Little Tofu Balls

The sunshine is starting to make an appearance, a good sign that its time to start working in the and spending time in the garden; but  I bet you - come the weekend it will rain.  D has been good though, he has been out in the garden, doing a bit of everything.    

Home cooking, has never been so quiet.  You really think being home, i would have been a lot more creative with all those cookbooks on my shelf, but no - i have been uninspired, sticking to quick pasta dishes or firm family favourites that are a whizz to knock up.  

I did however make these veggie tofu meatballs a couple of week back. I had asked D to pick up some tofu from the supermarket for a recipe i had in mind.  When he did - I could not remember for which recipe, so a quick flick through some of bookshelves on the shelf led me to this recipe.  I didn't quite have all the ingredients for their recipe either, but the missing basil was substituted with kale.

These tofu 'meatballs' were okay and made a bit of a change to what we have been eating at home.  

Yellow Pea Soup with Red Pepper and Tofu Croutons

Too much turmeric in a dish can be overpowering and that is what happened with this Yellow Pea Soup .  It was edible though, albeit not the flavour i was quite expecting.  

To tone down the turmeric yellow flavour and colour, i first added in some minced red pepper for sweetness and for a change,. I also  made tofu croutons that were fried in a little olive oil and fried until golden on sides to add a bit of body.  It was okay but nothing to get excited about.

However, on the following day, when i decided to through some chopped spinach from the garden and honestly, it made such a difference to the whole soup.  I think it made it even better I think, but no photographs and I regret it. Still, I am not going to share the recipe as it's not one I'd recommend highly. Even though it was not such a good soup, i will still share it with Soup, Salad and Sammies hosted by Kahakai Kitchen only because i like participating and admiring other contributors contributions. 

The soup is all gone, so next few days we will be tucking on another homemade Cheese and Onion quiche - just like school days .  

Here it is, still to have its pastry sides trimmed down, so don't go judging for poor presentation. 

Enjoy the rest of your weekend, i am going to perch myself on the sofa now having finished cooking for the day and watch some nonsense.   

Vegan Chinese Tofu Short Ribs

It is truly by coincidence that this recipes coincides with Chinese New Year of The Pig.

It is because I am still cooking recipes from The Superfun Times: Vegan Holiday Cookbook by Isa Chandra Moskowitz and the next recipe I had bookmarked to make was these Tofu Short Ribs which mimic Chinese Pork Ribs.  

These vegan Chinese Tofu Short Ribs were also so easy to make, you bake slices of tofu in the oven and then smother it generously in the sauce made with hoisin sauce, Chinese five spice and other ingredients all of which I found in my kitchen, other than the Hoisin sauce which I had to purchase (Please see my In My Kitchen blog post for brand).  

These Vegan Tofu Short Ribs tasted pretty good too. I will definitely be making them again and perhaps try them with seitan. 

If you want to have a go at making these vegan Chinese Tofu Short Ribs at home and you don't have the cookbook,  Isa Chandra has been generous and shared the recipe on her website  - follow this link for ease.

I had so much of the sauce left over, that we had this again the following day but this time I also included some slices of King Oyster Mushrooms and it was awesome.

Anyway, may I wish all my readers, especially those whom are celebrating the Chinese New Year - A very Happy Year of the Pig. 

Aloe Vera In My Kitchen

One again, I really thought I was not going to be able to join in with In My Kitchen this month, but here I am with a few little bits in my kitchen and some in cupboards.

March sees lots of daffodils around Wales, but sadly this year many of them got crushed by the extraordinary weather: blizzards, strong winds, drifting snow and bitter cold and a storm.  This was then followed by a rare phenomenon of freezing rain, yes rain drops that freeze.  

I don't have any happy yellow daffodils to share with you today, but instead I share with you two house plants that are not in my kitchen as there is no room on the window sill, so they are upstairs in one of the rooms.  The cactus given to me by my mother and the other - an Aloe Vera by a new work colleague who happens to be from Mauritius, who is becoming a friend.   I must confess, even though I do well growing vegetables and herbs in my allotment garden plot, house plants are another story.  Cacti and Aloe Vera are the two that do relatively well without much help from me, so I am very pleased to have them.  

vegan Korean Kimchi Jjigae Stew

For those of you who follow me on Instagram will have seen me post this Kimchi Jjigae aka Kimchi Stew which I made last weekend, I have been to busy with Vegan Month of Food and work that I had not got round to sharing it on my blog, so here it it now.  

