Lentil keema

05 Tuesday Aug 2014

Posted by Zoli in gluten free, healthy, indian, kids, vegan, Vegetarian

Tags

gluten free, indian, keema, lentils, vegan, vegetarian, vegetarian Indian dishes

I know. There are so many vegetarian Indian dishes so why did I make a vegetarian version of a meat dish? It just seemed like a good substitution—I like how nearly any recipe calling for minced meat can be altered with a lentil replacement. But they’ve got to be the small lentils such as black lentils, lentil verites or puy lentils. And you know what? This veggie/vegan keema turned out delicious. And there you have it.

Make this as a side dish of a larger Indian meal or have it on its own as part of a simple dinner. My day flew by so no fanciness at our table tonight. Dinner will be this gorgeous lentil keema, leftover rice from last night, roasted potato wedges with cumin and steamed broccoli.

Ingredients for lentil keema
Serves 2 or 4 as a side dish
3tbs tbs coconut oil (or ghee)
1/2 large onion, diced
1 large tomato, choppped
1 green chili, deseeded and chopped
3 cloves garlic
1 tsp fresh minced ginger
2 tbs chopped cashews or cashew meal
1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp garam masala
1/2 tsp mild chili powder
1/4 tsp turmeric
2 cloves
seeds from one cardamom pod
pinch of coriander seeds
piece of a cinnamon stick (break off a small piece)
black pepper
sea salt
1 1/2 cups cooked lentils (or a bit more)
about 1 cup of water
1/2 cup to 3/4 cup peas
3 tbs fresh cilantro, chopped

1) Put the cloves, cardamom seeds, coriander seeds and sea salt into a pestle and mortar and pulverize.
2) Heat up the coconut oil or ghee in a heavy-bottomed frying pan and toss in all the vegetables except the peas and cilantro.
3) Fry gently for about 10 minutes and then add in all the spices and fry another minute.
4) Add some or all of the water and lentils and cook gently another 10 minutes. Keema should be a bit dry so watch the water so that it is absorbed but everything doesn’t completely dry up and burn.
5) Taste and add a little more salt and pepper if needed.
6) Lastly add the peas and cilantro and cook gently just another minute or two to heat up. Reserve some of the fresh cilantro for garnish.

Mushroom bulgogi

24 Thursday Jul 2014

Posted by Zoli in gluten free, healthy, Korean, peanut free, Sauces, spices, vegan, Vegetarian

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

doen jang, go chu jang, mushroom bulgogi, shitake mushrooms, ssamjang, vegan bulgogi, vegan Korean, vegetarian bulgogi, vegetarian Korean food

My mother from Oshkosh, Wisconsin makes delicious bulgogi with chicken or beef but I don’t eat it any more as I’m a veghead. Does this mean no more bulgogi in my life? Never! Here comes the trusty mushroom to save the day. Same marinade, different protein (ok, and texture). This wonderful vegetarian/vegan dish also solves the modern problem: Oh how can a paleohead/glutenfreehead and a veghead have a dinner party together? It also solves the problem of what else can you bring to a vegetarian bbq.

This is not a complicated dish and to make a full meal of it, serve with kim chi, sticky rice, fresh green lettuce and ssamjang paste (or ko chu jang in a pinch). Skip the rice if you like. Or go all out and make several side dishes such as bean sprouts, soup, radish kim chi, pickled cucumber, pancakes, etc. You do need about an hour for the mushrooms to marinate.

Ingredients for mushroom bulgogi
serves about 4
2 portobellos
8-10 fresh shiitakes
1/2 white onion
4 cloves garlic
1 small piece ginger (about a tsp worth)
4 tbs soy sauce
1 tbs sugar or honey
1 tbs roasted sesame oil
1/2 asian pear or bosc pear (or apple in a pinch)
1/2 to whole carrot, sliced
3-6 green onion, chopped
roasted sesame seeds
couple grinds of black pepper
olive oil for frying on the stove or tin foil for using on the grill

ssamjang sauce
1 tbs go chu jang*
2 tbs doen jang (Korean soy bean paste, similar to miso)*
1 tsp sesame oil
1 tsp chopped onion
1 tsp chopped green onion
1 garlic clove, minced with salt
1/2 tsp sugar
roasted sesame seeds
splash of water if needed
*Buy these at a Korean or Asian market. Go chu jang (or Ko chu jang) is in a red container with a chili pepper on it and Doen jang is in a brown container usually.

1) Wash and slice the mushrooms. Set aside.
2) Put 1/4 of the white onion, garlic, ginger and pear in a food processor and blitz. Add a sprinkle of water if necessary.
3) Add the sliced carrot and green onion to the mushrooms, along with the other 1/4 of white onion, sliced. Add the garlic/pear paste and mix.
4) Add the soy sauce, sesame oil, sugar, and pepper. Mix together thoroughly. Cover and set in the fridge for an hour to marinate.
5) After an hour, remove from the fridge and mix again. Heat up olive oil in a wok (or simply skip this and cook on the grill outside using a tray or sheet of tinfoil).
6) Pour the mushroom mixture and all the marinade into the hot wok and fry on high for about 15 minutes. Turn the heat down slightly as the juices start to evaporate so it doesn’t burn. Cook till all the soupy marinade has been absorbed and the mushrooms are cooked. About 20 minutes.
7) For the ssamjang sauce, simply mix everything together.

Serve with ssamjang paste and lettuce as a hand held wrap. Take a piece of green lettuce such as romaine, butter or gem lettuce and dab as much ssamjang as you like. Add some mushroom bulgogi (and sticky rice if you like), fold up and eat! I made some pickled spicy cucumber and sticky rice to go with our dinner tonight, but the more banchan, the more tasty fun.