Noodle (Pasta) Salad with Ginger Peanut Dressing Recipe

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Lots of raw, fresh vegetables along with a smooth, creamy dressing and of course noodles is what makes this salad sumptuous and a meal in itself. This is one of the recipes I bookmarked when I was subscribed to Vegetarian Times magazine while in US. I love those stash of old magazines so much that I got them along with me back to India. Every now and then, I flip through them for inspiration on what to try out and today's recipe is a result of one such browsings!

Enjoy..

Chilled Cucumber Salad With Garlic

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It all started while I was reading Andrea Nguyen's interview in Monica Bhide's brilliant ebook - "In Conversation with Exceptional Women." If you crazy passionate about food and wish to know more about some of the best food writers of this generation, I highly recommend to read the book.

Vegan-A-Day: Pan Fried Tofu Triangles with Soy-Sesame-Ginger Sauce

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'Now I can look at you in peace; I don’t eat you anymore.' ~ Franz Kafka, while admiring fish in an aquarium

Almost every cuisine in the world boasts of many dishes that revel in their beautiful flavours of various veggies, fruits, seeds, beans and aromatic oils. Indian cuisine is no different, where for every 3 people, 1 is vegetarian. For ages, eating a satisfying plant cuisine is strongly imbibed into our traditional, every day food along with complex spice combinations.

Now, being a vegan is like taking a step further - living without meat or any kind of animal products. It is often a misconception that Veganism is like depriving yourself from what you love to eat. I think, all it needs is a little creativity to think beyond a plate of calorie-rich proteins.

When Harini threw the 'One Day Vegan' challenge at us, I wondered  What it’d be like to be a vegan, just for a day?. I was curious to know how does it feel like to live without eating any animal products (in my case, it is just milk with cereal for breakfast & yogurt/buttermilk at the end of every meal)? - A challenge that would put all my ideas to test and it really did!

I asked TH to do this challenge along with me, but let me tell you upfront: He is a die-hard-yogurt fan. With a lot of convincing, he agreed to this Vegan challenge with me. Our breakfast and lunch went well, just as planned, but by dinner time, he just couldn't stop himself from having that one glass of buttermilk! While, I went on to successfully complete my challenge. Yay! :-)

Here is our menu for the day:

Breakfast: Wholegrain Idlis with Sambar (Click here for the recipe)

Lunch: Pan fried Tofu Triangles with Soy-Sesame-Ginger-Sauce and rice (recipe follows)

Dinner: Roti and Nimbu Masoor Dal (made with Olive oil) (Click here for the recipe)

As a part of this challenge, Harini is also having a giveaway by collaborating with folks from Krya, whose main motive is to - "create natural, environmentally sustainable products that one can use around the home." Read more about them here, who they are and what they do. :-)

 Recipe: Pan Fried Tofu Triangles with Soy-Sesame-Ginger Sauce

Ingredients:

200 gms of tofu (I got mine from M K Ahmed, Bangalore - Ka Kim's variety)
2 tbsp canola oil
salt and pepper
3 cloves of garlic, finely minced

For Soy-Sesame-Ginger Sauce -

2 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp chilli sauce
1/2 tsp sugar
2 tbsp water
1/2 tsp grated ginger
1/2 tsp sesame seeds, lightly toasted

Preparation:

1. Place the tofu on a cutting board and a bowl with filled water on it (for 10-15 mins). Make sure the pressure is not too much which can crumble the tofu. Pat it dry with a paper towel. Cut into triangles.

2. Season the tofu triangles on both sides with salt and pepper and then spread each side with some garlic.  Lightly coat the slices with the flour.

3. Heat oil in a skillet and add these flour coated tofu pieces. Cook on both sides, until slightly crisp golden brown. Set them on paper towels, to drain off the excess oil.

4. In a bowl, mix all the ingredients listed for Soy-Sesame-Ginger sauce. Make sure you have a balance of flavours and neither of them is too over-powering.