This  Kimchi Jjigae is not authentic by any means, but these days on blogosphere and cookbooks do you see many authentic recipes, everyone has their twist on Shepherds Pie to Bread Pudding, even the fillings of traditional British Christmas mince pies are given a makeover. This is not so much as a twist, more of an adaptation to make it suitable my vegetarian diet and in an effort to make it vegetarian, it is also  accidentally vegan.  

The photograph is not the best as it is tinged with poor lighting issues,  The evening s are getting darker and I live in the Welsh valleys between two hills, so the darkness impacts on my photographs even more so come Autumn and Winter.   Anyway, I wanted to find ways of using my homemade vegan Kimchi that I made a couple of months back.  It was my first attempt at making Kimchi at home, and although not perfect, I was pleased with myself.  I hope to make another batch soon and hopefully it will be a lot more redder in colour.

Kimchi like any fermented food is an acquired taste.  I quite like it, but it is not to every ones taste like sweets from the Indian subcontinent or pickles steeped in mustard oil. This includes my husband.  

D was not keen on either the Kimchi or the Kimchi Stew, but I was not surprised at that.  The first time we had Kimchi at home was back in 2011 and I made a Bibimpab.  He did not particularly enjoy the Bibimbap then and nor the Kimchi Jjigae this time round either, but ate it nonetheless.  

However, I enjoyed it, but if I am totally honest I think the sauce lacked body.  I think this was partly to do with my homemade vegan version of the Kimchi; and my adaptation of the Kimchi Jjigae recipe.  My version required something to thicken it up .  The original recipe has anchovies, and pork, that perhaps give it a depth.  The spices were just right.   I served the Kimchi Jjigae simply with plain white rice.   I am sharing this with  I am sharing this  Cook Blog Share co-hosted between Easy Peasy Foodie and  Hijacked By Twins and with Healthy Vegan Fridays hosted by Rock My Vegan Socks and V Nutrition.

Stir Fried Edamame Beans with Smoked Tofu

I had some edamame beans left over from yesterday's brunch and decided to use them up in this relatively quick dish. 

I loved every thing about this dish, the way it looks on the plate, colours, the flavours, the textures. The vibrancy of the greens especially from the edamame and peas.  And the way the fresh red chilli beamed liking a red light bringing the dish to life.  The vegetables still had crunch and the beans popped, especially the broad beans.  When I served it up, D was concerned that there was not enough sauce to coat the rice, but it was plenty moist once he started tucking in.  I guess you could serve these with noodles, but I like plain steamed or boiled white rice.

Please find proper smoked tofu for this recipe, not those lightly smoked and barely .  If your tofu is not smoky enough, then please if possible add a little liquid smoke.  

I am sharing this with Eat Your Greens Challenge hosted this month by The Veg Hog; and with Sunday Fitness and Food Fitness hosted by Marathons and Motivation and Ilka's blog; 

Luxurious Vegan 'Vish Fish' Pie with Sea Vegetables, Spaghetti Seaweed, Smoked Tofu

This is perhaps the most luxurious vegan fish = Vish pie you will ever set eyes upon or eat, if you choose to make it.  

I made this rather La-Vish/lavish Vegan Ocean Pie over the weekend.  D wasn't feel too good, so we didn't venture far at all.  I decided to play with some new ingredients and incorporate them into this experimental Pie.  This vegan 'Fish' Pie is packed with vegetables, smoked tofu, sea vegetables, spaghetti seaweed and sea flakes to give it that natural taste of the sea.    

Unlike the other vegetarian and vegan pies featured on my blog, this one is made with lots of unusual ingredients and has a lot of processes before it reaches the plate, but its all worth it. One of the other things I wanted to do was cut the tofu to resemble little fishies, click here to see my Tofu Fish, but couldn't find my cutter, but I did get round to using my new EZ Tofu Press (see below).

I feel for D, he eats mostly vegetarian meals because of me. The only meat he will eat is fish, but its not often.  Its only if we ever go out to eat or on holidays overseas, he will order a fish or seafood meal, but even then its quite rare.   He doesn't moan, but I know sometimes he hankers for some Fish Supper Fridays.  So I made this with him in mind.  I was a little unsure if he would accept this meal, but he has always been gracious and accepted whatever I have put on the table for him to eat.  He thought the ingredients mimicked the flavours of a Fish pie well.  Lots of textures and flavours from the vegetables, seaweed and liquid smoked tofu.  

The cream sauce was delicious enhanced by the nutritional yeast.  The only thing that muddied the creamy sauce was the chestnut mushrooms, if I could have found oyster mushrooms locally, I would have thrown them into the pan, but its a small aesthetic thing, it did not impact on the dish as a whole. To finish off it was topped of with mashed potatoes that were doused with Green Nori flakes and then put into the oven to bake.

