The Recipe Room

My mum used to make a beef version of this seitan teriyaki when I was growing up, and I have always loved the strong sweet and salty taste of the sauce.  Since fried seitan has quite a similar texture to beef, I decided to have a go at making up a vegetarian version of my childhood favourite.

The one thing taking away from the authenticity of the recipe is my inability to find a decent vegetarian fish sauce.  In the end I decided to just go with regular Tamari sauce, which tastes great, but is obviously missing a bit of the tangy and pungent effect that a fish sauce would have provided.  If anyone knows of, or ever finds a decent vegetarian or vegan fish sauce, please let me know; I’d love to try it.

I also like to sprinkle over sesame seeds for extra crunch, but that is optional. Serve it over rice and veggies for a balanced meal.

Also try these Japanese noodles with bell peppers and beef. And as we do here, replace the meat for seitan.

I had an awful cold the other week, and it dawned on me that one of the worst things about being a vegetarian is not being able to eat chicken noodle soup.  It may not really be a cure for the common cold, but it certainly has proven to make you feel a bit better, at least while you’re eating it.  In any case, this tomato and cabbage soup recipe is my first attempt to make a vegetarian-friendly, feel-good soup for those pesky winter colds.

The young garlic, ginger, cinnamon and chilli help to clear your sinuses, and the fennel seeds and honey help to sooth a sore throat.  To be honest, it tastes nothing like standard chicken noodle, but it definitely did make me feel a bit better, and the effect lasted for a few hours after I ate it too!

What you’re going to need:

• 3 medium tomatoes, washed and diced
• 4 medium carrots, peeled and shredded or chopped
• 400ml cabbage, cut into 1cm x 3cm strips
• 1 leek, washed and chopped
• 1 young garlic, finely chopped
• 1 small onion, finely chopped
• 1 vegetable stock cube
• 250ml rice
• 1tsp chilli powder
• 2tsp salt
• 2 bay leaves
• 1tsp honey
• ½ a cinnamon stick
• 1/2tsp fennel seeds
• 1tbsp fresh ginger, finely chopped
• 1/2tsp black pepper
• 3 litres water
• 3tbsp olive oil

What you have to do:

1. Heat the olive oil in a large pot over medium heat until it’s hot but not smoking.
2. Add the chopped onion and sauté until translucent, about 5 minutes.
3. Add the leek and young garlic and sauté another 2 minutes.
4. Add the cabbage, carrot and tomato and continue sautéing for 3 more minutes with the heat on full.  Stir continuously to avoid burning.
5. Add the honey, stock cube, chilli powder, salt, black pepper, cinnamon, bay leaves and fennel seeds.  Sauté for 30 seconds to bring out the aroma of the spices.
6. Add the water and the rice to the pot and bring to the boil.
7. Reduce heat to a fast simmer and cook for another 30 minutes or until the rice is tender.
8. Adjust salt and pepper to taste.

Preparation Time:  10 minutes

Cooking Time: 40 minutes

Serves:  6

Difficulty:  Easy