Veganomicon_ The Ultimate Vegan Cookbook - Isa Chandra Moskowitz [139]
Most of these sauces take less than twenty minutes to prepare and require minimum equipment for prepping, so stop pushing your food around on your plate barren, lonely, unsauced, and unloved. It’s time to get saucy!
MUSTARD SAUCE
MAKES ABOUT 1½ CUPS SAUCE
TIME: 20 MINUTES
For mustard lovers only! Add a little elegance to your meal with this thick, tangy and savory sauce that’s great over Chickpea Cutlets (page 133), baked or broiled tofu, and roasted vegetables—especially asparagus.
2 tablespoons cornstarch
¾ cup vegetable broth
3 cloves garlic, minced
½ teaspoon dried thyme
1 tablespoon olive oil
½ cup sherry cooking wine
1 tablespoon soy sauce
¼ cup whole-grain Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon lemon juice
2 tablespoons capers (with brine)
MIX THE cornstarch with the vegetable broth in a measuring cup and set aside.
In a small saucepan over medium heat, sauté the garlic and thyme in the olive oil for about a minute.
Add the wine and soy sauce, and raise the heat to high. Once the mixture is boiling, lower the heat to medium and simmer, to reduce for about 4 minutes. Add the vegetable broth mixture, mustard, lemon juice, and capers. Stir often, using a whisk. Once the sauce is bubbling, lower the heat to low and simmer for about 3 minutes. The sauce should be on the thick side.
Let cool a bit before serving; this sauce tastes great just above room temperature.
RED WINE ROUX
MAKES 2 CUPS SAUCE
TIME: 15 MINUTES
This luscious, French-inspired sauce packs a rich bouquet of flavors. Serve on anything seitan, tempeh, roasted cauliflower, or mashed potatoes. Our favorite way by far is to served on Chickpea Cutlet (page 133) and a side of French-Bakes (page 33) for a real un-meat and potatoes meal with just a touch of class.
➣ This sauce will thicken considerably as it cools and may form a skin on top. Don’t worry, just give it a good whisk and reheat over a low flame.
➣ For best results, try to mince the vegetables as small as possible. Also, very dry wines taste best in this sauce.
1¼ cups boiling water
1 vegetable bouillon cube
2 tablespoons nonhydrogenated vegan margarine
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
3 large shallots, minced finely
¼ cup finely minced celery
1 clove garlic, minced
¾ cup dry red wine
1 bay leaf
1 teaspoon dried marjoram
½ teaspoon dried thyme
½ teaspoon dried rosemary, crumbed between your fingers
2 tablespoons minced fresh chives
IN A small saucepan, dissolve the bouillon cube in boiling water. Keep the broth warm on the lowest flame possible.
Melt the margarine in a separate small, heavy-bottomed saucepan and stir in the flour with a wooden spoon. Cook over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture is deep golden brown and smells toasty, 6 to 8 minutes. Stir in the minced shallots and garlic, coating with the sauce, and continue to cook, stirring, for another 5 minutes; it will resemble a coarse paste. Stir in the celery and cook for another 3 to 4 minutes, until the celery has softened a little.
Pour in the hot veggie bouillon and stir with a wire whisk to create a thick sauce. Add the bay leaf, marjoram, thyme, and rosemary. While stirring constantly, bring to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer for 2 minutes.
Gradually pour in the wine, continuing to stir with the whisk, and bring to a boil again. Lower the heat once more and simmer for 4 to 6 minutes, until slightly reduced and thickened (sauce is not as thick as a gravy but will cling to the back of a metal spoon).
Remove from the heat, stir in the chopped chives, and either ladle directly over food or serve alongside in a gravy boat.
To reheat the sauce:
This sauce will become very thick if refrigerated, but it