Old Fashion Lemon Tofu Cheesecake

The vegan cheesecake recipes that are appearing all over blogophere are made with soaked cashew nuts or vegan cream cheese, but I have been making this old fashion vegan cheesecake with tofu for a while.  And what's more, it is no cook too.  

When you tuck into this Lemon Tofu cheesecake, please don't go trying to compare it to the dense, rich dairy version.  This one is very different, yet it delivers on flavour and textures. 

I've made this No Cook Cheesecake in the past with a vegan strawberry jelly topping in the shape of hearts, this time though I decided to stud it simply with some glace cherries.  

My husband wasn't too sure as to why I made this vegan cheesecake, especially as we have a couple of tubs of dairy cream cheese in the fridge, but the truth is I was prompted to make this recipe for one of the cutest girls I have ever met in my life.  She has the most infectious giggle that sets you off to a good day.  She goes by the pseudonym Twitter name Tequila Mockingbird.  I hope she approves of this old fashion Lemon Tofu Cheesecake.  

Vegan 'Salmon' Red Chard Tart

Remember that bunch of Red Swiss Chard I shared yesterday, well this is one of the dishes I made with it - a Red Chard Tart, except it looks very pink! 

What is different about that tart is the filling.  It is that it is made with tofu instead of eggs.  It looks salmon- like; and tasted a tad like sea-weed.  I mentioned this flavour of the sea once before when I cooked with Red Chard.  I served this simply with some new potatoes.

If you can't find red chard,  feel free to substitute with any other chard, or even spinach.  Oh I have to admit, in stead of making my own shortcrust pastry from scratch, this time I made use of shop-bought shortcrust pastry, still looks rather rustic.

I point one thing out purely for presentation reasons, it is perhaps best to eat this tart on the day it is made, as the following day it loses that pink tint colour and looks, well like cold quiche - a bit sunken and the baked brown comes through more.  But if that doesn't bother you, then it keeps for a couple of days in the fridge. 

Chestnut Mushroom and Smoked Tofu Strogonoff

One day the sun is shining and every one is out in their shorts with naked legs, then the next day its raining buckets and every one is sniffling. 

So for evenings when its raining buckets of water from the skies, have yourself a warming bowl of mushroom strogonoff.  This is one of my quick evening supper dishes.  Its featured on my blog in my early days of blogging (see this link).

I don't often cook with smoked tofu, but I wanted to try it, the smokiness of the tofu was quite subtle. D wasn't that keen on it, I didn't mind it too much.

Chestnut Mushroom and Smoked Tofu Strogonoff
Serves 4
Ingredients
250g firm smoked tofu, cut into 1 inch cubes and set aside
3 tablespoons of sunflower or vegetable oil
1 medium white onion, sliced thinly
4 cloves of garlic, chopped
250g chestnut mushrooms, left whole if small or sliced if you prefer
120ml double cream
200ml vegetable stock made with 1/2 teaspoon of bouillon powder
sprig of tarragon or 1 tablespoon of dried
1 tablespoon Tamari or soy sauce
Handful of baby spinach leaves
salt and pepper to taste
Method
In a pan, heat one tablespoon of oil. Add onion and garlic and fry over medium heat until soft and golden. Add mushrooms and continue to saute for about 5 minutes until cooked through.
Add vegetable stock , the tarragon sprig and Tamari or soy sauce to the mushrooms, allow it to gently boil. Then turn the heat down. Add the cream and let it simmer for a few minutes until well combined with the vegetable stock.
Finally, add the smoked tofu, spinach leaves, salt and pepper to taste. Gently heat through or until the spinach leaves wilt.
Serve with plain basmati rice.

Vegan Chocolate Chilli Cheesecake

Some of you may know that I am hosting Pasta Please encouraging fellow bloggers to submit a veggie pasta dish that includes the red hot ingredient Chilli.  Well I don't have my Chilli pasta submission to share yet, but what I do have is a Vegan Chocolate Chilli Cheesecake that I made last week. 

I don't completely know why it has taken me so long to make a vegan cheesecake, well if you push me, I think the reason may be the ingredients: one of which is sometimes silken tofu and I haven't cooked much with tofu in sweet dishes.  Well I have to say I was really impressed, as it was a doddle to make and one I look forward to making again.

Please don't assume this is knock your socks off kinda Chilli Cheesecake, the chilli is really subtle, yet warming.  A couple of my nephew and nieces who have been helping me out at work for a few hours (for pocket money of course) got to try a slice of which only a couple were left over.  They really loved it and were none the wiser it was a vegan cheesecake.  And the other slice, was shared by myself and my truly.

