Comments on: On Food

By: KathyF

KathyF — Wed, 22 Feb 2006 09:20:22 +0000

gswift: Although a vegan diet lacks one specific B vitamin: B12, there’s no shortage of B12 in supplemented cereal, soy milk, vitamins, etc. Also a little lasts for years, though I’m a better-safe-than-sorry type, and I take a supplement.

(We won’t talk about all the lovely vitamins and antioxidents that are lacking in a meat-based diet.)

By: Jennifer

Jennifer — Tue, 21 Feb 2006 15:44:58 +0000

And here is a delicious vegan recipe for lentils and rice that is so delicious you’ll want to “lay down and scream” as a friend once said!

http://www.dianaskitchen.com/page/beans/mujader.htm

Apparently it’s not official, but I always add garlic and cumin to this recipe with fantastic results.

By: gswift

gswift — Tue, 21 Feb 2006 12:12:49 +0000

If you’re going vegan you might want to look into supplementing your B vitamins to avoid anemia.

By: zuzu

zuzu — Tue, 21 Feb 2006 03:38:03 +0000

I do know that much vegetarian Indian cooking is not vegan — from what I’ve been told, the whole “Hindus worship cows” thing is overblown — it’s just that a cow, alive, provides much more value to a village what with all the cheese and butter, than a cow, slaughtered.

I just bought one of Madhur Jaffrey’s cookbooks, and she does recommend substitutes for ghee. So it’s quite possible to do a lot of good stuff from her recipes.

Oh, Thlayli. Canned potatoes? When fresh ones cost next to nothing, and have a much better texture?

Also, frozen peas are much better than canned.

By: Thlayli

Thlayli — Mon, 20 Feb 2006 23:17:19 +0000

Bachelor Aloo Mattar:

1 (15oz) can peas
1 (15oz) can sliced potatoes
1 (12-16oz) jar curry sauce

Open containers. Drain water out of cans. Empty containers into cooking dish. Heat. Serve over rice or couscous.

Anybody who turned up their nose at the above is welcome to come over and cook for me :P

By: Chuck

Chuck — Mon, 20 Feb 2006 20:37:22 +0000

Ditto to foresmac’s commentary above. In fact, paneer is generally fried quickly and lightly in ghee before its addition to whatever else is going in the dish. Not vegan friendly at all.

My fave Indian-inspired dish is also my favorite “what the hell do I make with what’s in the fridge?” dish:

Sautee onions, garlic, tomatoes either in a skillet (like a real chef!) or in a pot of some sort that will hold the rest of the ingredients (like someone who hates doing dishes!)

Add broth, salt, and whatever masala spices you like
Add whatever else (I recommend lentils, carrots, celery, cauliflower, potatoes, chick peas, etc.)

Cook until done & serve on basmati rice :)

It’s totally not a recipe, but that’s why I love it. It’s different every time, it’s delicious every time.

By: evil_fizz

evil_fizz — Mon, 20 Feb 2006 19:08:01 +0000

I’m pretty fond of Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone.

BTW, sundried tomato spread is *awesome*. If you use the kind packed in oil, just toss them in a food processor with some oregano, garlic and a little chili powder for heat. so yummy on pita bread and similar.

By: B.D.

B.D. — Mon, 20 Feb 2006 18:41:33 +0000

Get Lord Krishna’s Cuisine: The Art of Indian Vegetarian Cooking. No, it’s not vegan, but many recipes are and many can be easily adapted. It’s by Yamuna Devi. Also, she’s been around for ages and also is not specifically vegan, but Madhur Jaffrey has several good vegetarian cookbooks featuring recipes from around the world. I turn back to both of these time and again.

By: Shannon W.

Shannon W. — Mon, 20 Feb 2006 18:09:46 +0000

I like this blog Vegan Lunch Box

By: foresmac

foresmac — Mon, 20 Feb 2006 16:40:36 +0000

I’ll just mention this because I’ve heard people make this mistake numerous times at Indian restaurants:

Paneer is real dairy cheese and not tofu, though tofu can make a good replacement for it. Also, most Indian food is cooked with ghee, which is clarified butter. Since I assume you are going to be cooking this at home and not eating out at a restaurant, it might not be a concern. However, I have found cold-pressed Safflower oil to be a pretty good replacement.

That might be redundant, but I thought I’d mention it just the same.

I’ll dig up my halavah recipes, I have some pretty good versions I created myself over the years…