vegan recipes: a list thread

I made a delicious eggplant salad, dressed with kecap manis and sesame, a few weeks ago. The recipe was a variation of one from the Bitten site; details on Is That...Pie?. Also, summer or salad rolls lend themselves well to vegan contents - a crispy sliver of jicama or a narrow piece of broken rice cracker adds great texture variety.

There's also a great recipe in here somewhere for eggplant/mushroom vegan chili, which works great as a hot stew or warm as a dip.

I don't have any specific recipes, but, like a lot of ilxors I've seen, I can't recommend Mark Bittman's How To Cook Everything Vegetarian enough. It's excellent, and does a really good job of both explaining the simplest kitchen techniques and of including lots of interesting 'exotic' recipes. It's not a vegan book, but most recipes include instructions on how to make them vegan.

I'll look through and post a few from it here in a day or two, I'm distracting myself from franticly doing homework right now.

Don't, on the other hand, get Vegan with a Vengence unless you have serious exotic ingredient connections. I don't think I ever once managed to find all the right ingredients when I was trying to cook from that.

thanks guys!

yeah, nick, i want fairly simple recipes, nothing where i have to go hunting through five different supermarkets to find the ingredients ;)

i'd definitely invest in a copy of how to cook everything veg.

what foods/ingredients do you dislike, r?

oh man.... i'm actually embarrassed to say! ....

mushrooms
olives
capers
anchovies
corn
coriander
hot hot food

to name a few...

peanut sauce:
1/4 c natural (no sugar) peanut butter
2 t soy sauce
1 T light brown sugar
1 T lime juice
1/4 c coconut milk (lite is fine, if you prefer or substitute water)
red pepper flakes or chili sauce or whatever hot condiment you prefer, to taste

mix everything, adding the water last, and heat it gently over med-low heat in a saucepan until it's blended.

serve it with noodles topped with tofu and shredded carrot and cucumber. it's also a good dipping sauce.

Here is a recipe that I sent to Abbott that she seems to like:

Sweet Tater Stew

Boil a bunch of cubed sweet taters, maybe 4 big ones. Use just enough water to cover them, and no more. If you don't like the skins, peel them first. When they start to get soft, add the following: 1-2 big cans of stewed tomatoes, chopped; 4 or so cloves of garlic, chopped; bunch of chopped peppers (poblano, pasilla, or just sweet peppers -- I like it spicy, so I use sweet and spicy peppers both); 1 cup peanut butter; salt to taste. Add enough curry just to give it a little kick, but not to make it taste like Indian food (which isn't a bad thing, but just wrong here). I usually add maybe 2 tablespoons, and perhaps a little cumin for extra kick.

The whole thing needs to cook for about one hour. Optionally, you can cook some of the sweet taters separately and blenderize them when soft and add back into the stew. This makes the stew nice 'n' thick, which is how god intended that it be. If not, cook long enough so that the sweet taters are super duper mushy and stir the soup plenty so that they fall apart a little bit. This is where using only enough water is very crucial: Too much water and the soup will be soupy.

this is my favorite marinara recipe:

1 medium to large onion, diced
4 cloves of garlic, crushed or chopped
1T fresh thyme (can use dried; use a bit less)
1/2 carrot, shredded
2 28oz cans crushed or whole tomatoes w/ liquid

saute onion and garlic in 1/4 C olive oil for 8-10 minutes over medium/medium-high heat. add thyme and carrot and saute for another 5-6 minutes, then add tomatoes and simmer for at least 30 minutes. i like to run the immersion blender through after things are done cooking for a smooth-ish sauce.

these are great recipes!!

