Archives for posts with tag: brown rice

Sweet and Sour Stir-Fry

August 11, 2010 //
0

I love stir-fry because it’s so versatile and it’s a great way to use up extra veggies. For this recipe, I used Lauren Ulm’s sweet and sour sauce recipe from Vegan Yum Yum. To it, I added fried tofu, shelled edamame, broccoli, and red and yellow peppers.

Sweet and Sour Stir-Fry

Ingredients:

1 package extra firm tofu, pressed and cut into 1-inch cubes

4 cups cooked brown rice (2 cups uncooked)

2 tbsp toasted sesame oil

1 yellow pepper, cut into large pieces

1 red pepper, cut into large pieces

1 cup shelled, frozen edamame

2 cups broccoli

Double recipe of sweet and sour sauce

Sesame seeds for garnish (optional)

Directions:

Cook the rice according to the directions. Mix together the ingredients for the sweet and sour sauce and set aside. Add the oil to a wok or non-stick skillet set to medium-high heat. Once the oil heats up, add your tofu and stir constantly until browned on all sides. Add the shelled edamame to the tofu and stir for a couple of minutes. Add the rest of the veggies until stir for a couple more minutes. Add the sauce mixture to the pan and stir until it thickens. As soon as the sauce thickens to coat the veggies, take off the heat. Serve immediately over the cooked rice and garnish with sesame seeds.

Enjoy!

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Categories food, vegan

Kidney Bean and Tomato Curry

June 30, 2010 //
0

This is another recipe that I adapted from the latest issue of Vegetarian Times. If you haven’t seen it, it’s packed with all kinds of yummy-looking recipes.

This Kidney Bean and Tomato Curry was very flavorful and very easy to make. The original recipe only serves one, so I quadrupled the ingredient amounts. The next time I make it, I’m going to replace the yogurt with coconut milk to add a little richness. I’m also going to cut back on the amount of water added because, well, it watered it down too much for my tastes. I prefer a thicker curry sauce. But as is, it’s still a delicious dish.

Again, I apologize for the lack of pictures. This time around, my camera’s batteries died while I was making it. Must remember to charge batteries….

Kidney Bean and Tomato Curry

Ingredients:

2 tbsp canola oil

1 cup finely chopped onion

2 cups finely chopped tomato (I used canned diced tomatoes)

2 tsp grated fresh ginger

1 tsp ground turmeric

4 tsp ground coriander

1/2 cup plain non-dairy yogurt

3 cups canned kidney beans, rinsed and drained

1 tsp garam masala

4 tsp lemon juice

Chopped cilantro and plain non-dairy yogurt for garnish

Directions:

Heat oil in a large skillet. Add onion, and cook until light brown. Stir in tomatoes, ginger, turmeric, and coriander. Cover, and cook for 2 to 3 minutes.

Whisk in yogurt and 2 cups of water. Stir in kidney beans, cover, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer for 10 minutes.

Mash a few kidney beans in the skillet and stir in garam masala and lemon juice. Season with salt and pepper.

Serve over brown rice and garnish with cilantro and yogurt. I had some red cabbage leftover from a previous recipe, so I sauteed it in oil, and salt and pepper, and served it on the side.

Enjoy!

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Categories food, vegan

Vegetable Fried Rice

June 18, 2010 //
2

I love Chinese takeout. I love the flavors, the chopsticks, the cute little boxes, and the overall convenience of it. But more often than not, I walk away feeling kind of gross and regretful after eating a plateful of vegetable lo mein and fried rice from our local Chinese restaurant. When I make my own Asian-inspired food at home, not only is it healthier, but I actually think it tastes better than takeout.

This recipe is loosely based on the one in the Vegan Yum Yum cookbook; I modified it quite a bit. It’s not authentic by any means, but it was a great way to use up some veggies that I had on-hand; hence the Brussels sprouts. There’s a lot of room for experimentation here. Also, you can use any kind of deep pan for this dish, but I finally broke down and purchased a wok. And let me tell you, it makes cooking this dish, and any other kind of stir-fry dishes, much easier.

Vegetable Fried Rice

Serves 6

Ingredients:


4 cups cooked brown rice

¼ cup toasted sesame oil

1 14oz package of extra firm tofu, drained, pressed, and cut into ¾-inch cubes

2 cups chopped broccoli

3/4 cup Brussels sprouts, cut in half length-wise

½ cup carrots, sliced

¾ cup button mushrooms, quartered

½ cup chopped red onion

½ cup low-sodium tamari, plus 2 tbsp

2 tbsp mirin

½ tsp ginger powder

¼ tsp red pepper flakes

Black pepper to taste

Sesame seeds for garnish

Directions:

Cook the rice according to directions.

In a wok, add a tablespoon of the sesame oil to the pan and add your tofu. (Be careful, the moisture from the tofu will cause the oil to pop and splatter.) Fry your tofu until golden brown on all sides.

Mix the 2 tbsp of tamari and ½ tsp ginger powder and add the mixture to the tofu. Once the tamari mixture has been soaked up by the tofu, take the tofu out of the wok and set aside.

Add another splash of sesame oil to the pan and add the broccoli and Brussels sprouts to the wok. Cook for 3 to 4 minutes. Add the red pepper flakes and cook for a minute more, stirring constantly. Take out of the wok and set aside.