The only thing I would do differently is make it in a 8 inch round tin, rather than the 10 inch that I used here.  This would have made the chocolate tofu topping much dense.

I will post the recipe in the next few days or so.

Tofu Hijiki Saute Over Rice

After opening the packet of dried hijiki for the Welsh Laverbread Pie pastry casing, I wanted to use the hijiki in its own as an ingredient in its own right, rather than just an addition to miso soup.

Hijiki is a mild, earthy flavored seaweed.  You can find packets at Chinese supermarkets.  At first the hijiki seaweed looks like dried tea strands, but when soaked and reconstituted it swells to about 4 times its original weight.  Like all seaweed, hijiki must be rinsed thoroughly before being added to the dish you are making .  

When served up, it certainly made for a dramatic plate: the jet green samphire-like seaweed next to the orange matchsticks and sesame-soy burnished tofu. 

Hijiki is certainly an acquired taste too  - having umami flavours - I wasn't bowled over by it, but neither did I dislike it.  This dish was just okay and made a pleasant change to my normally spiced up diet.

Tofu Hijiki Saute Served Over Rice
Serves 2
Ingredients

Cook enough white or brown rice for 2, keep warm

25g dried hijiki seaweed

1 tablespoon sesame oil
200g extra firm tofu
1 onion, finely sliced
1 medium carrot, sliced into matchsticks
1 tablespoon Tamari or soy sauce to taste
1 teaspoons toasted sesame seeds
Method 

Rinse and drain hijiki to remove any grit.  Then place the hijiki in a bowl with warm water to cover and let soak for 20 minutes.
While hijiki is soaking, drain and drain the tofu. Slice the tofu into even sized cubes excess water.
In a large pan, heat the sesame oil.  Add the tofu and saute on medium heat, stirring frequently until browned.  Remove the tofu and set aside.
To the same pan, add the onions and cook until soft, then add in the carrots and cook for 4 minutes. 
Drain hijiki and add it to the pan, along with the tofu, the Tamar iand heat thoroughly.  Then stir in the sesame seeds.  Serve immediately with the rice.  Adapted from Moosewood Restaurant Simple Suppers.

Spicy Ragout of Cauliflower and Tofu

Most of the ragouts I've made in the past have tended to be a bit on the heavy side. This one however, was very light and delicately spiced. 

I think this ragout would be equally good without the tofu, as its addition did nothing for me.  Serve with some homegrown new potatoes.

Spicy Ragout of Cauliflower and Tofu
Serves 4
Ingredients
4 tablespoons olive oil
250g firm tofu, cut into cubes
4 - 6 garlic cloves, crushed
¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1 x 400ml can of tomatoes, crushed
½ teaspoon dried basil or 1 tablespoon of minced fresh basil
Salt and pepper to taste
1 medium head of cauliflower, cut into bite size florets
Generous handful of frozen peas, thawed
Method
In a wide pot, heat 3 tablespoons of the olive oil.  Fry the tofu until golden all over and then remove to a plate.
Reduce the heat and pour in the remaining oil.  Saute the garlic, red pepper flakes until the garlic begins to just brown.  Add in the chopped tomatoes and its juices, along with the basil and seasoning to taste.  Bring to the boil.  Cook for about 5 minutes, before stirring in the cauliflower.  Cook for about 15 minutes or until just tender, then stir in the tofu and peas and cook until both are heated through.  Serve immediately with some potatoes. Adapted from Quick Vegetarian Pleasures by Jeanne Lemlin.

Vietnamese tofu in tomato and black pepper sauce

Other than those hard hitting American-Vietnam movies made in the 1980s, my experience of interacting with Vietnamese people is very little and of Vietnamese cuisine is zero.  The one time I socially engaged with someone of Vietnamese background was at High School. 

There weren't that many South-East Asian children at the school, and to be honest I would not have known this boys ethnicity had it not been splashed on the front cover of one of the local newspapers.  The newspaper story shared how this boys family came to arrive in Wales, U.K as 'boat people' refugees in the 1970s.  It was my first experience as a teen - not only of learning about Vietnam and some of its people, but the real plight of asylum seekers and refugees.    

Anyway, back to food - Vietnamese cuisine is heavily influenced by its neighbours, namely Cambodia, Chinese and Thailand. This recipe for Vietnamese tofu cooked in tomato pepper sauce comes from an Australian cook show named after its presenter chef  Luke Nguyens's.  In this series called Luke Nguyen's Vietnam, Luke returns to his country of heritage to take a culinary journey through Vietnam.

