Vegan for Life - Jack Norris [45]
• Veggie burger on a roll with salad and prepared salad dressing.
• Pasta salad: Toss cooked pasta with canned chick peas, onions, chopped raw vegetables, and vegan mayonnaise.
• Burritos: Use leftover beans or canned vegan refried beans. Spoon onto warm tortillas, roll them up, and top with chopped tomatoes and cubes of avocado.
• Pasta with sauce from a jar (add sautéed veggies or soy sausage for your own “homemade” touch).
• Chili beans with veggie burger crumbles served over rice with steamed carrots.
• Soup and salad. Progresso makes vegan lentil soup. Campbell’s Tomato Soup—very possibly the most famous soup in America—is vegan. Just add plain soymilk. Make it go a little farther with a healthful addition like pasta, rice, or beans. Trader Joe’s and Imagine Foods both make good vegan soups in aseptic boxes.
• Taco salad: Toss together greens, chopped tomato, chopped onion, rinsed canned black beans, defrosted corn, and cubes of avocado. Dress with olive oil and lime or lemon juice and top with a handful of crushed tortilla chips.
• Chunks of firm tofu and frozen vegetables marinated in peanut or teriyaki sauce (find both in the ethnic foods section of the grocery store). Sauté in a little bit of canola oil and serve over rice or noodles.
• Whole-grain main-dish salad: This is a great way to use up leftover cooked grains. Toss brown rice, couscous, barley, or whatever you have on hand with chopped onion, defrosted frozen peas and corn, sunflower seeds, and rinsed canned beans. Top with your favorite dressing or with olive oil and lemon juice.
Look to Ethnic Cuisine
Some of the best eating patterns in the world—from both a culinary and health standpoint—are based on plant foods. When you start exploring meals from Italy, India, Mexico, China, Thailand, and other exotic locales, it will open up your world to the best of vegan cuisine. Look in cookbooks and online for recipes for pasta or Asian noodle dishes, curries, stir-fries, and pilafs (made with grains, nuts, and dried fruits). And look for ethnic restaurants when eating out since they are likely to have a good choice of vegan dishes.
Experiment with Beans
Most Americans didn’t grow up eating beans, which is too bad. Legumes are super nutritious foods and among the world’s cheapest and most abundant sources of protein. That’s why beans have played a role in the diets of nearly every culture. If you can’t get organized enough to cook beans from scratch, it’s fine to use canned. Try bean dishes that are familiar, like baked beans (you can buy the canned vegan variety), bean burritos, and lentil and split pea soups.
One way to update your attitude about this group of foods is to become familiar with their use in other cultures. Chickpeas simmered in fresh tomato sauce, along with pasta and a glass of Chianti is a meal featuring the traditional flavors of Sicily. Other wonderful bean-based delicacies: garlic-infused Cuban black beans, spicy Indian lentil curry, and lemony chickpea hummus from the Middle East. Truly, beans are anything but boring!
What to Do with Beans
It’s a simple matter to turn cooked beans into a tasty dish. Here are some super-fast ideas for ways to flavor beans. Most of these dishes can be served over rice or other grains—or spooned over a baked potato.
Black, pinto, and kidney beans
• Mexican-style beans: For each cup of cooked beans, stir in ¼ cup salsa and ¼ cup corn kernels. Heat and serve over rice topped with shredded soy cheese or chopped avocado and tomatoes.
• Mediterranean beans: Sauté ½ cup chopped onion and 2 stalks celery in 3 tablespoons olive oil until tender. Stir in 2 cans beans (rinsed) or 3 cups cooked beans, 4 ounces sliced pimiento-stuffed green olives, and a 4-ounce can chopped chili peppers.
White beans (great northern, baby lima, or cannellini)
• Beans with mushrooms: Sauté 1½ cups sliced mushrooms in 2 tablespoons olive oil. Add 3 cups cooked beans and season with black pepper and fresh lemon juice. You might