Arugula and Figs Salad

How is the weather at your end?  It is hot and humid where I am.  I tend to eat more salads; therefore, this blog is simple and to the point.  I consumed a similar type of salad last July at a banquet of a friend's daughter's big wedding.  A few vegan items were served at the wedding and I like the salad containing arugula, chopped apple, sliced dried black mission figs, roasted almonds and refreshing, citrus-y, pungent dressing.  It was really good that I had seconds of the salad.  Since then I have recreated it at home and added more items into the salad such as grape tomatoes and cannellini or great northern beans.  I named it Arugula and Figs salad even though there are more than just arugula and figs in it. I really love the salad ingredients combination.  The additional of white beans added an earthy taste to it.   This salad can be a light meal by itself and is a great meal to eat and prepare during the hot weather.

I am using Made in Nature Black Mission Figs (dried and unsulfured).  This product is also organic and non-GMO.

 I suppose you can use fresh figs but somehow I like the chewy dried figs in the salad.  The texture is in contrast with the crunchy chopped apples and roasted almonds.

Below are the salad ingredients I used:

From left, clockwise:  Fuji apple, arugula, dried figs, grape tomatoes, and roasted blanched almonds (beans are not pictured).

For the salad dressing, I use my favorite Roasted Walnut Oil and Orange Muscat Champagne Vinegar from Trader Joe's.  You can use other vinegar such as Fig Vinegar, Rice Vinegar, or any other white vinegar.  Additional squeezed of fresh orange or lime are nice but they are optional.  I have done it without the citrus juice and it is delicious. You can also use other type of oil such as olive oil, almond oil, grapeseed oil, etc.

Roasted Walnut Oil and Champagne Vinegar are my favorites.

Arugula and Figs Salad
Serve 4-6 

Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
1 box fresh arugula about 8-10 oz. (rinsed and drained, use a salad spinner to get rid or excess water)
1 can (15 oz.) Cannellini or Great Northern Beans (organic if possible), rinsed and drained
6-8 dried black mission figs
1 cup roasted blanched almonds
1-2 Fuji apples (or other crisp apples), peeled, cored, and chopped
1.5 cups grape tomatoes

Salad dressing ingredients:
2-4 Tbsp. Roasted Walnut Oil  (use 2 for lower calorie dressing)
4 Tbsp. Orange Muscat Champagne Vinegar
1/2 Tbsp. Agave Nectar
3/4 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper.
1/4 cup fresh squeezed orange juice (from 1/2 orange) or fresh squeezed lime juice (from 1/2 lime), optional

1. Combine oil and vinegar, whisk until the mixture is emulsified.
2. Add agave nectar, salt, black pepper, and citrus juice.  Combine by a whisk again and set aside.
3. Slice dried figs crosswise thinly, remove the tough stem and top.
4. Combine with other salad ingredients.  To keep chopped apples from browning, you can squeeze some lime juice on them and combined.
5. At serving time, combine the salad dressing and toss.

Enjoy this refreshing salad!

Indonesian Javanese Gado-Gado, Veganized

Veganized Javanese Gado-Gado without the sauce: steamed kale, cabbage, green beans, bean sprouts, underneath.  Topped with steamed sliced potatoes, baked seasoned tofu, baked seasoned tempeh, fresh tomatoes, and fresh cucumber slices.

The peanut Gado-Gado sauce

Summer is almost here!  I am craving salad type of dish and dishes that I don't need to spend a lot of time in the kitchen.  I've been thinking about blogging Gado-Gado for a while now.  Finally!  Here it is!

Gado-gado is an Indonesian Javanese salad consisted of boiled or steamed vegetable served with peanut sauce.  It is a complete meal and usually served with lontong or ketupat (Indonesian rice cake) but it can be served without it.  I believe that it is also gluten-free.  When the salad ingredients are combined with the sauce, it looks like this one below.  It is so delicious eaten with the garlic tapioca chips or kerupuk (the chips on the right side behind the salad)  or emping (the yellowish chips on the left side behind the salad).

During college days, I worked in an Indonesian restaurant and my job was making gado-gado sauce.  The restaurant cut corner by using creamy peanut butter (like Jif or Skippy) and then added hot water, sambal, brown sugar, and some minced garlic.  In my opinion, it was disgusting to do it that way and that it was not authentic but since it is not my restaurant I just did what I was told to do.  Customers liked it but they didn't know any better.  It is not how I make it at home obviously.  Sometimes I bought a packaged imported gado-gado sauce from Asian markets but the best is to make the sauce from scratch at home.

Peanut Sauce:
The peanut sauce is the key to this salad.  I like to use roasted peanuts and blend it using a Vitamix or a food processor with the other spices and herbs added to it.  Although, if you want it easier and if you don't have a high speed blender, you can use Natural Peanut Butter(such as Natural Crunchy Peanut Butter from Trader Joe's), make sure that the ingredients are just peanuts and salt, not the one that has other ingredients in it like oil, sugar, etc.  I usually buy Trader Joe's Lightly Salted Peanuts.

 I also use my own sambal that has no shrimp paste in it.  However, you can also use sambal oelek which has no shrimp paste for an easier way.  I will be adding sugar, salt, tamarind juice, lime juice, etc.  but this way I can control the amount of sugar and salt.  If I use a store-bought peanut butter that has sugar in it, I am pretty much stuck with the amount of sugar so I prefer not to.  DH doesn't like sweet food and pretty much doesn't like peanut sauce made from store-bought peanut butter.  He said that the Indonesian peanut sauce is too sweet.  He likes my peanut sauce because I make it not too sweet and a bit on the sweet sour side with lime and lemon juice added to it.


Vegetables:
All kinds of vegetables that are good being steamed will be good for this salad.  However, the traditional vegetables are long beans or green beans, cabbage, bean sprouts, spinach, and potato.  I also like to steam the vegetables instead of boiling them.  Fresh vegetable such as tomatoes and cucumbers are great additions too.

Protein:
The traditional gado-gado also uses boiled eggs which I don't use.  The traditional way also use fried tempeh and/or tofu.  I use baked tempeh and tofu.