As you would expect, the series showcases lots of meat and fish recipes, including green mussels.  However, in this one episode he makes a tofu dish cooked in tomato sauce.  Other than this tofu recipe looking good to my greedy eyes, I decided to make it in my own home for two reasons, I had tofu in the fridge and I liked all the other ingredients. 

As I began to assemble the ingredients to proceed with the recipe, I noted that I did not have any vegetarian  oyster sauce which was going to substitute for the fish sauce in the original recipe, but determined to make this dish I replaced it with mushroom ketchup.  My Vietnamese readers will probably be shouting at me through the computer screen with great disappointment, as nuoc mam - salty fish sauce is an essential ingredient in Vietnamese cooking, but I hope they will forgive me this time round.

I really liked this dish.  It was sweet, light and peppery.  It actually reminded me a little of Malaysian Black Pepper Tofu, but of course this recipe was not as heavily peppered, it still packed a flavour punch to the chops. 

Crisp tofu cooked in tomato and black pepper sauce (dau hu sot ca)
Serves 4
Ingredients
200ml vegetable oil
300g firm tofu, drained and cut into cubes
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 shallot, preferably pink minced
1 birds eye chilli, finely sliced
4 ripe tomatoes, roughly chopped
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1 teaspoon brown sugar
2 tablespoon Mushroom ketchup (vegetarian oyster or fish sauce)
3 spring onions, sliced
1 generous teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Coriander sprigs, to garnish
Method
Pour the oil into a wok and heat until a cube of bread dropped into the oil browns in 15 seconds.
Add the tofu, cooking it in two batches to ensure the oil stays hot, and deep-fry until crisp. Remove the tofu with a slotted spoon and transfer to kitchen paper to drain.
Transfer the deep-frying oil into a deep bowl, leaving about 1 tablespoon of oil in the wok.
Add the garlic, shallot and chilli to the wok, and stir-fry for 1 minute or until fragrant.
Add the tomatoes, salt, sugar and sauce. Stir and allow the tomatoes to break down.
Add 100ml water to the wok, bring to the boil, then reduce the heat to a low simmer for 10 minutes.
Add the crisp tofu, spring onions and black pepper, folding it all together, and simmer for no longer than 1 minute as you want to keep the crisp texture of the tofu.  Garnish with coriander.  Adapted from Luke Nguyens's Vietnam.  See original recipe being cooked here.

Pineapple, Ginger and Tofu Curry

My husband is excellent when it comes to eating his vegetables, but when it comes to eating fresh fruit he is a bit lazy.  The one time he'll tuck into a bowl of fruit is when its chopped up into little pieces and given to him as a fruit salad. Well no jewelled fruit or berry studded salad here.  Instead I present you with a savoury pineapple dish coated in thick, spicy coconut cream.

Pineapples are not widely used in Indonesian cooking, however this recipe is adapted and inspired by a dish from the city of Palebang in South Sumatra.

I have to admit, I would never had thought of combining these ingredients together, but I was encouraged by the recipe suggestion.  The curry was enjoyable, both sweet and savoury.  The taste reminded us both of Peshwari Naan bread; a South Asian sweet bread that is often served with spicy dishes.  I also found the surprise ginger hit wonderful against the juicy bursts of the pineapple chunks.

The tofu is optional, added namely for bulk and texture.  This curry is best eaten on the day.  If you leave it overnight, the flavours intensify and it become overly sweet, and this is meant to be a savoury curry, not a dessert.  I served it simply with plain boiled Basmati rice.

Pineapple and Tofu Curry
Serves 4
Ingredients
Optional: 300g firm tofu
1 pineapple, peeled and chopped into medium-sized cubes
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 - 3 shallots, peeled and finely sliced
3 cloves garlic, crushed
2½ inch ginger, peeled and thinly sliced
1 tablespoon coriander seeds, roasted and ground
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 – 3 teaspoons red chilli flakes
150g block coconut cream
½ pint water
Coriander or mint leaves for garnish
Salt and black pepper to taste.
Optional: Lime wedge for serving
Method
Heat the oil in a wide pan and add the shallots and garlic. Saute for around 2-3 minutes until soft and add the chilli flakes, coriander, ginger and saute for another 3 minutes. Add water, coconut milk and pineapple. Bring to the boil and then turn the heat to medium-low. Add tofu if using, then cover. Cook for 6-8 minutes. Stir in the coriander and season with salt and black pepper to taste.  Serve with plain boiled rice topped with a lime wedge. Recipe adapted from here.

Tofu 'Fish', Chips and Mushy Peas

This Great British Pub grub has been given the veg(etari)an culinary makeover.

All that is missing from this plate is a generous dolloping of bright red sauce.

