Tag: vegan
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Dragon Fruit
Commonly know as Dragon fruit, the Pitaya is a relative of the cactus and native to the Americas. They are now grown further afield and are relatively expensive.
Their common name comes from the external scaly look of the fruit. Cut open they have a firm, slightly sweet white or pink flesh dotted with tiny crunchy black seeds. Often seen in salads they also pair well with strawberries, pears, citrus and kiwi fruit.
Enjoy,
PK
Here are more ingredients posts:
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How Do I Use Cloves
Cloves are a must-have in your spice collection. They are the dried buds of a tree that originally only grew on a few islands in eastern Indonesia. Cloves are very aromatic and impart a slightly sweet but tangy earthy flavour. Note though that a few go a long way.
Cloves have been traded up to China and then across the continent to England for millennia. They permeate many cuisines and cultural health remedies. Their name stems from the Latin word for nail and I think that is very apt.
Cloves pair well with many types of meat, herbs, spices and vegetables. Notably pork, beef, onion, citrus and pepper.
The evergreen tree cloves come from:
In India they are essential for making Garam Masala:
Enjoy,
PK
Here are more herbs, spices and ingredients posts.
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Cinnamon
Cinnamon is one of my favourite spices. It is the dried bark of the cinnamon tree and is amazingly aromatic and imparts a warm, spicy and earthy flavour.
Long strips of the tree’s bark are sliced off and allowed to dry. These cinnamon ‘quills’ or sticks are then cut to size and sold as is or ground into a fine powder.
This wonder herb is used in everything from stews, curries, drinks, baked treats to health and beauty and cleaning products.
The leaves of the tree are also dried and can be used in stews and the like much the way bay leaves are. They have a pungent smell and taste.
I have some recipes using cinnamon for you in the links below.
Dietary Info: Great for vegetarians, vegans and is gluten free.
This particular cooking ingredient is in PK’s Essential Pantry Cupboard Contents and here is a list of other ingredients on the blog.
Enjoy,
PK
Here are some ways to use cinnamon and some more ingredients posts:
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Simple Ramen Bowl: Make It Your Way
Recently, like the rest of the planet, I have become obsessed with making my own noodle bowls. I love them because although they are healthy and light, you can jam pack them full of vegetables to satisfy even the hungriest guests.
I build my bowls with meat or vegetable based broth and of course noodles (I love soba or udon the best). I then choose a selection of vegetables, meat, eggs, garnishes etc to fill up the rest of the bowl.
Note: You can make this meal vegan by using vegetable stock, tamari and stick to vegetables, mushrooms etc.
For the broth all you really need is chicken, beef or vegetable stock. You can of course build upon that basic stock.
I slowly bring 3 cups of stock up to a gentle boil. Then I add some garlic cloves, a small chunk of ginger (or galangal), several dried mushrooms and splashes of mirin seasoning and soy sauce. I find this makes enough broth for 2 bowls.
I add boiling water to a large bowl and add 2 serves of soba noodles. I let them soften over 8 minutes and then give them a good rinse.
Now this is the best bit, building the bowls. 🙂
Add noodles to each person’s serving bowl. Then pour enough broth to cover the noodles and then stack the bowls to the brim with everything else.
Serving
Now you just need to sit down with your guests and and provide lots of garnishes and condiments. I love a few dried onions and a healthy squirt of sriracha hot sauce.
Happy slurping,
PK
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Peanut Oil
Peanut oil has a lovely nutty aroma and a very mild taste. It imparts this flavour to the food and is excellent for shallow frying crumbed meat, vegetables and the humble potato chip.
Commonly the oil is highly refined (and filtered and bleached) and that gives it a high smoking point like sesame oil.
Commercially the oil is either extracted from the shelled and peeled peanuts using two techniques. These fall into cold press methods and solvent extraction. It can then be further refined.
I have some recipes using peanut oil for you in the links below. 🙂
Dietary Info: Great for vegetarians, vegans and is gluten free. I have read that even refined, those with peanut allergies should avoid.
This particular cooking ingredient is in PK’s Essential Pantry Cupboard Contents.
Enjoy,
PK
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Durum Wheat Semolina
Semolina is made from a mix of wheat kernel middlings. Wheat middlings are parts of the wheat kernel that are removed from the kernel to get to the endosperm (the inside of the kernel) the purest parts of which are used to make the fine flour we bake bread and cakes with (source information from Wikipedia 2018).
Durum wheat is a wheat cultivar with a very hard kernel. Durum semolina is course and pale yellow (other softer wheat cultivars with softer kernels make a white semolina akin to coarse grade flour).
It is high in proteins, minerals, vitamins and fats and also contains some starch. Durum semolina makes for a softer binding (less elastic), easily shaped dough that is used in pizza, bread , gnocchi and puddings.
Dietary Info: Great for vegetarians and vegans.
Enjoy,
PK
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Fennel
Fennel is the seed of a tall perenial plant that was initially native to the Mediterranean coastline. It is in the same family as parsley and coriander.
There is also one cultivar, Florence fennel, that is grown for it’s bulb. It makes for an amazing fennel and lemon salad. It is sometimes sold as an ‘anise bulb’ but anise is a different species that has a similar flavour to fennel.
You can use the seeds whole or ground as a cooking ingredient, garnish and even as a mouth freshener. They are a key ingredient in many masalas and spice pastes. It is a must have spice in many pork dishes and products.
I have some more recipes using fennel for you in the links below. 🙂
Dietary Info: Great for vegetarians, vegans and is gluten free.
This particular cooking ingredient is in PK’s Essential Pantry Cupboard Contents.
Enjoy,
PK
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Dhanna Dal
Dhanna Dal is the inner core of a coriander seed. You can get them at your local Indian grocer.
They have a warm zingy nutty taste with citrus tones, are very morish and have a pleasant crunch. Dry-roasting them reduces the warm zingy taste and brings out the nutty flavour making it earthier and less lemony.
You can snack on them by themselves and they are traditionally used in India to aid digestion. They go great in curries and I dry-roast them before adding to Mukhwa (an Indian mix of fennel and other spices, served after dinner as a breath freshener and digestive).
Just when I thought I couldn’t love coriander more. 🙂
Enjoy,
PK
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PK’s Carrot Chips
These carrot and honey chips are a great alternative to potato fries. Even little fussy eaters will munch down on them. 🙂
#dinner #carrot #vegetarian #kidfriendlymeals
Simply
- Cut the sides of your carrots to give you nice rectangular blocks.
- Cut these down further to get the chip width you like.
- Cover an oven tray in baking paper and coat with some olive oil spray.
- Lay the chips out so they are not touching each other.
- Drizzle with more oil, some honey and some lemon juice.
- Cook on 180C (fan-forced oven) for 30 minutes.
Enjoy,
PK
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Porcini Mushrooms
As a recently born again mushroom addict I am making up for lost time. I am always on the look out for new varieties to try and Porcini are my current favourite. 🙂
I buy them dried from France as they don’t grow wild in Australia and they have resisted domestication. When you open the packet you are rewarded with a lovely nutty umami smell. They taste just as good and I use them as a flavour base in my stews, casseroles and soups.
Dietary Info: Great for vegetarians, vegans and is gluten free.
Fresh they look stunning and I would love to get my hands on some.
Try them in my PK’s Slow Cooked Beef Bourguignon.
Enjoy,
PK
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