http://theurbanhousewife.blogspot.com/2008/02/jackfruit-carnitas-tacos.html

ok this is the one me and my gf (she is vegan) do as a staple

put this in a frying pan:
4 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp passata
2 tomatoes skinned and chopped
3 tbsp capers
3 tbsp olives
pepper

cook pasta (linguine is best) and while cooking pasta, rest the frying pan on top of the pot... when pasta cooked, run sauce through pasta and add peppe + handful of basil, serve

probably best not to add salt, esp. if you salt your pasta water

lauren's peanut sauce can also be used as a base for a potato and peanut curry

add this to a blender:
handful of rocket/arugula
cup of pistachios
tsp white miso paste
tbsp olive oil
black pepper

pulse 3/4 times, should still be bitty

meanwhile take brocollini / brocolli, cut up and blanche for 3/4 minutes till bright green. take these out and flash fry in some olive oil with salt and pepper, when almost done add 1/2tsp of balsamic vinegar and toss to coat

cook pasta, run the pistachio pesto through pasta when cooked and top with brocolli/brocollini

tip: add a tsp of cocoa powder and half a stick of cinnamon to chilli

tbsp of cocoa powder rather; gives the chilli a deep, earthy taste

co-sign nick's take on 'vegan w/a vengeance'. wtf are half the ingredients she uses?

Like what?? Now I'm curious.

me too. moskowitz is nyc-based, so i'm assuming that there are perhaps spices or other ingredients that would be readily available to someone with access to hundreds of specialty stores but might otherwise be kind of esoteric.

oh, I never answered that... I can't remember off the top of my head all the ones I boggle at - maybe it's just cos her recipes seem to be ingredient laden more than anything. tho nutritional yeast is one I always struggle to find

don't suppose you could post up a recipe for the eggplant/mushroom chilli you mentioned, jaq?

i should send you a vegan care package. i can think of 5 places off the top of my head within spitting distance of my office that sell nutritional yeast, for example. and i'm like 10 minutes away from one of the best spice emporiums.

oh, i have a recipe on is that... pie? for a really simple eggplant/chickpea/tomato stew that could be easily made more chili-like:
1 large (about 1.25lbs) eggplant, cubed

1 large onion, chopped

garlic to taste, chopped

1tsp each cinnamon and cayenne pepper

2tsp garam masala

1 can (or equivalent) chickpeas

1 28 oz can diced tomatoes

1.5 cups veg. broth

maybe use cumin instead of garam masala, add some fresh peppers (mixture of sweet and hot), some oregano, black or pinto beans instead of chickpeas...

awesome, was just reading "is that... pie?" and noticed that recipe! : )

I'll try dig out the vegan vengeance book, see what other weird and wonderfuls she uses : )

here's the chili I made: So what have you cooked lately? (Year three!)

There's no real subs for the chipotles in adobo - I buy them canned, maybe you can find? Epazote is a minty, oregano-like herb: could just increase the oregano and add a pinch of dried mint. Masa is the lime-treated cornmeal used to make tortillas. If you can't find, I'd throw in strips of corn tortilla or even tortilla chips.

beetroot w/green sauce

take fresh beetroot and boil it

meanwhile in a bowl add chopped garlic, onion, capers, dijon, parsley, mint and mix, stir in olive oil to combine

when beetroot prepared cut into healthy chunks and dress with the mixture in the bowl

mmmmmm

non-vegans can add chopped anchovies to the dressing for some more funk!!

The tassajara cookbook is full of awesome vegan recipes especially soups, particularly the curried zucchini and corn and tomatillo.

oh and awesome, thanks jaq!!! I am totally making that or a variation on it tonight

I shall dig out the recipes and post later.

http://www.treehugger.com/files/2006/03/post_26.php

made this last night. very tasty, and VERY cheap (esp. if you already have a big bag of red lentils).

looking forward to trying this recipe. i think you could get rid of the yogurt, or perhaps use some coconut milk instead. also, i think you could play around with the spices a bit to get around using cardomom pods and coriander seeds.

Sweet Potato and Tempeh Stew
Serves 4

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 onion, diced
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tablespoon grated ginger
6 cardamom pods
1 teaspoon coriander seeds
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 pounds sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch cubes (about 4 cups)
3 cups water or vegetable broth
8 ounces tempeh, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1 cup plain yogurt, divided
Salt and pepper to taste
Toasted pumpkin seeds for garnish

Heat oil in a large, heavy saucepan. Sauté onion and garlic until onion is translucent.

Add ginger, cardamom pods, coriander seeds, red pepper flakes, and 1/4 teaspoon salt and sauté for another minute.