5. Drizzle some sauce on the tofu triangles and Serve with rice on the side. Yum!

Verdict: One thing I realised is that, it is not that hard to be a vegan, especially for we, Indians. It is a way of life, once has chosen to live and I commend them for that choice. Truth to be told, I really really missed my tangy buttermilk with ginger & coriander, which I am so used to having at the end my dinner. Time to get inspired from Lataji and make her 'Vegan Moarkuzhambu' I guess. :-). Thanks Harini for this challenge, now I know, how & what it feels like to be You, even though it was just for a day! Kudos.

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until next time,

Pantry Cleanup Day 3: Paneer Schezwan Rice

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Paneer Schezwan Rice

Recipe: from the back of Schezwan sauce bottle with some minor additions

Cook 1 cup of rice with 2 cups of water.

Heat little oil in a skillet, fry paneer cubes until they gets golden brown. Remove and drain excess oil on paper towels. Now, saute some freshly minced ginger and garlic. Add a cup of mixed vegetables. If they are frozen, I recommend to microwave them for atleast 2 minutes. Mix well and cook for couple of minutes.

In a small bowl, mix schezwan sauce (as per your taste & spice-level, add little by little if you unsure. I used approx 1.5 tsp) with a 1 tsp of soya sauce. Stir well and add to the vegetable mixture. Adjust salt if necessary. Finally drop the paneer cubes and rice. Mix well and Serve. :)

until next time,
Siri

Chilli Tofu

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One of the many, the only resolution I made for this New Year 2010, like many of you out there is to eat & stay healthy..to be really specific, I wish to follow the mantra of - 'You are what you eat' and am earnestly working towards having a 'healthy looking skin'..:)..For that..

1. I am making sure, I drink a lot of water, so the skin in properly hydrated.
2. Use sunscreen, every single day.
3. Eat loads of fruits & veggies & beans ofcourse.
4. Drink a glass of milk (with Horlicks, elaichi flavor..Yum Yum!), everyday before going to bed.
5. Wash face, put a teaspoon of yogurt every night, let it stay for 10-15 mins, wash off and apply some night cream.

If you guys have any other ideas which might help to stick to my resolution, please share with all of us :)

Phew!!.. these are some of the things I have been doing rigorously from past 13 days & nights ..and I hope to keep up these as much as I can.

.. I also heard that taking multi-vitamins (recommended brand: Nature-made) is good.. but unfortunately..when I take them, I feel very acidic and the result is this..:(.. Any ideas about to get around with this problem because I know for the fact, that multi-vitamins, taken every alternate day is good for health??

....talking about today's recipe..is the easiest 'Chili Tofu' version I ever knew.. it can be made in a jiffy and it is so good to taste. :)..for this recipe, I used extra firm variety ...next time, I wish to make this with a 'firm tofu'..

Chilli Tofu

Ingredients:

1 (whole) cube of extra firm tofu
1 tsp chilli garlic sauce (store-bought)
2 tbsp soya sauce
salt - to taste
1 tsp canola oil

Preparation:

1. Cut the tofu into equally sized cubes. In a bowl, whisk in chilli-garlic sauce & soya sauce. Add the tofu cube to it and marinate for atleast 10 minutes.

2. In a shallow pan, heat oil and add the marinated tofu. If you are in a hurry, on HIGH flame, toss the cubes in oil and cook for 6-7 minutes.
If you have some-time in hand, on MEDIUM-LOW flame, cover and occasionally toss to cook for 9-10 minutes.

Serve warm on a bed of jasmine rice!!! Enjoy..:)

Wishing you all a very Happy Sankranthi :)

Ciao,

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Edamame Fried Rice

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'For, dear me, why abandon a belief
merely because it ceases to be true?
cling to it long enough, and not a doubt
it will turn true again, for so it goes."

~ Robert Frost, The Black Cottage

Thirty days..this has been the longest time I am missing from my blog without any notice . I guess it happens at times in life when you constantly juggle between work, home, blogging, household chores, groceries, library, work again - that one can't juggle any more. I had to take a moment to breath and get back to myself. :)

Today's recipe features a kind of bean which I have never tried before. We all know that beans are an excellent source of cholesterol-lowering fiber and when combined with whole grains such as brown rice, these beans provide a fat-free high quality protein, which is very much necessary to incorporate in our daily diets.

