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Risotto

August 3, 2015 by Tofu Temptress 1 Comment

A sprig of parsley on the top looks attractive
Risotto
Risotto

The recipe below is for mushroom and green bean risotto, but feel free to get creative. I’ve used a combination of mushrooms and chopped leeks for example, or peas, peppers, even broccoli chopped up small – whatever easily/quickly cooked veg I have lying around really.

Nutritional Yeast
Nutritional Yeast

Nutritional yeast is probably an ingredient you haven’t heard of unless you’re vegan, but never fear. It’s not 100% essential that you use it, but it does give the dish a nice savoury flavour (parmesan is used in non-vegan versions). It’s available in good health food shops or online.

Have inexpensive wine around the house for risotto
Have inexpensive wine around the house for risotto

I won’t lie to you, there’s a lot of stirring in this recipe, but it is worth it. Use the time to stare into space and plan world domination, or just sip the rest of the bottle of wine to keep you amused…

Tinned mushrooms are often more convenient than fresh
Tinned mushrooms are often more convenient than fresh
Vegetable stock is easy to come by
Vegetable stock is easy to come by

Serves 4

Ingredients:

250g mushrooms

Handful of green beans

Tablespoon light soy sauce

Onion, chopped

1 garlic clove, crushed

250g risotto rice

3 tablespoons dry white wine

Sometimes just called Risotto Rice, Arborio is the stuff to use
Sometimes just called Risotto Rice, Arborio is the stuff to use

1 litre vegetable stock

Tablespoon nutritional yeast

(Salt and pepper to taste and parsley to garnish if desired)

Here’s how I do it:

Cook the mushrooms and green beans(or whatever you’re using, see note) in the soy sauce and 4 tablespoons of water for 5-10 mins till soft. Season to taste and set aside.

Mushrooms and green beans in soy sauce
Mushrooms and green beans in soy sauce

In a separate pan, cook the onion and garlic in 2 tablespoons of water until they start to sizzle. Reduce heat and simmer for 5 mins. Add more water (a tablespoon at a time) if it starts to dry out.

Make sure stock is absorbed before adding the next lot
Make sure stock is absorbed before adding the next lot

Add the rice and wine to the onions and cook for 2 mins. Pour in a quarter of the stock and bring to the boil. Stir constantly.

Sainsbury's wine is handily labelled as vegan
Sainsbury’s wine is handily labelled as vegan

When the stock has been absorbed, add another cup of stock and continue to do this (add stock, stir, absorb…) until the rice is tender. Don’t be tempted to rush this bit. Constant stirring helps it get all nice and creamy. Make sure the stock has been absorbed fully before adding the next one.

A sprig of parsley on the top looks attractive
A sprig of parsley on the top looks attractive

Once all the stock is gone, mix in the mushrooms/green beans mixture and nutritional yeast. (If you only have dried parsley, you can add in a shake at this stage.) Stir until well combined, and then serve into pre heated bowls. If you’re using fresh parsley, pop a large sprig on top and enjoy.

Dig in!
Dig in!

Filed Under: Easy Vegan Recipes Tagged With: Italian, nutritional yeast, rice, risotto

Roast Pepper and Avocado Sushi

July 30, 2015 by Tofu Temptress Leave a Comment

Make your own sushi
Make your own sushi

If you thought sushi was all about raw fish, then you’re clearly living in the eighties. In the twenty first century it’s all about the plants, so although I’ve used peppers and avocado here, you can fill your sushi with anything you fancy really. Asparagus is great, as is carrot or anything else you can cut into long strips. Marinated tofu works really well, and if you can’t be bothered marinating your own, Cauldron make a fab pre-packed version. All my sushi stuff is from the Yutaka range, because it’s readily available in supermarkets and is easy to divide up into portions. Experiment with fillings and combinations and you’ll soon have your own go-to sushi recipe.

Plant based sushi
Plant based sushi

Ingredients:

One ripe medium avocado

Two peppers, whatever colours you like

Half a packet (250g) of Yutaka sushi rice

One pack (5 pieces) of sushi nori

Soy sauce and pickled ginger to serve

Special equipment – Sushi Rolling mat (found in supermarkets next to the sushi stuff)

Roasted peppers
Roasted peppers

Here’s how I do it-

First of all, roast your peppers. To do this, slice up a couple of peppers into four (getting rid of the seeds and stalk) grab a roasting tin (or baking try, whatever you have) pop a bit of water in it (enough to just cover the bottom) and place the pieces shiny side up onto it. Now, some people use oil, but I figure, water is free and if you wet the tops of the pepper pieces it stops them from drying out. It basically does the same job, minus the fat. Stick them into a pre heated oven (150 degrees/Gas mark 3) for around 30 mins.

Peppers roasted in water
Peppers roasted in water

While the peppers are roasting, measure out the rice. You’ll need to wash it, so what I normally do is just put it in a sieve and run it under the cold tap till the water goes from cloudy to clear. Give it a good swoosh around to make sure. Put the rice in a pan that has 330ml of water in it and bring to the boil. It’ll bubble and froth a bit when it’s boiling, but don’t take the lid off, just turn the heat down and let it cook for ten minutes. Once ten minutes has gone by, turn off the heat and let it sit for half an hour WITH THE LID ON.

Keep the lid on!
Keep the lid on!

Once your peppers are roasted (they’ll be browning slightly) take them out of the oven and let them cool.

When your rice is ready, take the lid off and let it cool too.

Prep your peppers and avocado by slicing them up into long thin strips, as shown.

Red and yellow peppers are my favourite
Red and yellow peppers are my favourite
Slice the avocado into strips
Slice the avocado into strips

Once the rice has cooled a bit, I normally divide it into five sections using a wooden spoon, just so I know I’m going to put equal amount of rice onto each nori.

Divide up the rice
Divide up the rice

Take your first sheet of nori and place it onto the rolling mat. Take a fifth of the rice and smear it on, leaving gaps at the top and bottom, as shown. Next, take a few strips of filling and line them up horizontally on the edge of the rice that’s nearest you (see picture.)

Naked nori
Naked nori
Smear rice on nori
Smear rice on nori

Now, there is a diagram on the back of the nori packet on how to roll the sushi. I generally just take up the nori and the mat in my hands and, with my fingers, squash the filling in as I roll so the rice surrounds it. At the edge, I moisten the remaining nori with water, and sort of ‘glue’ the two layers together. Seriously, just follow the diagram or just roll it any way that works for you – it won’t impair the flavour!

With the filling in place, you're ready to roll
With the filling in place, you’re ready to roll
Nori roll, ready for slicing
Nori roll, ready for slicing

Repeat this process until you have five long rolls. If you like you can put them in the fridge for a while to make them more solid and easier to work with, but if you’re starving then line them up and with a sharp knife (I find a bread knife works best) slice them into eight. The ends won’t look too pretty, but unless you’re serving a dinner party, this doesn’t matter much. The middle sections should be scrummy little morsels of yummy-ness.

Sushi ginger
Sushi ginger
Soy sauce for dipping
Soy sauce for dipping

Serve arranged on a plate with soy sauce for dipping and some ginger to refresh the palate.

Yumminess
Yumminess
Roasted pepper and avocado sushi
Roasted pepper and avocado sushi

This recipe makes 40 pieces, which should serve two to four people, depending on how hungry you are!

Filed Under: Easy Vegan Recipes Tagged With: avocado, healthy, Japanese, rice, sushi

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