Add sweet potatoes and water or broth. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes.

Add tempeh and simmer for about 10 more minutes, until tempeh is cooked through and potatoes are tender.

Remove from heat, season to taste, and stir in 1/2 cup yogurt. Serve garnished with the remaining yogurt and pumpkin seeds.

Breakfast Couscous (appealing to both vegans and non-vegans alike!)
feeds 4, or 3 or even 2 if you're reaaaally hungry; can easily be halved, just do the math
use 3/4 cup of liquids if you like drier couscous; 1 cup if you like moister couscous. I prefer drier.

3/4 or 1 cup orange juice
3/4 or 1 cup vanilla rice or soy milk
lots of cinnamon, to taste
1 cup french style couscous
lots of dried fruit (raisins, craisins, etc.)

Bring liquids and cinnamon to a boil. Stir in dried fruit and couscous, and remove from heat. Cover and let sit for 5 minutes. Fluff with fork and serve.

It's so tasty and so easy!

do you think a chocolate version of this could work? still using oj, but maybe choc soy milk and a little cocoa powder? or is that totally wrong?

Injudra

1/2 pound dry brown lentils
1 cup long grain rice
3 - 4 large onions
1/2 cup olive oil
salt, pepper and cumin to taste (i use a lot of cumin)
if you want more vegetables add some cabbage or carrots or have something on the side.

good for casseroles w/noodles or rice and peas or whatever

mock bechamel sauce

1 onion chopped fine
2 cloves of garlic
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup whole wheat flour
1 1/2 cup water/veg stock
soy sauce/sea salt

saute onions on medium heat...add garlic...add flour while stirring and cook 3-5 minutes...add water/stock+salt soy sauce and keep cooking and stirring

http://www.treehugger.com/files/2006/03/post_26.php

made this last night. very tasty, and VERY cheap (esp. if you already have a big bag of red lentils).

― lauren, Saturday, October 4, 2008 12:31 AM (2 weeks ago)

lauren, i was going to post this link, i make this often, it is very very good. i sometimes use persian red lentils for it, they take longer but they are delicious.
i love all lentils, they are one of my main foods.

the injudra looks great, artdamages, do you slow cook the onions first to sweeten them?

yeah i didnt give instructions for that recipe. i cook the rice and lentils seperately (ive experimented w/cooking them in the same pot, but it doesn't ever work out) and cook up the onions by themselves on medium heat adding the garlic and cumin later then mixing that into the lentils when they are done.

i dont like crunchy onions so i tend to cook them to death and use huge amounts of them to make up for it

i'm going to make that.

yay for lentils!

is injudra another name for mujadarah? it seems like the same thing. so tasty, esp. if you used caramelized onions. i'm really into caramelized onions lately.

looks like it is the same.

xpost to rubyredd:

OMG that sounds to DIE; I'm going to try it next time I have choc soymilk!! OJ + choc is heaven.

or orange + choc, i mean.

So peeps, my two "OMG CAN'T LIVE WITHOUT" foods before going vegan were mac n cheese (R.I.P.) and steamed pork dumplings. The former is all but hopeless in recreating accurately, but the latter I think I could get down pretty damn close with seitan and proper herbs and spices. Anyone ever tried this?

p.s. real dumplings, NOT that cabbage-filler bullshit. cabbage sucks.

i really hate the texture of seitan, so i never tried cooking with it when i was vegan. with that in mind, i'd try using finely-crumbled tempeh mixed with herbs and a tiny bit of a cornstarch/soy mixture. sadly, though, nothing tastes like pork.

Cabbage rocks!

U guise i need some tofu recipes that will bring the house down. All the ones I've made so far range from "eh" to "pretty good the first few bites" but I need something mind-blowingly delicious.

i just came across this recipe the other day:

http://www.monsoonspice.com/2008/08/sweet-chilli-lime-tofu-with-wok-steamed.html

it sounds delicious.

yay for this thread!

i just purchased How to Cook Everything Veg AND the Veganomicon recently, but haven't had a chance to put them to work yet. But Bittman's great, in my experience.