Edamame is a popular soya bean variety from Japan and is a 'wonder veggie' which has numerous health benefits. The recipe featured today is a simple fried rice with the goodness of both beans and wholegrains. It is a complete meal in itself and can be made as a lunch/dinner item.

Edamame Fried Rice

Ingredients:

1.5 cups shot-grained brown rice, cooked (substitute: white rice,any kind)
1/2 cup edamame beans, boiled in water until tender
1 egg, beaten
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 onion, chopped
1 tsp soya sauce
1/4 tsp (toasted) sesame oil (optional)
1 tsp canola oil
salt & pepper (optional)

Preparation:

1. Heat oil in a large pan, add garlic and onion. Saute until golden brown and aromatic. (3-4 mins).

2. Add edamame and rice into the pan to cook for 5-6 mins. Adjust salt & pepper if needed.

3. Make a well into the center of rice mixture. Add a very small amount of oil, then add the egg, cook until entirely scrambled. Stir the egg into rice mixture.

4. Finally add soy sauce and toasted sesame oil. Mix through. Serve hot.

Variation: One can add tofu to give it a more sumptuous twist.

This is my entry to My Legume Love Affair 14 hosted by Susan. :)

Have a weekend ahead.

Siri

Okra cooked in Australian Manner

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When Rachna chose 'Edible Flowers' as her theme for this month's Jihva, (originally initiated by Indira of Mahanandi ) I was both skeptical and unsure about what and how to cook with them. I must say, was quite surprised to see quite a number of my favorite veggies, who bear flowers too are in her 'Edible flowers' list.

PEAS? RADISH? OKRA?

[EDIT]: No No, Okra is NOT an edible flower, its a veggie. The fact is the Okra plant also bears flowers, which are Edible. So, this is not a valid entry for JFI, as I was supposed to cook with 'Okra Flower'...:) Thanks Rachna for correcting me.

I chose to whip up with my favorite vegetable - OKRA! not the usual deep fry or stew.. I was searching for something different - flavors which I have never experimented with!

One lazy evening, I was just browsing through the Bible of Vegetarian cooking (atleast for me, it is a BIBLE!...and absolutely love the list.) - Madhur Jaffrey's 'World Vegetarian' and quickly looked through the vegetable section....for some ideas!

'Okra cooked in an Australian manner' - that sounds interesting and it immediately caught my eye and was quite impressed and happy with its motley of flavors !





Psst..Psst.. I tweaked the recipe a bit - to suit my taste buds and going with the little time I had on hand..:)

Ingredients:

1 packet of Frozen Okra. (I am lazy! so went for the frozen one. You could use fresh ones too.)
Salt to taste
1/8 cup Soya Sauce (You could reduce or increase the amount as per ur taste)
2 tbsp Olive Oil
1 tsp Cumin seeds
2 whole Red Chillies
1 tsp Cayenne Pepper

Preparation:

To reduce the gooey substance from the frozen Okra, I baked them at 300 deg for about 10 mins.

Heat oil in a wok, add in cumin seeds and red chillies. Then add cut Okra and cook for about 7-8 minutes.

Season with salt and cayenne pepper. Mix in the soya sauce at the end and cook on low heat for 2-3 minutes. Make sure the okra is cooked before you add the soya sauce.

Serve warm with hot rice.

I am a basically a 'rice-person' (rather than a 'roti-person').

You could serve this curry with roti too!

Enjoi.

signing off for now,
Siri

Straight Out Of Puck's Oven # 2 : Twice Fried Rice

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Welcome to the second edition of my weekly series - 'Straight Out of Puck's Oven' and here I present a rice dish - 'Twice Fried Rice' from Puck's cookbook - "The Wolfgang Puck Cookbook: Recipes from Spago, Chinois, and Points East and West".