Indonesian Javanese Gado-Gado
Serve 6-8
Printable Recipe

Accompaniments:
Garlic tapioca crackers/chips or kerupuk
Emping (padi oats crackers/chips)
Fried Shallots, optional

Vegetables:
3-4 cups cabbage, cut into bite pieces
3-4 cups kale, cut into bite pieces
3-4 cups green beans, cut into bite pieces
3-4 cups bean sprouts
3 potatoes, each cut into 3
2 tomatoes, sliced
2 cucumbers, sliced

1. Steam cabbage, kale, green beans, separately on a vegetable steamer or basket for 7 minutes each.  Prepare a bowl of ice water.  After each vegetable is steamed, immerse into the bowl of ice water to stop cooking.  This way the vegetable will stay bright green and still a bit crunchy.
2. Steam bean sprouts for 5 minutes and immerse into a bowl of ice water similar to step 1.
3. Steam potatoes for 15-20 minutes until tender but still firm.  Let them cool and then peel. Then slice into bite pieces.

Baked Tofu and/or Tempeh(store bought baked tofu can be used instead):
1 to 1 1/2 lb. extra-firm tofu
3/4 to 1 cup water
1/4 cup dark Superior brand mushroom soy sauce
Note: regular soy sauce will do but this dark mushroom soy sauce is my preference. It makes the baked tofu dark chocolate brown but the inside is light cream color. Pretty and delicious!
2 tablespoon maple syrup or organic molasses
1 teaspoon hickory liquid smoke, optional for this recipe

1. Slice tofu or tempeh about 1/3-inch thick lengthwise. Mix the rest of the ingredients in a plastic container with tight lid in which you can soak all of the tofu or tempeh slices in this marinade sauce. Marinate the tofu slices for 24 hours in refrigerator.
2.  Bake drained marinated tofu or tempeh slices on an oiled cookie sheets for 10- 12 minutes in 400 F oven. Flip and bake the other side about another 10-12 minutes. Let them cool before use.

Peanut Sauce:
Printable Recipe
1 1/2 cups lightly salted roasted peanuts
1 1/4 cup light coconut milk
4 garlic cloves
5 shallots cloves
4 Tbsp. palm sugar or brown sugar
Juice of 1 lime, about 3-4 Tbsp.
3 kaffir lime leaves
1/4 tamarind liquid from soaking dried tamarind paste in warm water
2 Tbsp. sambal oelek, or less for less spicy
1 tsp. salt, or to taste
1 Tbsp. white miso
1 Lemon, optional
1 Tbsp. Kecap Manis, optional

1. Combine roasted peanuts, garlic, shallots, coconut milk, palm or brown sugar, tamarind juice, sambal oelek, salt, and miso in a high speed blender or food processor. Pulse and blend until desired consistency.  Usually, it is the consistency of a gravy.  Some people like a crunchier sauce.  It is a matter of a taste on the consistency.
2.  If food processor or blender is not used and if using natural peanut butter, mince shallots and garlic finely, and then combine with coconut milk, palm or brown sugar, tamarind juice, sambal oelek, salt, and miso in a bowl or a medium size pot until thoroughly blended.
3. Add the kaffir lime leaves, if using, into the sauce
4. Heat the sauce in a medium size pot until it boils, turn down the heat, and then simmer for about 10 minutes.  If the sauce is too thick, add more coconut milk or water.
5. Remove from heat, add the juice of lime, kecap manis,  and squirt 1-2 Tbsp. of lemon juice.  This step is optional to those who likes the sauce sweet.  The amount of sugar can also be adjusted depending on how sweet the sauce to be.  Add more salt if necessary.
6. Let it cool before using and store in the fridge.  When this sauce is cold (refrigerated), it tends to be very thick.  Add warm water or reheat in a pot to thin it out.

Serving:
Gado-gado usually is served in room temperature.  It is a great to prepare this dish ahead of time, store the ingredients separately in the fridge, then assemble just before serving.

1. Combine vegetables in a large salad bowl (including the tomatoes and cucumber).
2. Add peanut sauce and toss together.  Sprinkle with fried shallots.
3. Add garlic crackers/chips (kerupuk) and emping(padi oats crackers) on top or on the side.

Garlic Tapioca Crackers/Chips (Kerupuk)

 

Emping (padi oats crackers/chips)

Vegan Indonesian Salad with Spicy Grated Coconut Dry Dressing- Urap

Traditional Javanese Salad - Urap

I am blogging Indonesian food again.  My DGH (my dear gringo husband) likes Indonesian dishes so I continue with this trend to make more veganized Javanese dishes. He loves this Javanese traditional dish called Urap! This one is a dish that Indonesians make for community celebrations such as birthdays, house warming parties, baby showers, weddings, bridal showers, etc. etc.  It's great for potlucks or picnics since it can be served in a room temperature.  Just like the Koreans who bring Japchae into potlucks or picnics, Indonesians bring Urap.  One reason this dish is great for potluck is that it is easy to make as long as the fresh (can be frozen and then thawed) grated coconut can be obtained. This dish is similar to Indian Kale-CabbageThoran that I blogged back in 2012.

The title says 'Dry Dressing'.  Yep, it is not like the Western salad dressing with oil and vinegar, emulsified.  This dish uses thinly grated coconut, the thinner or smaller the better, as dry dressing.  Usually, it is also spicy hot like sambal. However, the level of heat can be reduced by using my tip below(about the level of heat).  I have trained DGH to eat spicy hot food but his is not at the level of heat I can take and I always make it less spicy for him.

About the coconut:
OMG, coconut became so popular in the US.  The natural market in my neighborhood I go to sells coconut oil, coconut milk, coconut cream, coconut juice, fresh young coconuts, etc.   Wow!  I remember about 20 years ago I had to hunt down coconut juice or coconut milk in Chinatown when I wanted to make Indonesian dishes.  For this dish, I buy the frozen grated coconut(from fresh and not dried) at an Indian market/store.  Actually, the guy at the Indian market sells fresh coconuts (not the young coconut) and is willing to break the coconut for the customers.  I am just too lazy to peel and grate the fresh coconut.  I could have done it with a fine spice Microplane grater.  I am also hoping that my readers can find this kind of frozen grated coconut at a nearby Indian market.  I haven't yet tried to prepare this dish with unsweetened dried grated coconut and reconstitute it with warm water. It may work, however, the taste is better if it is made with fresh coconut. Below are pictures of 2 different brands of frozen grated coconut in the Indian markets.

