Lazy Kushari March 28, 2013

*As seen on Fry’s Vegetarian‘s website!*

Kushari is a popular veggie roadside dish in Egypt. It’s a mix of rice, pasta, lentils, tomato sauce and fried onions! A big bowl of comfort. You will need baharat seasoning (recipe) or “eyeball” it from that recipe.

*These are presented in the order of layers, starting from the bottom. Please read over to know how you will time everything depending on how much space you have.

I guess there are more ways to make this even lazier with pre-cooked pasta and rice, but I’m guessing you already have these in your dry cupboard and will save money not buying that premade stuff.

I made them here with grilled Fry’s Braai sausages (as instructed on the package).

Kushari

Makes 6-8 servings

PASTA

• 1 1/2 – 2 C (150g) small-shaped pasta
• olive oil

Cooked as instructed in salted water.

Drain, put in serving dish and toss with a little olive oil to prevent sticking.

RICE

• 1 Tbsp vegetable ghee (or margarine)
• 1 C (170g) basmati rice
• 500ml (2 1/4 C) boiling water
• salt

Melt vegetable ghee (or margarine) in a saucepan, and fry rice for 2 min on med-low heat.
SLOWLY add boiling water and a pinch of salt.
Stir & bring to a boil. Turn down to low and cover with lid. Simmer 10 min, let sit for 5. (or follow your rice instructions).

Spread on top of pasta in serving dish.

Chickpeas & Green Lentils

• 1 tin of chickpeas
• 1 ten of green lentils

Pour both tins directly in a sauce pan and heat through.

Drain and spread over rice in serving dish.

Caramelized Onions + Spicy Sauce

• 1 big onion, cut into rings

On a low heat with a little oil in a frying pan, stir fry onions about 10 min until nice and brown.
SET HALF OF THE ONION RINGS TO THE SIDE FOR LATER.

With the leftover onions in the same frying pan, add:

• 2 garlic cloves, minced

Fry on a medium heat until brown.
Then add:

• 250g (1/2 tin) tin of tomatoes
• 3/4C (150ml) water
• baharat seasoning
• chilli flakes or powder to your liking
• salt
• pepper

Simmer until reduced and thick.
Pour over chickpeas and lentils.

Now give it all a big mix!

Serve with the extra onions on top!

Spicy Sweet Soy Soy-Fish & Edamame Salad June 11, 2012

I’m lucky to be able to get vegan “fish” in London (previously having to drive over an hour to get to Tink Holl in Cleveland to find fun mock meats).

Thankfully this sauce is really versatile and you can use it for a mess of things: tofu; mix veg for stir fry; even on steamed broccoli would be great!

Sriracha Tempeh with Stir Fryless Rice October 2, 2011

Spicy Tempeh, Asian Rice, and Miso Soup

I told you it was going to be a spicy weekend to start off VeganMofo!

So after making your delicious Sriracha Tofu yesterday, I bet you have some marinade leftover, don’t you? No? Well, better make some more!

Sriracha Tempeh

Ingredients:

• Tempeh, cut into slices
• Sriracha marinade (recipe)

Marinade the tempeh slices in the sriracha mix for a few hours. Pan fry until brown and crispy on each side. Done! Dine!

Marinading in terrible lighting.

Side: Cut onion and red pepper into thick slices, and stir fry on low until caramelized with the marinade.

Stir Fry-less Rice

The heartiness of the brown rice gives the recipe some bulk, while the sesame oil adds a nice Asian flavor to go with the tempeh. You can of course add more veggies, but I wanted to keep it simple.

Ingredients:

• Brown rice
• Carrot, chopped
• Edamame, shelled
• Sesame Oil
• Soy Sauce

Add brown rice and carrots to pot. Cook brown rice according to directions. 10 minutes before the rice is done, add the edamame on top (do not stir).

When rice is done (drain if needed), add a few shakes of soy sauce, and 1 tsp of sesame oil. Stir in pan. Taste to see if you need any more soy sauce or sesame oil.

"Tinie Tempeh"~ Omni Monkey

Bonus Tip:

Run out of sriracha? Just add a little water or regular olive oil to the bottle and shake it up! Instant flavoring for dishes! (If using water, keep in fridge.)

Gotta get all those saucy flavors out!

Eggplant Rice Bowl September 29, 2008

“Gyuu-don” in Japan is a popular beef rice bowl. Gross I know. But don’t worry! A super tastier & healthier rice bowl is ready to take it’s place as Number One!

EGGPLANT RICE BOWL!
“Nasu-don”

makes 4 bowls

2 medium Asian eggplants (or one regular large eggplant)
1 onion, chopped
1 C “dashi” (konbu, wakame, or vegetable stock)
1/4 C + 1 Tbsp soy sauce
3 Tbsp mirin (rice vinegar)
1 tsp apple cider vinegar
2 Tbsp sugar

1/2 C water + 2 Tbsp cornstarch

Short grain rice, cooked (bout 4 cups)

Toppings:
grated ginger (the kind in the tube. or pickled ginger works well too)
scallions

1. Cut eggplants in half

2. Grill the eggplants until the skin is wrinkly and just starting to char.
Try broiling them in the oven, or on a high temp close to the heat source in your toaster oven. For a last resort, try a creme brulee torch!

3. Place them in an ice bath for 5 minutes.

4. While waiting, place dashi stock, soy sauce, vinegars, and sugar in a pan on medium heat and bring to a simmer.

5. After the ice bath, peel the eggplants and discard the skins (the smell will tempt you, but don’t eat them yet!)

6. Cut each eggplant in four long strips and then cut those in half, giving you 8 pieces.

7. Add eggplant and onion to broth. Simmer for 10 minutes.

8. Slowly pour in the cornstarch/water mixture. Stir constantly until it thickens.

9. Pour over rice. Top with scallions and ginger. Dig in! (Oh it’s so good!)

No eggplants? No worries! Use any veggies on hand with the same sauce.