As many may know, I love eating and cooking flavourful food. Over the years I have made several attempts to introduce vegetarian meals into my weekly routine, but it was always short lived.
I think a big part of why I could never stick to it was my misconception of meat being the primary source of flavour in a dish. Think about it, a meal will always lack in flavour without meat. It is like a dish is incomplete without meat, or so I thought.
The first night I embarked on my plant-based journey I made a chickpea curry with coconut milk and I was blown away by the flavour and how much I enjoyed it. I thought to myself, this is just a one-time thing and I love curry so that explains it.
Read: Vegan Month: It’s a way of life
But the next day I made an Asian style stir fry with lots of veggies and butternut chickpea balls that blew my mind. I had this massive realisation that meat on its own is actually quite bland and we add flavour to it to make it taste however we want. I learned that whatever flavour I was adding to my meat, I should also be adding to my plant-based foods.
I must admit that mindset plays a huge part when you are eating a plant-based meal or transitioning to this lifestyle. Plant-based meals can be flavourful, enjoyable, and extremely tasty, but I would not have believed it unless I tried it for myself. So, try my recipe and let us know what you think.
Recipe: Sweet potato rosti and tomato bean stack
INGREDIENTS
1 medium sweet potato (yields 4 rostis)
Self-rising flour (chickpea flour for a gluten free option)
Thyme
Salt
Pepper
Vegetable oil (for frying the sweet potato rosti)
1 medium onion
1 small/half large green pepper
Clove of garlic
Balsamic vinegar
1 teaspoon vegetable stock
1 can tomato relish
1 can butter beans
Olive oil (for browning onions)
1 medium avocado
Fresh coriander
Fresh lemon
1 spring onion
Balsamic reduction
METHOD
Tomato and butter bean stew
- On a medium to high heat, brown the chopped onions, garlic and green pepper in a medium sized pot with some olive oil.
- Add the can of tomato relish, vegetable stock and a dash of the balsamic vinegar.
- Add the butter beans and stir to mix.
Cook’s tip: Sometimes I like some extra heat so I add a bit of sriracha sauce or tabasco.
- Lower the heat to a simmer. Stir often to prevent it from burning.
- When most of the moisture has been cooked out of the tomato and bean stew it is ready to be stacked.
Potato Rosti
- In a mixing bowl, grate the sweet potato and slowly add the flour while mixing into the grated sweet potato. Stop adding flour when the mixture is able to stick together and form a ball.
- Add the thyme, salt and pepper.
- Divide the mixture into four equal parts. Roll them into a ball and then flatten to make the shape of the rosti.
- Heat vegetable oil in a pan and fry the rosti on each side until golden brown.
Let’s get stacking
- In a separate mixing bowl, cut the avocado into bit sized blocks. Add salt, pepper and fresh lemon juice and coat the avocado.
- Chop the spring onion and separate the coriander leaves from the stems and set aside.
- Make sure that the consistency is not runny, otherwise your stack will collapse.
- Start your stack by layering a rosti and your tomato and bean stew. You can stack it as high as you like. When you’ve finished your layering, place your avocado, spring onions and coriander leaves on top and drizzle some balsamic reduction over your dish for that final touch.
Leftover tip: If you have leftover tomato and bean stew, you can eat it the next day in a nacho style feast with some tortilla chips and guacamole.