For those of you who have been reading my blog a while, will note that I am a greasy fingered girl.  I like my deep fried snacks, especially chips, pakoras aka bhaji's and samosas.  When I told D I was going to be making Battered Tofu 'Fish' and Mushy Peas, he snugged his nose.  Not so much at the idea of the Battered Tofu 'fish', (though his preference is bread crumbed) but the mushy peas.  For some reason, he has never been keen on mushy peas - not sure if its the processed flavour or its luminous green colouring. Mushy peas like the ones I've made here are traditionally made from dried marrow fat peas.

If your lucky to be near a Chinese Wholesaler, you can find soya fish, Soya fish fillets, soya squid and soya scallops from Chinese wholesalers. I actually did see some Soya 'fish' (head, fins and tail) at SeeWoo, Glasgow a few month ago when I picked up the vegetarian 'prawns' and wonton wrappers.  Momentarily, I had considered purchasing a packet of a soya 'fish', but it was mighty for me to wolf down alone and D wasn't keen on sharing.  I wish I had done so now, as I may not find Soya 'fish' when I move down South.  Also there are not many places in the U.K that make 'Fish' and chips suitable for vegetarians or vegans.  In fact, I know of only one place, a company called Something Fishy: Purveyors of fine quality soya meat and seaweed that do so.

Anyway, here I have used firm tofu and my fish biscuit/cookie cutter to mimic the shape of a fish.  If you can't find a fish shaped cutter, just slice the tofu and make 'fish fingers' and then coat it in a batter. If I had the patience I would have wrapped my tofu 'fish' in some dried seaweed to give it the smell, if not the taste of the sea.

Vegetable Pot Stickers

These crispy pan fried vegetable dumplings are called 'pot stickers' because they tend to stick to the bottom of the pot whist being fried and steamed.  Let me explain how: a little oil coats the bottom of a deep pan (with a fitted lid).  When it is hot, the dumplings are added to the pan.  The pot is then covered for a few minutes for the dumplings to fry.  After a few minutes have passed, water is added to the pan, it is then covered again and steamed for a couple of minutes.  Finally the lid is removed to allow the water to evaporate.

Pot stickers feature heavily in my American and Canadian vegetarian and vegan cookbooks. As someone who is not big into the flavours of the Orient and Chinese cuisine, I have always liked the idea of crisp dumplings (a bit like Spring Rolls) and have always wanted to make them, but for one reason and another, just never got round.

Then a few weeks ago I caught a glimpse of Celebrity Chef Ken Hom on a weekend cookery show making Pork Pot sticker dumplings. He made it look quite straight forward and at that moment I decided I wanted to make a veggie version.

You can choose any vegetable filling for your wontons, but mine are made from the remnants of sliced white cabbage and carrots left over from the Sri Lankan Carrot Curry recipe.

As this was my first time making pot stickers, I did have a few issues. First because I skipped on using the food processor, I noted that my minced cabbage was not minced enough, proving a little chunky for the wrapper. Secondly, I misread the instructions fried the wontons in too much peanut oil, then drenched them in too much water. This resulted in a soft wonton, rather than a crisp one. Regardless of the instructions being poorly followed, the result was tasty though a little greasy.

As there was just D and myself to enjoy them, I constructed only 12 wontons yesterday, good job as this allowed me to learn from my mistakes. Today's Vegetable Pot stickers were much crispier and less greasy. It was a vast improvement.

Served on a bed of stir fried bok choy and a small bowl of plain soy sauce for dipping.
Vegetable Pot Stickers
Makes about 24
Ingredients
85g white cabbage, minced
200g firm tofu, drained and crumbled
1 small carrot, grated
1 garlic clove, minced
1 tablespoon ginger, peeled and minced
1 teaspoon toasted sesame seeds
½ teaspoon cornflour
Salt and pepper to taste
24 wonton or dumpling wrappers*, thawed if frozen
2 tablespoons peanut oil
1 tablespoon tamari or other soy sauce
150ml water
Method
In a food processor, combine the cabbage, tofu, carrots, garlic, ginger, sesame oil, cornflour and salt and pepper. Process for a few seconds until well combined. I have to admit I skipped this step and just mashed them in a bowl, but noted my cabbage shreds were a little large and were bit of a nuisance when filling the wonton wrappers.
Place 1 wonton on a work surface and spoon 1 tablespoon of the filling mixture in the middle. Fold the wrapper over the filling to form a triangle. Moisten the edges of the wrapper with water to seal. Repeat with the remaining wrappers and filling.