You absolutely HAVE to try the Penne Vodka in Veganomicon--it's the best thing I've made vegan. The Black Beans in Chipotle Adobo sauce was killer too, the black beans were absolute perfection but the chipotle sauce was a bit too sweet and oniony for my tastes.

woah you rule. thank you so much for finding this out, my curiosity is now well satisfied. hummusim makes more sense for chickpeas- idk any Hebrew really but sounds like a plural form of hummus :)

Xps seriously, why is there a tempeh shortage right now?? It’s been weeks.

According to Yotam Ottolenghi, soaking dried chickpeas overnight, draining them off and sautéing with baking soda BEFORE simmering in water, does some of chemical magic that breaks down the skins so you get a smoother consistency without having to peel

My tj's and local Sprouts has been sans tempeh for weeks. Cld be a opportunity to learn how to make, but we go from too hot in summer to freezing in winter so I just don't wanna bother with learning curve rn

Hi dere, I'm technically a vegetarian but am an accidental vegan most weeks. Anyway, Rainbow Plant Life has yet to steer me wrong, and this stew is next on my list: https://rainbowplantlife.com/vegan-west-african-peanut-stew/#wprm-recipe-container-5657

I don't actually have peanut butter but I'll probably substitute with tahini.

Made this for the second time again: https://rainbowplantlife.com/wprm_print/5540

Absolutely a keeper -- the nut butter gives it an excellent smoky taste.

That Gambian peanut stew looks amazing, and I think I might actually be able to pull it off despite my haplessness when it comes to cookery

It turned out pretty well! I'm thinking of adding actual peanuts to it next time for some added crunch.

After much inner debate about what I'm in the mood for tonight's dinner, I'm going to try this: https://www.pickuplimes.com/recipe/one-pot-creamy-mushroom-pasta-98

I forgot to pick up the chili pepper (arrgh!) but otherwise it turned out really well!

dang, looks good. and one-pots are nice. reminds me of a one-pot mac & cheese that i like to make. one thing i would do different in that recipe is saute the shrooms and try and get a bit of a sear on 'em instead of throwing them in raw. anyways. . .

Persian cuisine is very long-winded. even just all that pomegranate husbandry must be tiring

― here comes the hotstamper (jim in vancouver)

Pomegranate molasses is used more than fresh pomegranates. For a lot of recipes that call for both, like say ash'e anar, you can easily get away with using just the molasses.

I need to drop a few quarantine lbs. so I'm eliminating gluten and sugar from my diet for a bit. I did this for a few years and it led to all kinds of GI health issues, so it's not a long term solution. 'Paleo' diets are not for vegans imo. But I'm going to have to cook every single goddam thing i eat now, hooray!

The peanut stew does sound pretty nice, too bad I'm allergic to sweet potatoes.

Aw man, that sucks! Would it be possible to switch to regular potatoes? Personally, I would've preferred a less sweet version.

Or kabucha pumpkin for more flavor?

As allergies go, it's a ridiculously easy one :)
Good to know it's a tad sweet, kabocha sounds like a good substitution.

Saffron water is really nice in coconut milk and tomato base curries. I would probably tweak the spice blend in that recipe, throw in some black mustsrd seed and asafoetida, nix the curry powder, maybe substitute curry leaves if i had em. Maybe cardamom and cloves.

I almost always use either bahrat or S&B's curry powder from a jar in place of garam masala lately.

https://nataliepenny.com/

This is one of the best vegan recipe sites I've found in ages.
I made her tofu with peanut sauce and sesame greens tonight, it went exceptionally well I must say.

She seems to love cardamom so that definitely catches my attention.

holy cow @ tahini cardamom babka! thanks for link.

xp

holy cow @ tahini cardamom babka! thanks for link.

xp

Her writing is a bit of a shame, enough typos that it takes a little bit of kitchen experience to be able to decipher.