Its a versatile dish and one can jazz it up with any kind of veggies that are in season. This is definitely one such Puck's recipes which can stimulate your appetite and would want you for more and being a huge veggie lover, I thoroughly enjoyed it...:)

Ingredients

2 cups Rice (Recommended: Long Grain Rice)
4 cups of Vegetable Stock
Salt to taste
Veggies I added- Cauliflower, Green Beans, Broccoli, Tomatoes (Original Recipe: Napa Cabbage, Mushrooms, Green and Red Bell Peppers and Snow Peas)
1/2 Onion - thinly sliced (my addition)
1 to 2 tablespoons Olive Oil (Recommended: Peanut oil)
1 egg, beaten
1/4 cup soy sauce

Note: The original recipe asked for 1/4 cup of Soya sauce for 1 cup of Rice. But, I don't like the strong, pungent taste of Soya Sauce, so I halved it.

Preparation:

1. Place the rice in a saucepan and add the stock and salt. Bring the liquid to a boil, reduce the heat, cover and cook slowly for 15 to 18 minutes. It is important to cook the rice until dry. Turn the rice out onto a large platter or baking sheet and let it air dry for up to an hour. (or) Place the rice on a baking sheet and dry it in the oven at 200 degrees F for 30 minutes, stirring two or three times with a fork. I followed the latter option as its much quicker.

2. Take a fork and thoroughly fluff the rice.

3. Heat a wok or large skillet until it is very hot, pour the oil in around the edges, and then stir fry all the vegetables for a minute. Add rice and continue to stir fry for another 30 seconds. Pour the egg in around the edges of the wok or skillet and quickly stir it into the rice and vegetables.

4. Finally, stir in the soy sauce. Cook for couple of minutes. Serve hot with the choice of side dish!



Off this goes to Kalyn's Weekend Herb Blogging, this week guest hosted by Coffee and Vanilla.

Have a great weekend ahead folks!

Related posts:

Straight Out of Puck's Oven # 1: Couscous Salad

- Siri

Can This Recipe Be Saved Contest - 'Thai Rice and Bean Croquettes'

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"Can This Recipe Be Saved Contest" is a one-of-kind event initiated by Susan of 'FatFree Vegan Kitchen' where she asked us to use our creativity and save her 'Thai Croquettes' which were originally made by pumpkin...:)

.... and here in my version, I made use of Red Kidney Beans and Rice instead of pumpkin and also made few additions to satiate my tastebuds.
Thanks to Nupur, as I got to know about such an event from her post where she made the some yummy "Thai Eggplant Croquettes."


Thai Style Red Bean and Rice Croquettes
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Ingredients:

1/2 cup pre-cooked sliced beans
1 cup Red Kidney Beans ( I used canned!!)
1/2 cup (White/Brown) Rice ( I used White..)
3 tbsp Soya Sauce
1 tbsp Thai Red Curry paste
1/2 medium Onion - finely chopped
Salt - to taste
1/4 tbsp BlackPepper
2 tbsp Cornflour
1 tbsp flax seed
1 tbsp Lemon Zest ( I used 1 tbsp of lemon juice..)
1/2 tbsp sugar (optional)
Oil - to shallow fry

Preparation:

1. Place the green beans, Red kidney beans and half the rice into a food processor and pulse to chop coarsely (do not puree!).If you have a small processor, you may have to do this in batches. Pour into a bowl and add all remaining ingredients.
2. Mix the contents well. Add very little water if needed.
3. Make small cylindrical shaped patties (or any shape) and shallow fry both the sides on a hot skillet with little oil. Instead, we can even bake in the oven at 425F.
4. Serve with Susan's yummy Thai Sweet and Sour Dipping Sauce.
I served these with my favorite tomato ketchup instead...:)

November is 'Vegan Month of Food' and dear Suganya is organising an one-off event - "Vegan Ventures".
Off these 'Thai Rice and Bean Croquettes' go to Suganya's event too.
Click here to find out who all are participating in 'VeganMoFo' Event.