Heat 1 tablespoon of the peanut oil in a large non stick pan over medium-high heat. Place dumplings in the pan, you will need to do this in batches as you do not want to crowd the pan. Cook for about 3 minutes, until golden. Stir in half the tamari, then half of the water. Cover and reduce the heat to medium and cook for 5 minutes. Uncover and cook until the water has evaporated. Repeat with the remaining dumplings. Serve immediately. Adapted from Vegan Planet

*The shop bought wonton wrappers I used contain egg, but seeing that this recipe came from a vegan cookbook, there must surely be a vegan version. So please read the packet if catering for vegans.

Malaysian Black Pepper Tofu

A few months ago, my neighbours who happen to be Malaysian Muslims knocked on our door to give us a couple of bowls of celebratory dishes they had made for Eid. Both dishes contained halal meat. I was going to accept them just out of sheer politeness, but I knew in my heart she would ask how we found them and I would not be able to lie, and you know how one little white lie can grow. So I was upfront and honest and told her it was very kind of her, but I could not accept either dishes as we were both primarily vegetarian. She was understanding and nodded politely. During our polite conversation about food in general, I did tell her that the only Indonesian and Malay cuisine I had ever tried was Nasi Goreng.

Anyway, speaking to her again this weekend got me thinking about Malay cuisine. I thought it was time for me to try something different. A long while ago, I remembered seeing a recipe for 'Malaysian Black Pepper Crab' and thinking to myself, I could substitute the mud crabs for 'vegetarian prawns' (made from seaweed extract, gluten wheat, salt and spices). But today I decided on firm tofu. The original recipe has a few ingredients I don’t have to hand such as salted soy beans. Ordinarily I’d be happy to pick up ingredient but I am trying my utmost to use what I have at home, so I omitted this from the recipe as well dried prawns. My Malaysian neighbour would so not approve of this omission, as dried prawns are an essential seasoning ingredient in most Malay dishes. I also reduced the chillies, and that's unusual for me, but even with my high chilli tolerance levels I don’t think I could handle 10 – 12 red birds eyes chilli. No way. Finally, I substituted the fresh curry leaves with a handful of fresh coriander leaves. I know what your thinking - with all these changes to the recipe its hardly Malaysian - well let's just say its Malaysian cuisine inspired.

This 'Black Pepper Tofu' dish was really delicious: rich and intense in flavour. I don't know what it was about it, but the combination of red chilli and black pepper was almost addictive. The tofu tastes gorgeous too, with the crisp outer skin and soft inside. Oh I wish I had taken a photograph of the shallots and red chillies whilst they were being sauteed, as the ingredients in the pan were very different in colour up until the soy sauce, oyster sauce and black pepper went in, instantly turning the entire contents in the pan ink black

Curried Tofu with Turmeric rice

This dish is unusual for me, as I don’t normally use tofu in ‘South Asian style curry' based dishes. I am always happy to use fresh vegetables, but I had picked up this tofu to compliment the dried Chinese mushrooms - a broth of sort had come to mind, however it had not been used and it was fast reaching its use by date. As Tofu is not a particularly affordable ingredient to purchase, I did not wish to waste it. I have a wish that one-day I’d like to have a go at making my own, but until that day (should it arrive) I’m relatively happy with this brand.
This is a mild spiced curry with absolutely no chilli heat at all. The flavours were fine, but I personally don’t think the tofu worked well here, as it was too soft and did not absorb the flavours. But I understand its addition here as it was designed with our vegan friends in mind. If you not vegan, I think ‘paneer’ a Indian tofu like cheese would work well, it has more texture and bite, even mock 'chicken' style pieces would work which would have been Ds preference.
Turmeric rice
Serve 2 – 4 with accompaniments
Ingredients
200g Basmati rice
1 teaspoon vegetable oil
1 teaspoon turmeric powder
400ml water
½ teaspoon salt
Method
Rinse and rain the rice. Heat he oil in a saucepan with a tight-fitting lid. Add the rice and turmeric and stir on high heat for a minute or two. Add the water and salt, bring to the boil, then turn down to a gentle simmer. Cover with a tight fitting lid and cook covered for 15 minutes, or until the water is absorbed. Fluff the rice with a fork, and let sit until ready to serve.

Curried Tofu

Serves 2 - 4 with accompaniments

Ingredients
2 teaspoons vegetable oil
1 large onion, peeled and finely sliced
4 cloves garlic, crushed
1 ½ tablespoon ginger root, grated
1 tablespoon Curry powder
1 tablespoon Garam masala
Salt to taste
Packet of firm tofu, drained and cut into ½ inch cubes or triangles
1 x tin tomatoes, chopped or blitzed in food processor
Method
In a large saucepan with a lid, cook the onions in the oil on medium heat until softened. Add the garlic, ginger, curry powder, garam masala, salt and tofu. Cover and cook on medium-low heat, stirring frequently. Add the tomatoes, and simmer for 15 minutes for the flavor to develop. Occasionally stir gently so not to break the tofu. Serve with rice. Adapted from Moosewood Collective Simple Suppers.