I made the tahini cardamom babka -- it did not turn out well, though I fully acknowledge that my abilities could've sunk the final product.

i tried it too! and underwhelmed. There was not nearly enough filling. The dough was just not right (i did use 1/3 spelt flour) even though i added one (1) egg to enrich it a bit. I have an old tried and true babka recipe i may go back to and make with choc/cardamom/tahini, but is no vegan. I like the matcha/pistachio idea though and have not given up with babka experiments, but something with the recipe was lacking or something

This turned out reasonably well! https://rainbowplantlife.com/fluffy-vegan-gingerbread-cake/

Although I messed a couple things up: it has a strip of uncooked batter that runs under the center line just an inch or so under the surface, I think I remember GBBO saying that trapped air was

I also tried to make up my own frosting without the vegan butter (i.e. solid fats) using olive oil and arrowroot powder -- and in the end, too much of each.

hah to finish that thought: a trapped air bubble keeps the surrounding batter from cooking.

I think I've settled on a decent, easy, and idiot proof fauxgurt recipe.

9 ounces firm tofu
1 cup cashews
1 tablespoon chia seeds

The only prep is to optionally soak the cashews overnight (but I rarely remember to do that), and to make the chia egg. Then, dump everything into a food processor.

Why firm instead of soft tofu? Do you prefer the texture?

Yeah, I wanted something creamier, but I've seen other recipes say that silken tofu works too.

Do you add anything to simulate the tang of yoghurt?

No because I really only use yogurt as a medium to put fruit in, so the sourness isn't something I prioritize.

I'm mostly on board with vegan cooking/baking, but one thing that I'm yet to be convinced of is nutritional yeast. My favorite vegan food blogger calls it "vegan golden flakes" or some such, especially as a way to simulate the savoriness of e.g. cheese, but what I've used it in hasn't elevated my recipes that much. Maybe different brands are better? (I have a bag of Bob's Red Mill.)

I've only really used it to make "vegan white cheddar popcorn". It did have a note of 'artificial cheese flavoring' but it was just one element in a pot pourri of gross.

Sticking to salt and grapeseed oil from now on. Thanks for the reminder to throw that canister of fish food in the garbage.

nutritional yeast alone is not the wave rly, but add it to cashew cream to make a cheesy sauce

It’s def overrated but it does provide some umami that otherwise be lacking in vegan food

i like to use it a few different ways. processing cashews with nutritional yeast, salt and garlic powder makes a really good faux parm imho.
Salads tossed with a vinaigrette do nicely with ny added
Thrown into a vegan alfredo sauce in lieu of parm
Have made polenta and replaced parm with the stuff and that worked quite well, too, imho

A family friend who went vegan last year calls it "nooch."

that is the name

TFW you decide you can't make a chickpea dish because your ice cube tray for aquafaba is full.

haha this is a v particular issue to have

For the past couple weeks, I've been experimenting with vegan brownies (well, brownies and brownie cookies) with the added challenge of avoiding coconut oil, and I think that I've figured out a way to use regular vegetable oil without the brownies coming up super dense: add some cornstarch. I'm not quite sure about the proportions as I eyeballed the amount I put in but it was something like 1-3 Tbsp for what ended up being 4-5 Tbsp of oil and 1 cup of flour.

have you ever tried black beans?

or another mild tasting bean like adzuki might work too

Black bean brownies were some of my earliest baking experiments! I guess I should revisit them.

I've hit upon a perhaps even easier fauxgurt recipe: blend one ripe avocado in a food processor, then add one block of silken tofu (along with taste
enhancers .ije juice from a lemon, 1 tbsp apple Cider Vinegar, 0.25 tsp salt), blend till smooth.

I could never quite get the cashews as smooth.

This shakshuka was fabulous when I made it a few weeks ago and I was looking forward to making it again last night, but I was out of tomato paste and when I went to my supermarket they didn't have any in a tube. :(

I've made this about 3 times and it's pretty idiot-proof: https://www.pickuplimes.com/recipe/vegan-gado-gado-with-sun-dried-tomatoes-186

looks good as hell

Yeah I love it! Some of the substitutions I make: broccoli (make sure to peel them) instead of green beans, tahini instead of peanut butter, and srirachi because I don't have sambal oelek. Perfect blend of savory with a touch of sweet.

https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1025017-lemony-pearl-barley-soup

I made that this week asked if was perfectly fine, but when I added tahini it turned into this rich, creamy, almost cheesey dish that reminds me of Mac and cheese.