VEGAN 'SEA' FLAVORED MEALS

I loved seafood before I became a vegetarian because I grew up on an island surrounded by the sea. Seafood was a major part of our meals in my growing up days. I figured out that, now, after I became a vegetarian, what I missed is the 'sea' flavor instead of the seafood. I also found out that I can satisfy it with eating seaweed. Some vegans do not like seaweed at all but I do. It's good for me because seaweed has a lot of minerals and vitamin B-12, I was told.

Below is my recipe of my favorite Italian soup(pictured above): Cioppino (seafood Italian stew). At first, I got a recipe from Bryanna but I have modified it to satisfy my own 'sea' cravings that the recipe has become my own because it is more 'seafoody' than the original recipe. There are many different styles of this stew, depending on the regions of Italy, but I like the one made with fresh tomatoes (not very tomatoey).

The main ingredients of my vegan cioppino are vegan fish, vegan scallops, and vegan oysters. I bought the 'fish' from Chinese market (frozen). I made my own vegan seitan scallops and oysters. The latest newsletter from Bryanna featured a recipe of homemade vegan seitan scallops. Hooray! Finally, a recipe of seitan 'seafood'! I converted her recipe by adding fresh wakame to make seitan 'oysters.' These have lots of 'sea' flavors due to the fresh wakame in them. Pictured below are: store-bought vegan fish, homemade vegan oysters, and homemade vegan scallops. The dark green specks in them are chopped wakame and kelp granules.

VEGAN CIOPPINO (VEGAN “SEAFOOD” STEW)

Vegetables:
1 onions, chopped small
1 cup celery rib, chopped small
1 cup carrot, chopped small
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp. dry red chili pepper flakes
4 large ripe tomatoes, chopped

2/3 c. chopped flat-leafed parsley

2 tbsp.. extra-virgin olive oil

8 dry shiitake mushrooms soaked in 3 cups warm/boiling water (you may add the soaked shiitake mushrooms into the soup, chopped, if you want)

2 c. mushroom soaking water above or dilute 2 cup water with 1.5 Tbsp. Pistol River Porcini mushroom powder

1 1/2 cup dry white wine, optional or more broth above

a bay leaf
1/3 c. chopped fresh basil or 1 tsp. dry basil flakes
1 tsp. kelp granules
1 - 4X6 inches kombu (Japanese seaweed)
1 tsp. salt or to taste
1/8 -1/4 tsp. fresh ground black pepper

a heaping 1 T. light miso

'Seafood':

2 1/2 cups combination of vegan fish, seitan scallops, and seitan oyster, chopped in small pieces (I have made this soup with store-bought vegan fish and vegan shrimps, another option)

1	Saute 'seafood' and chopped shiitake (if using) in 1 tbsp. olive oil until brown. Set aside. Then, sautee with 1 tbsp. olive oil: onions, dry chili pepper flakes, garlic, celery, and carrots until the onions are soft and translucent.
2	Add chopped tomatoes. Cook 10 minutes until tomatoes are soft and disintegrated.
3	Add wine or broth, basil, and bay leave. Cook on high heat 5 minutes.
4	Now add more broth(2 cups), with the large piece of kombu seaweed and kelp granules. Cook about 25 minutes. Remove kombu.
5	Add the sauteed 'seafood' and shiitake back in. Add more broth, if necessary. Simmer for another 5-10 minutes.
6	Add salt and pepper to taste.
7	Add light miso, stir until dissolve. Finally, add chopped flat leaf parsley and take it off from heat.

Ladle into bowls and serve with garlic bread or whole wheat baguette or sourdough baquette.

Below is a picture of another 'seafood' meal that is featured in Bryanna's latest newsletter: Fried Seitan 'Scallops' (and 'Oysters') with Lemon-Garlic 'Butter' Sauce. Unfortunately, Bryanna stopped her newsletters production although you may be able to order her previous versions of these wonderful newsletters soon. I served the delicious 'seafood' morsels with Roasted Baby Yukon Potatoes with olive oil, garlic and rosemary and steamed fresh asparagus. You see, we eat yummy vegan meals in our household and aren't missing out delicious 'sea' flavored meals at all.