Mushroom Tofu loaf served with Chipotle runner bean ragout

Although meatloaf is of European origin, I have always associated it as part of American cuisine. So it will not be a surprise to some of you that I have never seen a meatloaf up close. But D having lived in the States for a couple of years vouched that visually this vegan 'Mushroom Tofu loaf' looked pretty close. It wasn't just about the way it looked though, it was about taste too.
I’ve mentioned before that D is not keen on tofu (or tempeh), so he was the perfect guinea pig. I asked him what he thought of the flavours and texture of the loaf. He actually said he could not detect the tofu, the texture and flavours were good and was very happy eating it. He added he was actually enjoying the accompaniment of the chipotle runner bean-mushroom more with its smoky and warming undertones.

I was still grinning at the way the loaf turned out to think about the ragout. Having never used tofu as a binding agent, I was very impressed with the way the loaf came out in tact. I was honestly actually expecting it to collapse somewhere in the middle. If you do decide to have a go at making the Mushroom Tofu loaf (and I strongly recommend that you do so) just bare in mind that it is rather substantial. It should really be made for a gathering of friends and family; not for two people, unless of course your planning to make it ahead for the working week, which of course we have. It will keep us fed and happy for at least another 3 evenings.

Now onto the ragout - I don’t know how often the Mexican chipotle chile has mingled with the quintessentially British runner bean, but here in this ragout they are just loving each other. I was rather pleased with this fusion dish too, and it was also a nice way to eat the runner beans still growing in the garden plot.

Mushroom Tofu Loaf
Serves 6 - 8
Ingredients3 tablespoons olive oil
1 large onion, finely sliced
4 garlic cloves, crushed
50g chopped walnut or Brazil nuts
50g rolled oats
150g chestnut mushrooms, sliced
500ml vegetable stock
1 tablespoon soy sauce
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
2 tablespoons tomato paste
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1 tablespoon vegetarian Worcestershire sauce
Salt and pepper to taste
500g firm tofu, pressed of excess water and crumbled
3 tablespoons arrowroot or cornflour
140g stale brown bread crumbs
Method
In a large pan, heat 2 tablespoons olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic, and cook, stirring occasionally until soft and golden brown. Transfer to a bowl. Set aside
In the same pan, heat the remaining oil. Add the nuts, oats and mushroom. Saute for a few minutes, stirring frequently, until the mushrooms are tender. Stir in a small amount of stock, turn up the heat and loosen stuck on bits. Add the remaining stock and cook for 10 minutes . Add the soy sauce, mustard, tomato paste, vinegar and Worcestershire sauce. Continue to cook until the mixture is thick. Add to the bowl with the onions and set aside. Season to taste.
Add the tofu and arrowroot or cornflour to a food processor; puree until smooth. Add to the onion mixture and blend in enough breadcrumbs to make a thick paste; mix well/ tip gently into a non-stick or lightly oiled loaf pan measuring 9 by 5 by 3 inches. Press down firmly to pack in the mixture into the pan. Bake for 40 minutes. For optimal result, let the loaf cool for an hour or two before slicing; or make a day ahead and reheat. Adapted from Ken Charney’s The Bold Vegetarian Chef

Chipotle runner bean-mushroom ragoutServes 4
Ingredients
Handful of runner beans, topped and tailed, then sliced into 1 inch diamond shapes
2 chipotle chiles1 medium onion, finely sliced
3 tablespoon olive oil
2 garlic cloves, crushed
200g chestnut mushrooms
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 tablespoon mushroom sauce
Salt and pepper to taste
Method
Cook the runner beans in salted boiling water, until tender. Drain and set aside.
Split open the chipotle chiles, remove the seeds and soak in hot water until soft (about 30 minutes). Mince the chiles and set aside.
In a large pan, cook the onion in the oil over medium heat until soft and lightly browned. Add the garlic, mushrooms and the minced chipotle chiles. Cook for 5 minutes, then add stir in tomato paste and mushroom sauce and 300ml water. Bring to a boil. Cook until the liquid is reduced by about half mushrooms are tender. Stir in runner beans and cook for a minute. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Remove from the heat and serve immediately. An idea inspired by a recipe from Ken Charneys The Bold Vegetarian Chef.