About the level of heat:
Big chili is not hot! The smaller chili is hotter than the big one, that's for sure. The red small chili(fresh Chili Arbol) is SUPER hot (about 15000-30000 Scoville unit). Chili Arbol is not as hot as Habanero but it is pretty hot.  I usually use 2-3 of this red chili per dish and it can be omitted altogether.  The next level is the medium size chili such as red Jalapeno (basically, it is jalapeno that is ripened) which is medium hot.  The mildest is the dried New Mexico(dried Anaheim pepper) that is reconstituted in warm water after the stem and seeds removed.  New Mexico chili is readily available in most market, especially, Hispanic market.  Therefore, it really depends how you like the heat.  I combine the red small chili with 3-4 large New Mexico chili in my dishes.  Sometime I combine the red Jalapeno with New Mexico chili.  I always use the New Mexico chili since I like the taste(a bit sweet) and how it makes the dish red but not hot.  If fresh small red chili is not available, the dried chili called Chili Arbol can be used.  They also need to be reconstituted in warm water.  I have used this kind of dried Chili Arbol when the fresh ones are not available.  Warning: always use gloves when handling chili or wash hands immediately and don't rub face or eyes.

From lower right, clockwise: hot fresh chili arbol, medium red jalapeno, reconstituted New Mexico chili, hot red dried chili arbol.

Vegan Indonesian Salad with Spicy Grated Coconut Dry Dressing- Urap
Serve 6  Printable Recipe

Vegetable Ingredients: (they will shrink after steaming)
6-8 cups kale, cut into julienne or shreds
1 cabbage, cut into julienne or shreds (about 6 cups)
4 cups cut green beans (fresh), either julienne cut or about 1 inch
2 cups bean sprouts, optional

Dry dressing ingredients:
1 ½ cup fresh grated coconut or frozen and then thawed
4 garlic cloves
4-5 shallot cloves
1 tsp. salt
3-4 large New Mexico chili, reconstituted in warm water after seeds and stem removed
2-3 hot red chili or serrano chili, use less for less hot and see 'About the level of heat' how to make this dish spicy or less spicy, can be omitted completely for mild spicyness
1 Tbsp. miso (light brown or white mellow)
Note:  traditionally, this dish is made with terasi or shrimp paste.  I replaced it with miso.
1 Tbsp. palm sugar/gula jawa/brown sugar
New Mexico chili soaking water or plain water

Preparing the dry dressing:

1. Using a food processor or mortar and pestle, grind garlic, shallot, salt, New Mexico chili, red hot chili/serrano chili until smooth. Add a little water or chili soaking water, a little at a time, until this mixture come into a paste.
2. Combine the spice paste with the grated coconut, miso, and sugar thoroughly with hands or a large fork.
3. Steam this dressing for 15-20 minutes. Set aside and let it cool.

Preparing steam vegetables:
Note: the veggies are supposed to be lightly steamed, don’t overkill in the steaming process.

1. Use a large steamer such as a large wok with bamboo steamer on top. Boil 4-5 cups of water.
2. Once the water is boiling, pile in shredded kale, steam for 5-6 minutes.
3. Take out the steamed kale and spread onto a cookie sheet for a quick cooling.
4. Repeat step 2 and 3 for cabbage, green beans, and bean sprouts. Bean sprouts takes only 3-4 minutes. Each time spread steamed vegetables on a cookie sheet for a quick cooling.

Mix the salad:

1. Mix the lightly steamed vegetables and dry dressing when everything is COOL.
2. Combine dressing and veggies thoroughly and serve in a room temperature.  Add salt if necessary.
3. Store in the fridge but let it out on a room temperature or heat up in a microwave for 1 minute before serving.

Just like Indian Kale-Cabbage Thoran, this dish is usually better accompanied with somekind of fish dish.  The Lemongrass Soy Fish is a great companion.

Quinoa and Arugula Salad with Citrus Champagne Vinaigrette

My blog this time is about flavors instead of spices.   I love this salad  because it has all flavors we are familiar with in one bite: bitter(arugula), sweet(canteloupe or honeydew and orange), sour(champagne vinegar and lime), salty(hickory smoke tofurky or smart bacon or tempeh bacon), creamy(soy feta or daiya cheese) and savory/earthy(garbanzos or chickpeas and quinoa). I've been eating a lot of salad and fresh vegetables as summer is still strong in my area.    It  really is an endless summer!    I am sharing this good and refreshing salad.  It's a light meal in itself and I hope you will enjoy it. 

The following are the ingredients I used in the salad:

From top left, clockwise: fresh baby arugula, cooked quinoa, soy feta, cooked chickpeas/garbanzos, sliced red onion, sliced hickory smoke tofurky, and ripe canteloupe 

About the 'cheese':  In this version, I used Soy Feta by Sunergia Foods, about 1/2 a block.  However, you are welcome to substitute it with other white vegan cheese such asi Daiya Mozzarella or omit it.

About the 'the smoky things':  Our favorite smoky seitan is Hickory Smoked Tofurky Deli Slices.  I sliced and separated them thinly.  You are also welcome to replace it with other smoky vegan bacon such as tempeh bacon or smart bacon from LightLife.

About the champagne vinegar and oil (see picture below):  I found Orange Muscat Champagne vinegar at Trader Joe's that was perfect for this salad dressing.  However, you may find other champagne vinegar at a different store.  I also love to use Roasted Walnut Oil (see below).   You may use any other kind of oil such as olive oil, canola oil, or grapeseed oil.

Vinaigrette ingredients: roasted walnut oil, orange muscat champagne vinegar (or any other champagne vinegar), fresh orange juice, and fresh lime juice.

Quinoa and Arugula Salad with Citrus Champagne Vinaigrette
Serve 4-6

Salad ingredients:
2 cups cooked quinoa
6 cups arugula
2 cups ripe canteloupe or honeydew, cut in julienne
Note:  use a ripe melon by choosing a white and creamy color skin (avoid the greenish one)
1 cup cooked garbanzo or chickpea beans
1 cup Hickory Smoked Tofurky deli slices or tempeh bacon or smart bacon
1 to 1.5 cup thinly sliced red onions
Note: I prefer to mascerate the red onions in the vinaigrette so they are not too strong or oniony
1/2 block of Soy Feta, crumbled, optional

1. Combine the ingredients above, except red onions (see below).
2. Add vinaigrette (recipe below) and crumbled soy feta.  Add more ground black pepper to taste.

