Category Archives: Vegan

Sprouting Mung Beans using a teapot

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 I’d tried to sprout mung beans before in the past using a jam jar and some cloth over the top but had never had much luck so when I saw a post by Angie Jee on the Good Food Together Facebook page describing her method using a teapot, I thought I’d give it another go. The beauty of Angie’s teapot method is that you can easily rinse the sprouts once or twice a day by draining the water off through the spout, the teapot doesn’t take up much space on the worktop, and it’s where you can see it so you don’t forget about it.Although a spout with a mesh might be better during the initial stages of rinsing and draining the beans, I found that the one I had without a mesh worked perfectly as at the end of the process, the green skins float to the top and you can separate these from the sprouts which sink to the bottom.

Here’s Angie’s method.

  • Weigh out 50g of mung beans into a teapot.
  • Pour over some boiling water and leave for 60 seconds to kill any bacteria.
  • Drain off the hot water and rinse with cold water.
  • Cover the beans with water and leave for 24 hours.
  • Rinse the beans with fresh, cold water and drain off any surplus water.
  • Leave for another 24 hours and then repeat the rinse/drain process.

You can rinse and drain twice a day if you like.

The bean sprouts will be ready after about 4 days.

You can then store them in a bowl in the fridge until you need them.

Fried Potato Cake

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cortijoblog fried potato cake

FRIED POTATO CAKE

This potato cake is similar to a potato rosti but in this recipe, the potatoes are sliced rather than grated. As you want to overlap the potato slices in the pan, it is best to avoid using large potatoes if possible.

fried potato cake

Fried Potato Cake

This recipe is easy to prepare and only requires turning after 20 minutes.

 

INGREDIENTS

  • 4 medium-sized potatoes, peeled and cut into 4mm slices
  • 2 tablespoons cornflour
  • 2 teaspoons dried oregano
  • 1/4 teaspoon chilli powder
  • extra virgin olive oil
  • ½ teaspoon salt

METHOD

  1. Put the potato slices into a bowl.
  2. Sprinkle over the cornflour, herbs, spices and salt.
  3. Mix well with your hands to ensure that every slice is separated and coated.
  4. Add some olive oil to a frying pan.
  5. Layer the potato slices in rounds in the pan, overlapping them to form concentric circles.
  6. Put a tight-fitting lid on the pan.
  7. Heat the pan until you can feel heat through the lid.
  8. Turn the heat down low and fry for 20 minutes.
  9. After 20 minutes, use an inverted plate to first drain off any excess oil and then to flip the cake onto the plate.
  10. Pour some of the oil back in and slide the potato cake back into the pan.
  11. Cover with the lid and cook for another 20 minutes.
  12. Serve.

NOTES

It is easy to adapt this recipe according to the number of people by using more potatoes and a larger frying pan if necessary.

Herby Vegan Vegballs

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cortijoblog glutenfree vegballs

HERBY VEGAN VEGBALLS

These tasty veg-balls are healthy, vegetarian, vegan and gluten free. They are quick to make and can either be roasted in a hot oven for about 20 minutes or shallow fried on top of the hob.

cortijoblog herb vegballs

Herby Vegan Vegballs

These herby vegballs are tasty and quick to make. You can serve them by themselves or with a tomato sauce and pasta.

 

INGREDIENTS

  • 3/4 cup dried green lentils
  • 1 medium-sized onion, finely chopped
  • 4 cloves of garlic cloves, crushed
  • 1 cup soft oats
  • 2 tbsps thick tomato sauce
  • 1 tbsp soy sauce
  • 1 1/2 tbsps red wine vinegar
  • 1 teaspoon dried oregano
  • 1 teaspoon dried thyme
  • 1 teaspoon dried basil
  • 1/2 teaspoon chilli powder
  • 1 teaspoon smoked sweet paprika
  • salt and pepper

METHOD

  1. Wash the green lentils thoroughly under running water and then cook in boiling water for 20 minutes until soft.
  2. Rinse the cooked lentils in cold water and leave to drain.
  3. Meanwhile, gently fry the onion in olive oil until soft.
  4. Add the garlic and fry for another couple of minutes.
  5. Add all of the ingredients to a food processor and pulse 3 or 4 times. You want the mixture to come together and to have a bit of texture.
  6. Wet your hands and form the mixture into about 14 balls, flattening them slightly to form patties.
  7. Heat some sunflower oil in a large frying pan.
  8. Put the vegballs into the pan in a single layer and fry on a moderate heat for about 6 minutes.
  9. Turn over and fry for a further 6 minutes or so until they are golden brown on both sides.

NOTES

When I made these, I rolled them into balls the size of golf balls and then flattened them gently to form small patties but they can also be made into larger burger and cooked in a frying pan or on the barbecue and served in burger buns.

cortijoblog glutenfree vegballs

Dried aubergines: spiced aubergines

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dried aubergines

Dried aubergines have a firm consistency when cooked. I’m still not sure whether this is a good thing or if they need to be cooked for longer. For this recipe, I soaked the dried aubergines overnight in cold water but next time, I will try putting them in boiling water to see if they soften up more. For more information about cooking with dried vegetables, see this page. Information about how to make your own solar drier can be found here.

SPICED AUBERGINES

INGREDIENTS

  • 2 cups dried aubergines, soaked in boiling water overnight
  • 1 onion, roughly
  • 4 tomatoes, chopped
  • 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
  • 1 teaspoon ground cumin
  • 1 teaspoon ground coriander
  • 1/2 teaspoon turmeric
  • 1/2 teaspoon chilli powder
  • salt and pepper
  • extra virgin olive oil

METHOD

  1. On a fairly high flame, heat the oil in a frying pan.
  2. Add the cumin seeds and fry for 30 seconds.
  3. Add the onion and fry until soft.
  4. Drain the aubergine and add to the pan.
  5. Toss well and continuing frying, adding the remaining spices and seasoning with salt and pepper.
  6. Add the tomatoes and cook for another 5 minutes or so.
  7. Cover and continue frying until the aubergines are soft
  8. Serve.

Bhindi Bhaji – Okra Curry

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Okra or “ladies fingers” as it is also known is commonly used in Indian, Asian and African cooking. Although okra is typically grown in tropical or warmer climates, we are able to grow it here in the summer at 1,300 metres above sea level. By picking the pods when they are tender and not cooking it for too long, it is possible to avoid the slimy texture that many people associate with okra and find off-putting.

 

Bhindi Bhaji

INGREDIENTS

  • 2 medium-sized tomatoes, finely chopped
  • 1 bowl of okra, cut into 5cm pieces
  • 1/2 teaspoon chilli powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon turmeric
  • 1/2 teaspoon ginger
  • 1 teaspoon coriander
  • salt
  • olive oil
  • a splash of water

METHOD

  1. Heat some olive oil in a frying pan and then add the chopped tomatoes.
  2. Fry on a medium heat for 5 minutes.
  3. Add the spices and heat for another minute or so.
  4. Add the okra and coat well in the spice mixture.
  5. Season with salt and pepper.
  6. Cook for 10.15 minutes on a low heat, adding a splash of water as necessary to prevent the mixture drying out.