Vindaloo with ‘Mince’ and Peas

Not really a recipe as such, but a tip from my Mum that is delicious! So soooooo easy to make!

Ingredients
Frozen Vegan Mince (I used Tesco brand)
Frozen peas
Pataks Vindaloo curry paste
Water
Oil (optional)

Put a little oil in the pan and fry a couple of handfuls of mince over a low heat for a minute or so. If you don’t want to use oil a drop of water will suffice. Add a handful of peas. Stir in vindaloo paste to taste – I wanted it quite spicy so used a generous tablespoon of paste. Add some water, just enough to stop the mince from sticking and burning, there should be no ’sauce’ as such. Allow it to cook for 10 minutes, keeping an eye on the water level.

Enjoy!

I served mine with Yellow Lentil Dhal with Spinach and Tomato and some basmati rice.

Yellow Lentil Dhal with Spinach and Tomato

Easy peasy to make – I’m not going to even write quantities as it is such a simple recipe. Improvise! There is no need to follow recipe books with vegan food as most of it is so simple to make.

Ingredients
Yellow lentils
Onion (optional)
Garlic (optional)
Chopped Tomatoes, fresh or tinned
Spinach – fresh or frozen
Garam Masala
Ground Coriander
Ground Cumin
Cumin Seeds
Cayenne Pepper or Chilli Powder
Salt or Herbamare (optional)

Wash the lentils in cold water then cook for approximately 20-25 minutes until tender. I used two large handfuls of lentils to make two small portions (one eat straight away and one to freeze). Drain and set aside.

Put a little oil in the pan (I used about a tsp) along with a drop of water if you like, and add the cumin seeds. When they start popping add the spices – I used just over a tsp of garam masala, cumin and coriander powder, and a half tsp cayenne pepper. Stir for a few seconds. At this point you can add the onion and garlic if you are using them and cook for a couple of minutes, but I didn’t bother with it this time around. Too stinky!

Throw in the lentils and immediately add around a quarter to a half tin of chopped tomatoes, or a few fresh tomatoes (skinned and chopped). Add the fresh or frozen spinach and cook for a few minutes over a low heat. You can use salt if you like but I thought it was tasty enough without.

That’s it!

Links

To the right I will post links related to vegan nutrition – please check these out. You may find them useful in your own diet too; omnivore, veggie or vegan.

I will write my own articles at a later date.

Homemade Seitan (Wheat-Meat)

This is a must for all vegetarians and vegans as it can be used in a wide range of recipes. Seitan can be kept in the fridge for up to a week, and in the freezer indefinitely, as long as is is stored in its cooking liquid.

I’ll follow this up with recipes containing Seitan at a future date.

Ingredients
2lbs Whole Wheat Flour
About 2 litres/3 pints of water
1 crushed garlic clove (optional)
1 medium onion, quartered
200ml tamari or other soy sauce
2 sticks of celery (optional)

Place the flour into a large bowl, and add some water a little at a time, enough to make a soft dough that you are able to knead.

Knead on a floury surface for 5 minutes, then put the dough back into the bowl.

Pop the bowl in the sink and cover the dough with water straight from the tap (not from the recipe). You need to leave this to rest for at least 15 minutes.

While it is soaking, pour the remaining water into a very large pan – you are looking to fill it around 1/3 full. Add the vegetables and tamari/soy sauce, and bring it to the boil. Reduce it so that it is simmering gently.

Return to the sink and pour the water from the dough. You now need to wash the dough. Alternating with warm and cold water from the tap, gently knead the dough and pour away the water. This takes around 15 to 30 minutes. Start off being ultra careful with the dough, try not to cause it to break apart. You may find it helpful to use a sieve at the early stages to catch any escaping lumps. The white liquid is starch, which you can save to thicken soups if you like.

As you continue to knead and rinse, the dough will become more and more stringy – this is the gluten left over after the washing. Continue to knead and rinse until the water is almost clear, and you have a glob of chewing gum like dough!

This is raw seitan – some recipes may call for this, but I am going to explain how to cook it further.

Slice the raw seitan dough into 3 pieces, and place them into the pan. Ensure that the water is simmering, but try not to let a single bubble break the surface. The slower and longer you cook seitan the more dense and ‘meaty’ it is.

Cook it for at least 1hr, then turn off the heat and allow it to cool in it’s cooking liquid before using or storing. Always store it in it’s liquid.

You may find that some flour works better than others – some may just fall apart during the washing process. I used Tesco Wholemeal and it worked perfectly.

Although making Seitan at home can be a little time consuming don’t be put off – I made enough Seitan to use in four recipes. It really is worth it. The flour cost 85p a bag and I can make 3 batches out of this. Soy sauce is cheaper when bought in large containers in asian food stores by the way!

If you want to try your Seitan straight away there are plenty of recipes online, but a nice start is to try browning thin slices in a pan, then put them in a pitta bread with some salad, perhaps some vegan cheese, anything you like really. Delicious!

Vegan Sausage Casserole

(Serves 1)

You will notice that most of my recipes serve one! This is because I mainly cook just for myself, as my family generally don’t eat what I do A shame, but this is the way it is. Unless someone posts requesting that I change the serving number then I will stick to ‘Serves 1′ for now!

Casserole
2/3 veggie sausages
Red pepper and Green Pepper (as much or as little as you like)
Half a small leek
Few Mushrooms
3/4tsp Vegan Gravy Granules
Mixed Herbs
Black Pepper (to taste)
Herbamare or a little Salt (to taste)
300ml water approx.

Preheat the oven to 180C (350F/Gas Mark 4).
Cook the sausages under a preheated medium grill, turning occasionally, until they are nice and brown. I like them very brown!
Meanwhile slice the veg however you like them, and put them into a small casserole dish.
Add the sausages and ensure that they have veg both covering and underneath them.
Mix together herbamare/salt, herbs, black pepper and gravy granules in a bowl, and add boiling water. Stir or whisk until combined. If it seems a little thick add more water.
Cover dish with foil and bake in the over for 45 minutes.

Mashed Potatoes
2 medium potatoes, peeled and chopped
Soy milk
Soya cream (if desired)
1tsp Sunflower Spread (if desired)
Herbamare to taste
Dijon Mustard (if desired)

Boil the potatoes for 10-15 minutes until soft. Drain water.
Add the spread, soy cream and enough soy milk to make a creamy mash.
Add herbamare to taste – a little dijon mustard is also very nice in mash served with sausage casserole.

Welcome to Twigs and Leaves!

This place will soon be teeming with recipes of Vegan delights that I have eaten – well, for as long as I can keep it up anyway. I have the attention span of an amoeba.

I also hope to post articles on nutrition, and why I am not going to starve to death on this ‘diet’!

I was going to call it ‘Twigs and Leaves’ but there are lots of other sites with this name, funnily enough. Thought I would have a change, always have to be different don’t I!

Please bear with me whilst I get up and running; there will be no such thing as a decent layout, nice pictures and formatting for a while. I will sort this out asap!