Citrus Champagne Vinaigrette ingredients:
3 Tbsp. oil (can be roasted walnut oil, olive oil, canola oil, or grapeseed oil)
3-5 Tbsp. Champagne vinegar (I used Orange Muscat Champagne Vinegar)
1/4 cup fresh orange juice (without seeds and pulps)
1/4 cup fesh lime juice (without seeds and pulps)
1-2 tsp. agave nectar (depending how sweet is the orange juice)
3/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. freshly ground black pepper

1. To make the vinaigrette, whisk oil and vinegar together in a small bowl until it is emulsified and creamy.  Vinaigrette usually has the same amount of oil and vinegar but I added more vinegar in my dressing for a low fat version.  I also added more fruit juices.
2. Add fruit juices and continue whisking.  Taste and add agave nectar.  If the orange juice is pretty sweet, I only add 1 tsp. 
3. Add salt and ground black pepper.  Combine and whisk some more.  This dressing is supposed to be tangy, sweet, and salty.
4. I like to soak the thinly slice red onions in this dressing so they are mascerated and becomes soft before I add them to the salad (about 30 minutes).  This way the onions are not too strong.  If you like strong onions flavor, you can skip this step.

Nutrition Facts (without the soy feta)

Serving Size

11 serving (245.1 g)

Amount Per Serving Calories 21414

Total Fat 9.1g, Saturated Fat 0.8g, 0.8    Trans Fat 0.0g, .0Cholesterol 0mg, Sodium 255mg,5, Total Carbohydrates 28.8g28.8

10Dietary Fiber 3.7g, 7Sugars 8.9g, 8.9, Protein 6.1g6.1

4		4
6

Vegan Pomelo/Grapefruit Salad (Happy Lunar New Year!)

Happy Lunar New Year!  The Year of the Dragon!  This weekend, if you are roaming around China town, Vietnamese town, Thai town, etc. you will see a lot of Pomelos, Kumquats, Oranges, and Tangerines.    When I start seeing pomelos in Asian markets, I know that it is close to Tết (lunar new year).  Then, I start thinking about making pomelo salad.  If there is no pomelo in your area, you can use grapefruit instead.  Pomelo is larger than grapefruit, can weight from 2-4 lbs, but it is not as tart as grapefruit.  The fruit looks like this:

It is huge and has a very thick skin, about 1/2 to 1 inch thick.  Here are  videos I found in youtube:  How to Cut, Peel, and Eat Pomelo (including the horror movie music background) and Peeling the Pomelo. For this salad, I shredded the pomelo sections/pulps after they are peeled (the white skin part was removed).  The inside of my pomelo was white instead of pink such as it was in the videos.

Now, why should I make a salad dish in winter time?  This should be a summer dish, right?  We should all be eating soups, right?   The reason is that citrus is in season now and it contains a lot of vitamin C, such as the pomelo above.  It is time to eat CITRUS so we can fight colds that are common during winter.  I also have a lot of fresh limes from my tree.  I will need fresh limes for my pomelo salad. Pomelo and lime contain a double dose of vitamin C.  This diet works since I am proud to say that I haven't had any cold in more than 1 year now.  Actually, I don't remember the last time I had any cold.

The ingredients of pomelo salad are:

From top left, clockwise: shredded pomelo(in blue bowl), carrots, cucumber, aburaage, mint leaves, cilantro leave, beansprouts.

Vegan Pomelo/Grapefruit Salad
Serve 4-6

2-3 cups shredded pomelo or grapefruit  (it depends on the size of the pomelo, it can be from 1 to 2 pomelos after it is cut and peeled)
2 cups carrots, cut into matchsticks
2 cups cucumber, cut into matchsticks
1 cup  aburaage or firm tofu, cut into matchsticks
   Note:  I used seasoned aburaage (one for inari) but you can use unseasoned aburaage or shredded fried tofu
2 cups beansprouts
1/4 cup chopped fresh mint leaves
1/4 cup chopped cilantro leaves
1/2 cup chopped roasted peanuts, 1-2 tablespoons more for the toppings
1/4 cup fried shallots, optional
  Note:  Below is the picture of fried shallots I bought at an Asian market.  It is crunchy and savory.  If you can't find it, you  can substitute with French's French Fried Onions but fried shallots are the preference.

Salad dressing:
1/3 cup fresh squeezed lime juice (from 3-4 limes)
1/3 cup vegetarian soy sauce or light soy sauce
1/4 to 1/3 cup agave nectar, depending how sweet you like it
1 Tbsp. minced garlic
1 minced serrano chili or Thai chili
  Note :  for less spicy, use 1/2 chili

1. Combine the salad ingredients in a large bowl.  Don't mix the dressing until about ready to serve. Note: I often store the combined salad ingredients in the fridge without the dressing and add the dressing before serving.
2. Combine the salad dressing in a separate bowl, mix well.
3. Pour salad dressing slowly into the salad and toss well.  Add chopped peanuts on top.  Serve.

This salad is very refreshing.  It is sour, sweet, peanuty,  minty, limey, and oniony.  I just love it.  It is also light.  There is no oil in the dressing so if you are cutting oil after all those meals during the holidays, you will appreciate this salad (use plain firm tofu instead of aburage and omit the fried shallots).

Grilled Vegan Caesar Salad

What??? Yes, you read it right! This vegan Caesar salad contains grilled Romaine lettuce. I learned this from a Create PBS TV show featuring Steven Raichlen, Primal Grill with Steven Raichlen. So, why would a person who doesn't eat meat watch a bbq show? Beats me! I just like to watch cooking show, I guess. I thought that it is summer bbqueing time again so why not? Our weather is perfect for grilling right now. I was rewarded by watching him making grilled Caesar salad. I thought what an odd dish! My first response was I GOT TO TRY IT! before I judge it no good.

So I did and I was surprised that I LIKE IT! I like it that I made it twice. Something about the smokey grilled romaine lettuce and baguette added savory flavor to the salad. I also veganized the recipe. I followed his method of grilling the Romaine lettuce and oiled baguette. Then, I used vegan Caesar salad dressing(which has no anchovies in it) and soy Parmesan. It is very simple if you buy your favorite vegan salad dressing and vegan soy Parmesan. You can also make your own vegan Caesar salad dressing and vegan soy Parmesan. I also added vegan soy chicken strips. You can buy your favorite soy chicken and mine is Morningstar Chik'n Strips, however, it is optional.


