Spiced Cauliflower and Potatoes (Aloo Gobi)

This shouldn't work--but it does and it's absolutely delicious. It's a heap of raw vegetables (about 12 cups all told), 5 tablespoons of potent spices and a mere 3 tablespoons of oil--and after 3 hours in the slow cooker, there's this wonderful juicy lush aromatic stew. I ate just a bit the day I made it. It was a full meal the next day and even better having spent a night in the fridge. It's amazing how substantial a meal this makes, and the addition of the fresh cilantro at the last moment makes an extraordinary difference. I made exactly as written, but for omitting the Thai chiles (a little more heat than I wanted) and subbing some chopped green chiles. Results in 4 very generous servings. I used the garam masala from Madhur Jaffrey's "Taste of India."