Vegetarians have very little choice when they are travelling abroad. While everybody is enjoying the great variety of food ranging from meat, to seafood, vegetarian might just have few exotic vegetables, cottage cheese or mock food. It is healthy, no doubt, but not much effort is used in creating innovative dishes.
This month few of my friends decided to meet for a potluck and we decided on Asian cuisine, but with a difference. The dishes had to be pure veg, (not even eggs,) and it should be something that we had never tried it before. We could lift the recipe from you-tube channel, give a twist and create something new.
It was challenging because normally most of the Asian food are non-veg, and veg is normally stir-fry veggies. We met at Kanchan Ahuja’s beautiful home during lunchtime.
I cooked veg version of Pad Krapoa, I used chopped Mushroom instead of minced chicken.
Here is the recipe of Mushroom and long Beans in Basil leaves.
Grind 5red chilies and 8pods of garlic and keep it aside
Make a sauce by mixing 2tbsp soya sauce, 2tbsp Oyster-Mushroom sauce, 1tbsp lime-juice, 1tbsp 1cup sugar and water.
In a wok, fry garlic chilly paste, add chopped 2pks of mushrooms and 100gms long beans, add sauce, mix and cook,
add spring onions and basil leaves.
Serve with white rice
I think, I should have used small pieces of mock-duck too, to give it a proper texture and long beans take very little time to cook, I think it was over-cooked.
However, all the dishes were delicious, it was one complete feast that we enjoyed while sharing notes on the cooking methods used, and what challenges we had faced while making the dish. It didn’t have to be perfect, it was all about experimenting with new ingredients
Do watch our video on uTube to learn about the challenges faced by different participants
Sumitra Chowdhury share her recipe on WRAPPED STICKY RICE CAKES (YE’ER BA)
This recipe is adapted from Red House Spice. Com..
This recipe is from Sichuan Province. Normally this dish is made with pork mince, tangerine leaves are used for wrapping, she used lemon leaves and the main ingredients is glutinous rice flour…
As she didn’t have glutinous rice flour at home she had to do the recipe with normal rice flour.. she had used mushroom minced as the dish was made for a vegetarian pot luck.. she added five spice powder which was not mentioned in the recipe.. the recipe mentioned mustard greens.. she changed the mustard greens and used pickled spinach leaves..
For the Stuffing
2 Packets of Mushrooms minced
2 tsp of Ginger minced
1 tsp of Garlic minced
1 Green Chilli minced
3 tbsp pickled Spinach Leaves
Salt to taste
1/2 tsp of Pepper powder
1/2 tsp of Five spice powder
Pinch of Sugar
1/2 tsp Rice Wine
1/2 tsp Dark Soy Sauce
1/2 tsp Light Soy Sauce
1/2 tbsp Oil
Lemon leaves for wrapping
Method
Take a oil in a wok, add the minced ginger - garlic and chilli, sauté it for few seconds, add the minced mushrooms, stir and cook until the water from the mushrooms dry up. Add the chopped pickled spinach and cook for a minute. Add the sugar, salt, pepper powder, five spice powder, rice wine, dark soy sauce and light soy sauce, cook for another minute. Switch off the flame and let the stuffing cool.
For the dough -
Ingredients
2 cups of Glutinous Rice flour
1/2 cup of Rice flour
1 tbsp Sesame seed Oil
1/2 Salt
Method
Mix all the above ingredients, add water lukewarm water little at a time, and knead it into a soft dough..
Steaming -
Ingredients
Dough
Stuffing
Method
Add the water into the steamer, let the water steam. Meanwhile take a lemon size portion of the dough. Flatten the dough and add one tsp of the stuffing in the centre of the flattened dough, close the edges of the dough properly. Repeat the process with the remaining dough and the stuffing. Grease the steamer plate. Take a lemon leave and place the stuffed dough on the lemon leave into the steamer plate, repeat the process. Steam it for 10 - 15 minutes or until cooked. Serve steaming hot.
She also made Whipped Lemonade and here is her recipe
For the Ginger Sugar Concoction
Ingredients
2 tbsp Ginger minced
1 tsp Lemon Zest
2 1/2 cups of Water
1/2 cup Lemon juice
1/4 tsp Salt
1 cup or more of Sugar
Method
Take a pan, add water into the pan, add sugar, salt, ginger and lemon zest. Simmer until the concoction has reduced to half. Switch off the flame and cool it down completely. Strain the liquid and discard the Add the lemon juice and mix it. This can stay in the fridge for 3 to 4 days.
To make the Whipped Lemonade
1/3 cup of the Syrup Concoction
3/4 cup of Coconut milk
Lots of Ice
Method
Add all the above ingredients into the blender and blend well. Serve it cold.
Here are some of the pictures of the food on the table
It was the time well spent.