Grilled Vegan Caesar Salad
Serves 6

3-4 heads of Romaine lettuce, slice in halves from the roots (see picture above)
1/2 of a long French baguette, cut diagonally, 1/2-inch thick
1 or 2 fresh garlic cloves, halves
2-3 tablespoon olive oil or garlic infused olive oil.
1 pkg. vegan soy strips, optional
store bought vegan Caesar salad dressing, I like Follow Your Heart
vegan soy Parmesan, homemade or store bought
freshly ground black pepper
sea salt to taste

Optional: 2 cups wood chips soaked in water for 1 hour

Grill with hot coals

1. Clean lettuce by soaking them in water to remove the sands and grimes. Drain and let them dry.
2. Prepare hot coals ( I use real wood briquettes charcoal). Add wet wood chips on the hot coal. It will start to smoke. It is optional to use the smoking wood chips.
3. Grill romaine lettuce on hot coal. Close the lid to smoke them.
   
   
4. Meanwhile, brush each side of the sliced baguette with raw garlic to add flavor.
   
   
5. Then, brush each side of the sliced bread with olive oil. Or you can buy garlic infused olive oil and skip the step above. I bought the garlic oil below at Trader Joe's.
   
   
6. Don't forget to check on the romaine lettuce. It should not be grilled too long till they are crispy. The picture below shows how I like it. Some of the leaves are not wilted and some are. Take them out of the grill and slice them with a knife into bite pieces and remove the core.
   
   
7. Add the soy chicken and oiled sliced baguette on to the grill. Add a drizzle of oil on the soy chicken so it won't stick to the grill. I used a grill pan so they won't fall off into the coals. Watch the bread closely since it will brown quickly.
   
   
8. Slice soy chicken in bite pieces. Serve them on top of the grilled lettuce with drizzles of vegan Caesar salad dressing, freshly ground black pepper, a sprinkle of sea salt, and soy Parmesan. Serve with the grilled bread on the side or cut the bread into bite pieces and mix them in the salad (my preference).

Enjoy!

P.S.:
Caesar salad was invented in Tijuana (not far from where I live) by Chef Alex Cardini (not Caesar). You can read the history of Caesar salad here.

Vietnamese Green Mango Salad

Recently, I have been craving Vietnamese Vegan dishes. I was inspired by my visit to a local Vietnamese Vegan/Vegetarian restaurant, Thuyen Vien, to prepare this dish. If you are in SoCal area, I really recommend this restaurant. Their dishes are authentic and the owner is very friendly and accommodating. It is a mom and pop, not a fancy vegan restaurant, but the food is out of the world!

After having a super delicious green mango salad in Thuyen Vien, I vowed to replicate it at home. It is not hard to find green mango in my area. I usually pick mangoes that are still firm and green in Asian or Indian markets nearby. If you cannot find green mangoes, you can use green apple such as Granny Smith. I even use 1 green apple in this recipe to add a crunchy texture.

It is also not that hard for me to find the fresh herbs used in Vietnamese cooking. I live near the so called Little Saigon of Orange County, California. The essential ingredient for this salad is a fresh herb called Vietnamese Coriander, the Vietnamese name is rau răm. I went on a special trip to a Vietnamese market just to get it. It is not available in the usual natural food markets I frequently shop at. If this is not available in your area, you can use fresh lemon verbena. Whatever you use for a substitution, choose a fresh herb that has lemony flavor and smell. I took a good picture of it so you can see how it looks like if you are able to find a Vietnamese market near you (you know that language barrier can be a problem shopping in such a market). Probably, you can also ask your local Vietnamese restaurant if they know where to buy it.

The ingredients of the salad are as follows (from left hand corner, clockwise): green mango, firm cucumber (English cucumber), carrots, jicama, green apple, chopped herbs (Vietnamese coriander and fresh mint leaves).

As you can see that the green mango is light yellowish and not white. During my growing up years, I was able to pick green mango from my own tree in the yard before it turned light yellow (a bit too ripe). However, for the purpose for this salad, since the mango was still firm, it was good enough.

The ingredients were all cut in julienne manner or match sticks. This is a chore. I used a food processor but then found out that it was not a good idea since this tool tends to make the ingredients juicy. I will investigate of a good mandolin that can perform julienne cut fruit and vegetable the way I want it. A julienne peeler did not do a good job since it cut too small. Don't worry since all the effort to cut all the vegetable and fruit is well worth it. This salad is so refreshing, spicy, light, healthy, and very low fat.

Another unique ingredient is young coconut juice. It is the water/juice and not milk, ok? If you can find a young coconut and get the juice out of it, that's great (recently we have lots of young coconuts in nearby Asian and natural food markets). Otherwise, I recommend the one in a can without added sugar and no pulp. I am using it in the veganized salad dressing (originally, this salad has fish sauce in its dressing).

Vietnamese Green Mango Salad
Serve 4-6

Ingredients:
2 cups green mango, julienne cut (about 2 small green mango)
1 cup English cucumber, julienne cut
2 cups carrots, julienne cut
2 cups jicama, julienne cut (1 small jicama)
1 to 2 Granny Smith apple, julienne cut (about 1 to 1 1/2 cups)
1/2 cup Vietnamese Coriander, measure then chop
1/2 cup fresh mint, measure then chop

Garnish:
Cilantro
2 tablespoons fried shallot, omit for lower fat
3 tablespoons chopped unsalted peanuts, omit for lower fat
Sriracha hot sauce
Rice chips or crackers

Salad Dressing:
1/4 cup light soy sauce or Bragg's Liquid Amino
Note: refer to my blog about soy sauce I use
1/4 cup fresh lime juice
1/4 to 1/3 cup young coconut juice or vegetarian broth (room temperature)
1-2 tablespoons agave syrup
1-3 Thai chili or 1/2 jalapeno, chop finely (reduce amount for less spicy)
1 teaspoon minced fresh garlic

Preparation:

1. Combine all salad ingredients in a salad bowl or a large salad plate.
2. Combine all the salad dressing ingredients. Adjust the lime juice and agave syrup so this dressing is a sweet, sour, and spicy. Add enough young coconut juice to make it about 1 cup. Make sure the dressing is mixed thoroughly.
3. Just before ready to serve, pour the dressing over the salad and combine well.
4. Add garnish on top of salad, serve immediately in a room temperature with rice crackers, papadum, and drizzle with Sriracha hot chili sauce, if desired.