Add yet another small splash of sesame oil to the wok and add the red onion, carrots, and mushrooms to the pan. Cook for about 3 minutes. Take out of the wok and set aside.

Add the last bit of sesame oil to the wok and add your cooked brown rice. Stir a few times, and then add the rest of the tamari and the mirin. Stir to coat the rice. Add the cooked tofu and veggies back to the wok and stir to incorporate. Add freshly cracked black pepper, top with sesame seeds, and serve.

I like to add a little Sriracha sauce on top for an extra kick.

Enjoy!

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Categories food, vegan

General Tao’s Tofu

May 5, 2010 //
4

For some reason, I ended up with back-to-back rice and tofu dishes. I usually try to break up my meals a bit for some variety. But despite their similar ingredients, the dishes couldn’t be more different, flavor-wise.

This General Tao’s Tofu is another recipe that I adapted from the latest VegNews magazine. They tout it as “better than takeout,” and I have to say, they weren’t joking. It’s delicious! The sweet and spicy sauce was amazing, and the crispy tofu? Well, you’ll just have to try it for yourself.

I modified some of the ingredients and changed the steps involved to make the dish. The original recipe requires lots of pots and pans, and I don’t know about you, but I hate doing dishes. So, I took a few shortcuts that definitely didn’t take away anything from the actual dish.

General Tao’s Tofu

Serves 4

Ingredients:

1 ½ tsp Ener-G egg replacer

4 tbsp water, divided

1 lb firm tofu, drained, pressed, and cut into 1-inch pieces

¾ cup + 1 tbsp cornstarch, divided

5 tbsp vegetable oil, divided

5 scallions, chopped

1 tbsp fresh ginger, minced

1 tbsp garlic, minced

2/3 cup water and 1 vegetable bouillon cube

2 tbsp tamari sauce

¼ cup sugar

1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes

1 tbsp rice vinegar

2 cups steamed broccoli

3 cups cooked brown rice

Directions:

Cook your rice first. I had trouble with rice for the longest time, but I figured out an approach that hasn’t failed me yet:

Use wide pot or pan with a lid. The rice to water ratio is 1:2. So for this recipe, I used 1 ½  cups of rice to 3 cups of water. Add those to the pot and add a spoonful of Earth Balance or oil. Bring the rice up to a boil, then turn the temperature down to low (but turn it up a bit if it stops boiling). Cover. For brown rice, I usually cook it for 40 minutes.

Here’s a shortcut for the broccoli: After the rice is finished cooking, turn the heat off and throw the cut broccoli on top of the steaming rice and put the lid back on. By the time you finish making the rest of the dish, the broccoli will be perfectly steamed.

Next, in a small bowl (I used a plate to spread it all out evenly), mix the egg replacer with 3 tbsp water. Dip tofu in this mixture and coat completely. Sprinkle ¾ cup cornstarch over tofu to coat (this seems like a lot of cornstarch, but it works).

In a large pan (I used a cast-iron skillet) over medium-high heat, heat 2 tbsp vegetable oil. Fry tofu pieces until brown on both sides, about 2 minutes (it took a little longer for my tofu to brown – about 4 minutes).

Place tofu on a plate covered with a paper towel to drain the oil.

Here’s my next shortcut: For the step below, I just used the same cast-iron skillet that I used to fry the tofu. I didn’t even bother draining it; I just didn’t add any more oil to the pan.

In a large pan over medium-high heat, add scallions, ginger, and garlic. Cook for about 2 minutes. Add water and vegetable bouillon cube, soy sauce, sugar, red pepper, and vinegar. Add remaining water and 1 tbsp of cornstarch to the sauce mixture, stirring well.

Add fried tofu and coat evenly.

Serve immediately over the steamed broccoli and rice.

Enjoy!

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Categories food, vegan

Tamarind Tofu Cabbage Bowl

May 2, 2010 //
4

I love cabbage. I really do. And I never really appreciated it until I went vegan. I love cooking it until just wilted, but still with just the right amount of crunch.

This recipe, which I adapted from the Vegan Yum Yum cookbook (I modified the ingredient amounts), is one of my favorites to make. It’s extremely healthy, easy to make, and requires very few ingredients, so it’s also easy on the budget.

Tamarind Tofu Cabbage Bowl

Serves 4

Ingredients:

1 12-ounce block extra firm tofu, pressed and cut into squares

2 to 3 tablespoons vegetable oil

4 cups cooked brown rice

2 carrots

5 cups shredded cabbage

3 tbsp tamarind chutney (I used a tamarind sauce that I found at an international grocery)

2 tbsp tamari

½ cup toasted, sliced almonds

Directions:

Combine the rice and carrots in a large bowl and toss well. The steam from the rice will cook the shredded carrots.

Fry the tofu in the oil until browned on both sides. Set aside.

Sauté the cabbage over high heat with a little oil until slightly softened and browned in some places.

Add the cabbage to the rice and carrots.

Make a sauce by mixing the tamarind sauce and tamari. Add the sauce and the tofu to the cabbage mixture and gently toss. Top with almonds. Serve warm.

Enjoy!

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Categories Uncategorized, vegan
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