, so handle it accordingly.
- Repeat until all the meal maker is squeezed. Careful not to break them, so squeeze gently. Set them aside.
Making the masala paste:
- To a blender, add 2 cloves, 1-inch cinnamon stick, 1 cardamom pod, 1 teaspoon fennel seeds, 3/4 teaspoon cumin seeds, 1 tablespoon poppy seeds, 1 tablespoon roasted Bengal grams, 1 teaspoon chilli powder, 1 (heaped) teaspoon of coriander seed powder and 50 grams of shredded coconut.
- Alternatively, if using frozen coconut shreds, soak it in 50 ml hot water 5 minutes before blending.
- Pulse it all together once or twice until all of the ingredients have broken down.
- Gradually add 100 ml water as and when needed to make a smooth paste. Set it aside.
Making the curry:
- Slice the 200-250g onions thinly (approximately 2 medium red onions). Chop 150g tomatoes into small dices (approximately 2 medium tomatoes).
- To a heavy-bottomed pan or saucepan, add 4 tbsp groundnut oil.
- Then add 1/2 tsp fennel seeds, 1 bay leaf. Sauté for a minute or until the seeds begin to brown.
- Tip in the sliced onions into the pan. Sauté until it begins to brown and look caramelized.
- Next, add 1 tablespoon ginger-garlic paste. Sauté for a few seconds. (Ginger-garlic paste has a tendency to stick to the bottom and begin to scorch. To avoid this, whenever you notice it sticking to the bottom, sprinkle few drops of water on that area and gently scrape it using a ladle.)
- Add the chopped tomatoes and 1 teaspoon salt. Let it cook until the tomatoes become mushy.
- Now, add the ground masala paste from the blender. Sauté for a minute.
Check out more such curry recipes:
Sumptuous tangly, spicy Tomato curry recipe
South Indian Lamb curry in luscious coconut-milk based sauce
Really simple mixed Vegetable curry recipe
- Finally, add the meal maker and 2 sprigs of curry leaves.
- Pour in 300 ml of water. Wash the blender with 100 ml water to scrape off any excess masala from it, add this water to the pan as well.
- Check the seasonings and add salt or black pepper powder only if necessary.
- Finally, Cover with lid and simmer for 15 minutes.
- Serve the meal maker curry hot with rotis/ idlis/ dosas/ parottas!
Recipe Courtesy: This meal maker curry is inspired by a masala curry from a very old magazine clipping that my grandmother had saved.
Notes:
- You can really use the same recipe and make mixed vegetable curry or meal maker and potato curry; it tastes delicious. Adjust salt if using potatoes, potatoes need a bit more salt.
- This recipe shows the exact amount of water you need for this meal maker curry in the right consistency and thickness i.e. 500 ml totally, so there is no need to add more water than what is mentioned.
- Ensure that you squeeze the water out of those blanched meal maker/ soya chunks so that it absorbs the masala in.
- If you find the ginger garlic paste sticking to the bottom of the pan, sprinkle few drops of water and gently scrape that area.
Meal Maker Curry | Soya Chunk Gravy
Equipment
- Blender
- Saucepan
- Heavy Bottomed Pan
- Ladle
- Colander
Ingredients
- 150 g dried meal maker
For the masala paste:
- 2 cloves
- 1 inch cinnamon stick
- 1 pod cardamom
- 1 tsp fennel seeds
- 3/4 tsp cumin seeds
- 1 tbsp poppy seeds , white
- 1 tbsp bengal gram – roasted
- 50 g shredded coconut , fresh or frozen
- 1 tsp chilli powder
- 1 tsp coriander powder , heaped
for the curry:
- 4 tbsp peanut oil , unfiltered
- 1 bay leaf
- 1/2 tsp fennel seeds
- 250 g red onions , peeled, washed and sliced
- 1 tbsp ginger garlic paste
- 150 g tomatoes , washed and chopped
- 1 tsp salt , more if needed
- 500 ml water
- 2 sprigs curry leaves
Instructions
Meal maker prep:
- Bring some water, enough to cover the meal maker, in a saucepan to a boil.
- Add the meal maker to the water. Remove from heat and cover with a lid. Set it aside for 5 minutes.
- Drain the water through a colander. Using your hands, squeeze every bit of water from the soya chunks. Set it aside.
Masala paste:
- Add all the ingredients listed under "for the masala paste" to a blender. Pulse till its all broken down.
- Add water little by little to make a smooth paste. Set it aside.
The curry:
- Add oil to a heavy-bottomed saucepan.
- Once the oil is hot enough, add the bay leaf and fennel seeds. Sauté for a minute.
- Add the sliced onions to the pan and sauté till it begins to brown.
- Next, add the ginger-garlic paste and sauté for a few seconds. *
- Now, add the chopped tomatoes and salt. Sauté till mushy.
- Add the masala paste and swirl it around for a minute.
- Finally, add the meal maker and add the remaining water.
- Sprinkle chopped curry leaves, cover with a lid and let it simmer for 15 minutes.
- Serve it hot with rotis or parottas or dosas!
Notes
- You can really use the same recipe and make mixed vegetable curry or meal maker and potato curry; it tastes delicious. Adjust salt if using potatoes, potatoes need a bit more salt.
- This recipe shows the exact amount of water you need for this meal maker curry in the right consistency and thickness, so there is no need to add more water than what is mentioned.
- Ensure that you squeeze the bejesus out of those blanched meal maker/ soya chunks so that it absorbs the masala in.
- If you find the ginger garlic paste sticking to the bottom of the pan, sprinkle few drops of water and gently scrape that area.
Made this? Got doubts? Let me know what you think in the comments below!