While shopping in Vietnamese markets, I discovered Vietnamese rice crackers that is usually served with this kind of salad. The Vietnamese name is Bánh da .



It is made of rice flour, tapioca starch, salt, water, black sesame seetd, and peanut. In this case, it was covered with black sesame seeds. It is crispy like a large cracker about 12-inches diameter and is broken into pieces when it is served with the salad. A closer look:


I thought that this rice cracker is quite delicious with the salad or even just for snacking by itself. It reminds me of Indian papadums. I guess every culture has chips as snacks and this one is a great Vietnamese snacks. Here is how this salad is served: rice cracker on the bottom, top with salad, and drizzle with Sriracha hot sauce. I made sure that every bite has all 3.


This is our favorite salad. It can be a light meal by itself for a hot summer. I cannot describe how good is the combination of sour green mango and green apple, sweet carrots, crispy jicama and cucumber, spicy sweet and sour dressing, refreshing herbs, and crackling rice chips all together. It was a party in our mouth!

Vegan Potato Salad with Mustard and Fresh Baby Dill Weed

Store-bought potato salad or any potato salad served in a picnic or a party is a 'no-no' dish for us. Generally, potato salad recipes contain mayonnaise (eggs and dairy). Therefore, I have not made potato salad in the last 12 years. I could have made one with vegan mayonnaise but DH doesn't like mayonnaise or vegan mayonnaise (home made or store-bought). I had been racking my brain for a potato salad recipe that will satisfy both our palates. Alas, I came up with this recipe. It is very mustardy and a bit spicy but that's what we both like. It also has fresh baby dill weed and salty vegan bacon in it. This salad is a bit sweet, too(agave nectar). It's a definitely a bold and flavorful potato salad and not the general lame potato salad made with mayonnaise.

Vegan Potato Salad with Mustard and Fresh Baby Dill Weed
Serve 6-8

3 lbs. Fingerling potatoes or Yukon Gold potatoes
2 ribs celery, diced small
3 green onions, diced
1/2 medium red onion, diced small
1/2 pkg. Smart Bacon (Lightlife), cooked and crumbled
3 Tbsp. Fresh Baby Dill Weed(I really prefer fresh dill weed in this recipe), chopped

Dressings:
1/3 cup olive oil
4 Tbsp. Organic Apple Cider vinegar
1 1/2 Tbsp. Agave Nectar
1 1/2 Tbsp. Organic Grained Dijon Mustard or Spicy Grained Dijon Mustard (or smooth Dijon mustard) My favorite brand is Roland Organic Grained Dijon Mustard
1 tsp. salt
Fresh ground black pepper (1/4 - 1/2 tsp)

1. Prepare veggie bacon as instructed on the box. Let them cool and hardened. Then, crumble or cut them into small pieces.
2. Boil potatoes (unpeeled) for 30 minutes. Drain and let them cool for 10 minutes, then, peel them. Cut them up in bite pieces. Let them cool some more while preparing dressing.
3. Measure apple cider vinegar into a bowl. Using a whisk or hand held blender, pour olive oil into the vinegar while whisking or blending this mixture. Oil and vinegar will combine into a nice and creamy looking dressing.
4. Add agave nectar, dijon mustard, salt, and pepper. Mix them really well with the whisk. You can adjust the sweet, spicy, sour, and salty taste.
5. Put all salad ingredients in a big bowl. Add dressing and combine well.
6. Let salad sit in the fridge for at least 2 hours before serving. Serve it cold or at a room temperature.

Asian Noodles with Ponzu Sauce, Millennium style

Before I post the Asian Noodles dish recipe, I want to share how I came about making this dish. Recently, I bought 2 new cookbooks: The Millennium Cookbook and Artful Vegan from the Millennium restaurant by Eric Tucker and colleagues. These 2 cookbooks are not for beginner vegan cooks. The recipes are quite extensive and the ingredients used are very extraordinary. The restaurant itself is extraordinary, I heard, although I have never been there myself (planning to be there someday). I thought I already cook gourmet meals but compared to the way I cook, this restaurant really prepares super gourmet meals. The chefs are professionals in the vegan culinary world which I entered only on the edge of it, I think. I can’t imagine what my mother-in-law who lives in the midwest would say if she reads these cookbooks. She said that she enjoys my blogs but doesn’t know half of the ingredients I mentioned in my blogs. These cookbooks use all the ingredients I use and much more. I think vegan culinary world stands on itself as a vast world with no limit. Really, there is no limit of what you can do with fruits, vegetables, grains, seeds, and nuts. A lot of people just don’t know what to do with them but these professionals do.

The ingredients they used that I have never heard of before are like honshimeji mushrooms, mizuna green, black quinoa, and rose geranium (hhmmm…where would I get this). I thought I know a lot about food and culinary world but actually I don’t compared to these professionals. They don’t just use carrots, potatoes, and cabbage like the day-to-day cook in an ordinary family kitchen. They also have an advantage to be at a great location, Northern California, and have a direct contact with local organic farmers who deliver variety of vegetables and fruits, fresh, all year long.

The way Millennium chefs combine fruits and vegetables in making a dish is also amazing. For example, like their salad called Ruby Grapefruit, Avocado and Pickled Red Onions with Baby Spinach and Grapefruit Mojo Dressing, wow, what a name and the picture looks very appealing in this book. Many cookbooks have appealing pictures but the recipes are terrible. However, reading the recipes, I think, I can count on them. The key is to use good quality organic fruits and vegetables to make the recipe right and to adjust the 4 or 5 basic flavors (saltiness, sweet, sour, spicyness, and maybe the 5th flavor: umami or savory) in the recipe to your liking. Everyone has a different degree of each flavor. Eric Tucker, the main Chef, invited his readers to make adjustments and I will do so.

I picked a pretty simple dish for the first time from these cookbooks. The other recipes are not this simple. I have to admit that I appreciate their creativity in combining the ingredients together. The restaurant has an evolving menu which means the dishes they serve are not always the same and they depend on seasonal produce delivered by local farmers (maybe few items in the menu are rotated). According to Eric, the chefs of Millennium conduct a ‘virtual cooking’ where they meet and discuss what they want to do with the vegetables and fruits they received. They have a riffing or jamming with the stuff they have in the kitchen to create the restaurant’s next day menu. It is sort of like musicians composing new songs together. How fun! As their cookbooks reader, I am enjoying reading their creations, singing a new song page after page (although I am not familiar with some of the notes). I didn’t see vegetarian shepherd pie or vegan sloppy joe or tofu pot pie in their cookbooks. I sang those songs before and it is time for me to sing new tunes.

