Bryanna Clark Grogan’s Vegan Feast Kitchen/ 23rd Century Table

Cooked Quinoa

Medium (#2) Bulgur Wheat

Last night's dinner

This is going to be blog post with no real recipes, but I thought this would be a good topic for the beginning of the year, when I always reassess how I cook and what I want to work on in the new year. First on my mind as I peered into the refrigerator yesterday evening was what I needed to use up and what I could find to make a tasty meal in a hurry. I know I wasn't the only person in this situation, and the meal I came up with turned out to be pretty darn good, so I thought I might share my process for dealing with such a situation, a situation that can be even more difficult for new vegans.

We are going food shopping tomorrow for the first time in two weeks, so we're getting low on fresh stuff. Brian was going to make his spaghetti sauce for tonight, but what the heck did we have left that I could make into a tasty, quick (and low-fat) meal for last night?

Okay, begin with the easiest part of the meal, the "starch".  We had plenty of potatoes over the holidays, and pasta coming the next day, but I have plenty of grains in the pantry, and after a quick peruse of the shelves, I decided that a Middle Eastern-style bulgur and toasted noodle pilaf would be a good place to start. 10 minutes in my new Instant Pot (1 cup medium bulgur wheat, 1/2 cup Persian toasted noodles [reshteh],  2 1/2 cups vegan broth, 1/2 tsp. ground cumin, large pinch dried oregano) and the pilaf is ready. (On the stovetop, in a covered pot-- 20 minutes.)


As is my habit, I began to think about a theme for our meal, and the pilaf gave me the idea to run with Middle Eastern flavors.

That brought me to the vegetable part of the meal.  I had some lovely winter squash given to us by some friends, so I cut and seeded them and divided them into manageable pieces, which I placed in a Pyrex casserole and microwaved for about several minutes (some chunks took longer than others), until softened.  I wracked my brain for what I had to dress them with that would have a Middle Eastern touch.  I love the spice mixture za'atar and always have some in my spice drawer, so I sprinkled the cavities of the squash chunks with the lemony sumac, wild thyme and sesame mixture, spooned in some homemade soy yogurt and drizzled that with some sweet/sour pomegranate molasses.  With my fingers crossed that this combo would be a good one, I placed the squash on a baking tray and popped it into my little counter-top oven to keep hot while I figured out the main dish.

I could have taken some beans out of the freezer, but I had some of my Breast of Tofu (B of T-- recipe here) marinating in the fridge which needed to be used.  So, I coated a few slices with my usual flour mixture (in the same recipe file) and crisped them under the broiler on both sides, while my brain was madly working on how to make a tasty sauce for them with some sort of even vaguely Middle Eastern overtones.

In the end, I sliced up half a green and half a red bell pepper, along with a 1/4 of an onion, some garlic and a few mushrooms. I roasted them quickly under the broiler, allowing some pieces to char a little. I dumped the vegetables into a skillet over high heat and stirred in a mixture of vegan broth (Better than Bouillon No-Chicken vegan broth base), lemon juice and a little white vermouth just to up the umami factor (even though wine isn't generally used in Middle eastern dishes)-- about 1 cup in all. I slipped in the crispy B of T slices and kept cooking them over pretty high heat so that the sauce would cook down and the flour on the slices would help to thicken it.  I added a bit of dried mint and oregano. It tasted pretty good, but it was on the sharp side. It needed toning down.  I thought something milky would help, but I was afraid to add my soy yogurt to the bubbling sauce-- I thought it might curdle.  So I grabbed a carton of So Delicious Original Coconut Creamer (which I know is pretty stable in hot mixtures) and stirred in some until the flavors melded into a tart, creamy, rich-tasting melange.


The sauce made a delicious foil for the mild B of T, which I served over the pilaf. And the squash?  Delicious!


Start to finish, this took about 1/2 an hour.  It wasn't the best meal I've ever made, but I wouldn't have complained if I'd been served it in a restaurant!

Happy New Year!

This is the time of year that I switch from making soup several times a week to making hearty full-meal salads with whole grains, potatoes, pasta and noodles, or sweet potatoes, with beans or tofu or other vegan protein and lots of vegetables (and sometimes fruit-- fresh or dried-- and nuts).  This ensures that we have something ready-made, nutritious and tasty in the refrigerator at all times for quick meals or snacks.

These recipes are two that we have enjoyed recently-- one an old favorite, and one new, made up to utilize what I had in the freezer and fridge.

NOTE: About Szechuan chili garlic paste in the first recipe-- the best kind contains fermented soybeans, which give added flavor and umami to this condiment. My favorites are Six Fortune Mandarin Jah-Jan Sauce (ingredients: vegetable oil,  bean curd, chili sauce, soybean paste, bamboo shoot and mushroom) or Six Fortune Soybean Paste with Chili Paste (ingredients: Chili, soybean paste,salt, sugar, sesame oil), but there are other brands with similar ingredients.



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 Printable Copy

BRYANNA'S ASIAN-FUSION VEGETABLE-NOODLE SALAD  
Serves 8

This is a very easy, versatile and delicious salad, which I adapted from a recipe in Deborah Madison's "Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone" (Broadway Books, NY, 1997) about 15 years ago.  I often make it for potlucks or  family gatherings, and invariably have several requests for the recipe.  I've adapted it even more over the years to use various types of noodles, vegetables and vegan protein.

The noodles:
1 lb. gan mian or ji mian (plain, thin flour and water noodles) or mian xian (extra-thin Amoy-style flour and water noodles), or egg-free chow mein noodles
OR, if you can't find Chinese noodles, spaghettini, vermicelli or cappellini (thin Italian pasta)
1-2 bunches green onions, chopped
1/4 c. toasted sesame seeds (and/or 1/2 cup roasted peanuts)
The vegetables:
1 lb. of lightly cooked vegetables-- any of the following or a mixture:
whole green beans or asparagus, cut into 2" lengths
broccoli flowerettes, thinly sliced
broccolini, broccolette or gai lan, thinly sliced
snap peas (cut in half if they are large)
Protein:
slivers or cubes of any vegan protein you like, such as:
cubes or strips of crispy "B of T" (my "Breast of Tofu") or marinated Inari Sushi Pockets, cut into thin strips
cubes or strips of vegan "ham" or any type of seitan
reconstituted Soy Curls
any sort of marinated, grilled and/or fried tofu or tempeh (see 2nd salad recipe below for a quick grilled tofu that is also good in this salad)
Dressing:
7 T. soy sauce (can be low-salt)
1/4 c. dark sesame oil
3 1/2 T. brown sugar
3 T. balsamic vinegar (or Chinese black vinegar)
3 T. water
1 T. grated fresh ginger
2 tsp. salt (this sounds like alot, but it's a BIG salad)
1 tsp. Szechuan chili garlic paste (preferably the type with fermented soybeans in it-- see text above  recipe for more information)
1-2 cloves garlic, crushed

Cook the noodles in a large pot of boiling water until tender.  Run cold water over them in a colander.  Drain well. Mix the Dressing ingredients together well and pour over the noodles.  Toss well.  Add the green onions, sesame seeds (and/or peanuts), vegetables, Protein of choice and optional red pepper slices, if using.  Toss well.  Store in the refrigerator, but bring to room temperature before serving.