It is the third week of Lent – the 40-day period leading up to Easter. While growing up, this period always marked a change to the diet in our home – lots of fish and vegetarian dishes and fasting. We mark our lives with rituals and traditions and so it is a practice I have continued for most part. At times I have rebelled and been defiant (occasions I have shared with you over the years). Today, at the halfway point through Lent, I thought I’d share with you some of my favourite vegetarian eats that I have been enjoying. It is hoped that you will be inspired to try some of them too as I know that we can easily run out of ideas when trying to cook and eat for certain religious observances.
Okra Fried Rice
Any type of vegetable fried rice has been one of my go-to dishes, but I find myself gravitating a lot to Okra Fried Rice, perhaps it is because okra is one of the vegetables that I buy weekly.
How to make it: cut the okra into half in rounds and let them air-dry for about an hour on the countertop or half an hour in the sun. Add a little oil to the pan and fry them crisp, spreading them out evenly in the pan and tossing only 2 to 3 times. In a pan, sauté chopped onions, minced garlic, and hot pepper until fragrant. Add the rice along with salt and pepper to taste and few dashes soy sauce (if using); toss well to mix and heat the rice through then add the okra, toss, cook for 1 minute and serve hot.
Black Bean Dhal
This dhal is deep with the natural flavours of the legumes and is cooked with a few cloves and allspice, both of which complement the robust dark beans. This dhal is ultra-creamy, dark, delicious, and packed with nutrients. I mostly eat this dhal like a soup and sometimes with rice.
How to make it: use an equal amount of regular black beans, Indian black beans called whole black gram or whole black urad and whole brown lentils (this is the masoor/red lentils with their skin on). Soak overnight and proceed to cook just as you would your regular dhal, however, add a few cloves (3 – 4) and whole allspice berries (3 – 4) to the pot with the water to cook the peas. Chunkay/tadka the dhal with jeera, black/brown mustard seeds and garlic. If available, add a few curry leaves too.
Murtani/Upar Gaar
This is essentially a fire-roasted mash up of baigan/eggplant, okra, tomatoes, onions, garlic, and hot peppers. It is an all-in-one choka. This mixture is everything you like about choka – deeply smokey, a hint of char and fiery hot.
How to make it: fire roast all the ingredients and remove the char from everything but the okra. And if you have little bits of char from the other ingredients – that’s okay. Mash everything together and season with salt to taste. Mix in thinly sliced scallions (white/purple) and green
parts, or finely minced onions and a squirt or two of fresh lime or lemon juice and mix well before serving. If available, you can also mix in some chopped fresh cilantro/coriander.
Karaila Curry with Coconut Milk
Karaila is another one of those vegetables that I buy weekly but this dish, whenever I make it, is a treat. Whole karaila is pan-fried to brown the outsides and then cooked in a rich curry sauce of fresh coconut milk. The twice-cooking of the karaila, makes it hearty and meaty.
How to make it: remove the top and bottom tips of the karaila, make a slit from the top to the bottom, pry open and remove the seeds. Heat a pan with oil and working in batches fry the karaila to get a bit of brown on the vegetable, turning it a couple of times. At this stage, the vegetable is not fully cooked through. Once all the karaila are fried, add more oil to the pan and proceed to cook as you would curry by sautéing the paste in the oil, add the karaila, toss gently to coat, season with salt the taste and then pour in fresh coconut milk, bring to a boil, and cook until the sauce reduces to your desired consistency.
Hummus
This has got to be one of the easiest things to quickly put together. Even easier if using canned chickpeas but I prefer to use peas that have been rehydrated and cooked. Hummus is a Middle Eastern dish; it is channa/chickpeas pureed/blended with Tahini (sesame seed paste), garlic, cumin and seasoned with salt to taste and a little fresh lime or lemon juice. Smooth and creamy, this dip/spread you can put on anything thing or dip many things into, including raw vegetables. I eat mine with a thin version of Sada roti that I make and sometimes with wholewheat biscuits/crackers. If I happen to have tomato choka or tomato chutney, I will top the hummus with some of it. A really good combo.
How to make it: find a recipe for quantities and the directions would be to puree until smooth.
Boil Black-eye
Think boil and fry channa but I use black eye peas and cook it a little differently. Cooked this way, I can eat the blackeye as a snack. Also, I like that I can simply eat this with rice, or eggs, boiled or scrambled along with some lettuce.
How to make it: soak the peas overnight to rehydrate properly. Heat oil in a pressure cooker or pot and sauté onions, smashed garlic, and chopped tomatoes until soft and pulpy. Add drained peas, season with salt and black pepper to taste, add just enough water to cook the peas (less if pressuring the peas). Cook until the peas are tender but not mushy and all the liquid has been absorbed.
What are some of your favourite vegetarian dishes that you have been making for the season?
Cynthia
cynthia@tasteslikehome.org