Printable Recipe

Ponzu Sauce
(Adapted from The Millennium cookbook, my changes are in italics)

4 cloves garlic
2 tablespoons coarsely chopped fresh ginger
2 stalks fresh lemon grass, mostly white parts, chopped into ½-inch pieces
1 teaspoon Sriracha hot sauce
¼ cup dry sherry, dry white wine, or nonalcoholic wine
2 cups water
1/3 cup tamari soy sauce
½ cup brown rice syrup

In a medium saucepan, combine all the ingredients and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes. Remove from heat and strain through a fine-meshed sieve. Let cool and refrigerate in an airtight container.

Asian Noodles with Ponzu Sauce(Adapted from The Millennium cookbook, my changes are in italics)

¾ pound dried soba or udon noodles
2 teaspoons canola oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
6 oz. Fresh shiitake mushrooms or other mushrooms, sliced thin
1 head broccoli sliced into small flowerettes
1 red bell pepper, sliced in thin strips
7 oz. Baked teriyaki tofu (store bought)
Note: I use store bought baked tofu to be simple, the original recipe uses smoked tofu
enough ponzu sauce to cover the whole dish ( about 1 1 /2 to 2 cups)
drizzles of sesame oil (optional)2 teaspoons toasted sesame seeds

Cook the soba or udon noodles in salted water for about 5 to 7 minutes. Drain and cool noodles.

In a large pan or wok, saute the garlic in oil for 30 seconds. Add the shiitakes, broccoli, bell pepper, and tofu. Saute an additional 2 to 3 minutes. Add the ponzu sauce and bring to a boil. Add the noodles and toss the noodles with ponzu sauce and vegetables. Drizzle some sesame oil and sesame seeds before serving.

Vietnamese Salads: Vegan BBQ Noodle Salad and Young Jackfruit Salad



Vietnamese BBQ Noodle Salad

 These Vietnamese salads are excellent for hot weather meals. No, summer is not here yet, we have a bright and sunny spring weather for a change, but I wanted to make them since they are low in fat but delicious. To help me loosing weight, I eat Vietnamese vegan dishes such as Vietnamese Salad Rolls (spring rolls), Vietnamese Pho, and these salads: Vietnamese BBQ Noodle Salad and Young Jackfruit salad(the 2nd picture below). They are yummy and refreshing!

To enhance the BBQ noodle salad to be more nutritious, I use Japanese Zaru Soba which I found in the Korean market near our house to replace the white rice noodle. The Zaru Soba is thin like vermicelli but it is made of wheat flour, buckwheat flour, yam, salt, and water. In fact, I thought it will be good for Pho or any pasta dish that uses white pasta. Zaru means a draining basket made of bamboo which can be used as cooking and presentation according to wikipedia.org (click here for more information).

For the Vietnamese BBQ noodle salad, I served the cooked and well drained soba in a bowl topped with fresh vegetables such as thin strips of carrots, thin strips of cucumber, fresh bean sprouts, and fresh mint leaves from our garden. Then, I topped it with grilled marinated Vietnamese BBQ slices made from ‘beefy’ TVP which were grilled on our Cuisinart indoor grill. At the end of the BBQing process, I sprinkled the BBQ slices with roasted rice powder which makes them so tasty.

Roasted rice powder is commonly used in Vietnamese dishes and very easy to make. I pan fried dry (without oi) uncooked rice on a frying pan until they are golden brown. Let it cool and then grind into a powder in a mini blender. This dish is served with sweet and sour dressing on the side. The last topping is chopped roasted peanuts. Pour the salad dressing over the noodle dish just before eating, mix them all up, and enjoy. It is usually served at room temperature which is perfect as a picnic or lunch in the office or travelling dish.

Vietnamese noodle salad is usually served with deep fried Vietnamese eggrolls. It is very yummy but also has more oil and fat content so, at home, I opt to serve without them. In vegetarian Vietnamese restaurants, you can order a combination of eggrolls and BBQ TVP slices on top, a common way to serve it. The salad dressing in restaurants is generally too sweet for my husband’s taste so he usually don’t use much of the dressing. My recipe uses less sugar (I actually use Agave Nectar). It is a matter of taste, you can add more sugar if you want.

Young Jackfruit salad is unusual for us here in the US. I actually didn’t know about this salad until I became a vegan and explored the vegetarian restaurants near us. Of course, I cannot get fresh young jackfruit here since it is a Southeast Asian fruit but I can buy them in cans soaked in brine at the Asian market. It is the YOUNG jackfruit that I used here and not the RIPE yellow jackfruit which is totally different in smell and taste.

This salad is served room temperature and is sour and refreshing, similar to Thai Som Tum (young papaya salad). It is topped with roasted chopped peanuts, chopped cilantro, and drizzle of fresh squeezed lime juice and Sriracha hot sauce. It is served with Vietnamese sesame rice crackers on the side which are used to scoop the salad with (sort of like eating Mexican Nachos).

The Vietnamese Sesame Rice Crackers or Chips are also unique and available only in Vietnamese markets. It is called Banh Da and is made of tapioca flour, rice flour, salt, and sprinkled with black sesame seeds. It is toasted or roasted which causes it to puff up and become crispy like chips. This time I bought them ready made from the market.

Other times I buy the raw ones in a plastic container which looks like rice papers used for Vietnamese spring rolls. I usually roast these on an open fire or a hot grill. Although this cracker does not look that appetizing on the picture, it is yummy with the salad. If Banh Da is not available, you can substitute it with Indian papadum, Mexican tortilla chips, or Japanese rice crackers.

Vegan Vietnamese BBQ Noodle Salad
I often order this dish in a vegetarian Vietnamese restaurant near my house. The dish is low fat but full of flavor (from the lemon grass and five spice powder). I usually pour all the sweet and sour dressings over the noodles and mix them all together. This is a cold noodle dish and can be eaten at a room temperature which is perfect as a picnic or travelling dish. What makes the BBQ TVP slices taste savory is the dry roasted rice powder which is a common use in Vietnamese cuisine.
Servings: 6
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
2 1/2 cups dry vegetarian protein meat slices (TVP) or Soy Curls
16 oz Rice noodles (same one use in Vietnamese Pho noodle) or zaru soba
2 carrots, cut into thin strips
1 cup mint leaves, shred into individual leaves
1 cucumber, cut into thin strips
1 cup bean sprouts or shredded lettuce leaves
3 Tbsp roasted rice powder (see tip)
2 tsp canola oil
3 Tbsp roasted peanuts, chopped

Seasonings for marinade:
1/3 cup soy sauce or 2 1/2 Tbsp dark mushroom soy sauce mixed with 2 1/2 Tbsp water
3 tsp sugar or 1 1/2 Tbsp Agave Nectar
1 tsp onion or or 'chicken' or mushroom broth powder
1/2 tsp ground black pepper
1/4 tsp good quality 5 spice powder
1 tsp sesame oil
1 stalk fresh lemongrass, chopped

Sweet and Sour Salad dressing:
1/3 cup water
1/3 cup fresh lemon/lime juice
3 to 4 Tbsp vegetarian fish sauce or Bragg's Liquid Amino
3 Tbsp Agave Nectar or 3 tsp sugar, or to taste
Notes: my husband don't like the sauce too sweet like in the restaurants so I made this sauce more in the sour taste.
1 tsp chili garlic sauce, sambal oelek or Korean red pepper powder, or less for less spicy

1. If using dry TVP slices, simmer the dried veg protein in warm water for 20 to 30 minutes. Then, squeeze all the water out. Or, an alternative method which I like is to pressure cook the dry TVP slices in 3 or 4 cups water on high for 2 minutes. Then, use the quick release method. The TVP slices will be very soft. Let it cool and then squeeze the water out.
2. If using soy curls, reconstitute them with 2 1/4 cups of hot water for 10 minutes. Then, squeeze the water out.
3. Combine seasonings for marinade in a blender including the chopped fresh lemon grass stalk. Blend the sauce until well blended and the lemon grass is pulverized into very small bits.
4. Mix the seasoning sauce with the veg protein (reconstituted tvp or soy cutlets) to marinade for at least 1 hour.
5. Meanwhile, cook the rice noodles in a hot boiling water for 1 minute (or soba for 4 minutes). Take it off heat and soak for a few more minutes. Test if the noodle is soft. When the noodles are soft, drain it over a colander and rinse it with cold tap water so it will stop the cooking process.
6. Heat your indoor bbq grill or a heavy skillet like a cast iron, high heat.
7. Saute the marinated protein slices. Drizzle canola oil to prevent sticking. Cook until they are brown and looked like they have been barbequed. I use an indoor BBQ grill with less oil.
8. Remove from heat. Add 3 Tbsp of roasted rice powder and mix well. Serve in a bowl on top of the drained rice noodle or soba and vegetables with Sweet and Sour dressing on the side. Sprinkle the roasted chopped peanuts on top

Nutrition Facts
Nutrition (per serving): 460.1 calories; 11% calories from fat; 5.9g total fat; 0.0mg cholesterol; 1499.5mg sodium; 475.2mg potassium; 84.3g carbohydrates; 2.3g fiber; 13.9g sugar; 82.0g net carbs; 25.4g protein; 9.2 points.

Cooking Tips for Roasted Rice Powder: Dry fry rice on cast iron pan in medium heat until rice became opaque and light brown, about 5 minutes. Let it cool. Grind in a mini blender or a spice grinder until it becomes a powder.

Vegan Vietnamese Young Jackfruit Salad
This young jackfruit salad is served at a vegetarian Vietnamese restaurant near my house. It is sour, a bit sweet, and spicy like Thai Somtum (young papaya salad). It is served on top of Vietnamese sesame chips that are available in Vietnamese markets but it can be substituted with Indian pappadums. Originally, it is made with fish sauce but I am able to substitute is with vegetarian fish sauce. Bragg's Liquid Amino tastes similar to vegetarian fish sauce and can be used for this dish. With drizzles of Sriracha hot sauce, roasted peanuts, squeezed lime wedges, and chopped cilantro, this dish is crunchy, delicious, and refreshing.

Servings: 6
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
2 cans young jackfruit in brine (each can is 8 oz drained weight, total = 1lb.), drained,rinse in water, squeeze out the water and cut into strips (vertically according to its grain)
2 tsp. canola oil
4 cloves garlic, minced
3/4 cup shallots or green onions, chopped
1 cup Thai/Vietnamese basil, loosely packed, chopped
1 tsp. sea salt
1/2 tsp. black pepper
1 Tbsp. vegan sugar
2 1/2 Tbsp. Vegetarian Fish Sauce or Bragg's Liquid Amino
1 to 2 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice
1 tsp dulse granules

Serve with:
1/4 cup roasted peanuts, chopped
1/4 cup cilantro, chopped
1/4 cup Thai/Vietnamese basil, chopped, optional
Fresh lime wedges, Sriracha hot sauce, Vietnamese sesame chips or Indian Pappadum

1. Preheat wok. When the wok is hot, add oil, garlic, and onion. Stir fry until fragrant. Add young jackfruit strips, salt, sugar, black pepper, and vegetarian fish sauce or liquid amino. Mix and stir-fry in high heat for 10 minutes until spices are absorbed to the jackfruit. Add water to the wok to prevent sticking.
2. Add 1tsp. dulse granules, mix well. Stir fry for 2 minutes.
3. Add lemon juice and Thai/Vietnamese basil. Mix well for 1 minute.
4. Turn off heat. Set aside jackfruit in a bowl and let it cool.
5. Serve the salad room temperature on a plate with chopped roasted peanut and chopped cilantro/basil sprinkled on top.
6. Dot it with Sriracha hot sauce on top and all over the salad. Each person can use the sesame crackers/pappadum to scoop the salad, dot with fresh squeezed lime juice and more vegetarian fish sauce.

Nutrition Facts (without sesame crackers): (per serving): 157.3 calories; 26% calories from fat; 4.9g total fat; 0.0mg cholesterol; 484.9mg sodium; 424.8mg potassium; 28.3g carbohydrates; 2.6g fiber; 2.8g sugar; 25.7g net carbs; 4.0g protein; 3.0 points.