Curried Potato Salad

Recipe from Caribbean Vegan. I sometimes daydream about it when I have to winter blues and am longing for summer produce.

I was never that fond of mayo, so I thought potato and macaroni salad were vile things, and that my disliking them proved the stereotype of whites positively loving mayo in "Undercover Brother" to be totally fallacious. (Nevermind that all stereotypes are bullshit. Wait, I just generalized with the word "all"--guess I'm a hypocrite.) But, I digress; this recipe turned my opinion of potato salad right around!

On the subject of an entirely different, but still related enough to be included, matter...I made one of those “can haz cheezburger/LOLcats” things.

Don’t judge me, okay?  It’s because I like bears. I know it's a problem. And I tried going to Bears Anonymous, but it was largely composed of people with abnormal attachments to the stuffed toys, sprinkled with a few confused sports fanatics, honey addicts, that guy from "Fight Club" on a relapse, and these really...concerning...furries with a thing for Pooh.

There was a bear hug I did not want...

Zhengjiao (Chinese Vegetable Dumplings)

RECOMMENDED RECIPES INSTALLMENT no. 1...Well, it's recommended so long as you don't mind assembling each and every dumpling in a labor-intensive endeavor that totally pays out in the end.

The other good news is that you can freeze them in their uncooked version and have a good back up meal for when you are too damn tired/lethargic to cook. (Just make sure you cut the sauce recipe in half or quarter it. Or, just do some guess work with the proportions, using tablespoon/teaspoon measurements and adjusting it by taste.)

Anywho, I think this is a great recipe and I found on Chow.com several years ago; it is originally from Andrea Nguyen, who kindly shared it (and maybe got some publicity for her name/publications). The post includes recipes for the filling, dough, and a dipping sauce, as well as an instructional video for different ways to wrap the dumplings. The filling is spinach, tofu, carrot, and shiitake mushrooms + seasoning and cornstarch as a binder. Below is the interior of the first batch I ever made.

Throwing aside any concerns for the sodium content of the sauce (treat yourself every once in a while), I think the only alteration that need be made is adding more sweet to the sauce, b/c I found it to be too much tang. Also, people in the comments section suggest that one add more tofu--I sure as hell wouldn't object. 

Below are the steamed "big hug"-style wrappers steeping in the dipping sauce to which I added a ton of fresh garlic & ginger during the cooking process.

Mimicking Food Trucks #1: "Duck" Taco

Although I don't really like television--if bored and presented the opportunity--I do enjoy watching cartoons, international news programs, 'nature' documentaries voiced by Attenborough, and the Cooking Channel.

The latter has a show called "Eat St," which documents the ventures of various participants in the food truck revolution/trend going on right now. On one show, a taco truck stationed in Baton Rouge, Louisiana named "Taco de Paco" was examined, and showcased a duck taco called "the Emilio."

From my notes on the episode (and inability to find the clip online), I will provide as close to a description of it as I can, without having tasted it myself: It is a sweet and savory taco made of roasted duck, homemade spicy peach preserves, sweet potatoes, and fried duck skin for crunch. Confirming this, PetitChef  provides a picture of the original and describes it as such: "The Emilio: Roasted Duck glazed with Louisiana Sugar Cane, topped with Sweet Potato Hash, and finished off with homemade Peach Preserves."

I assume it can/could still be purchased from the Taco de Paco food truck in Baton Rouge, LA, if you are into eating birds, their skin, and are in the vicinity.

Since I meet none of those qualifications, I have taken matters into my own hands to veganize this interesting confection, using a can of braised seitan ("mock duck") obtained from an Asian grocer to replace the bird, and baked tortilla strips to replace the fried duck skin. (Aside: In hindsight, I have decided that those thin, deep fat fried strips of wonton wrappers that fast food Chinese restaurants give to customers for their soup would be better for replacing the fried skin. Or, maybe some sort of health food chips, like those rice chips, or better, the ones made from sweet potatoes--so as to keep with the original’s ingredients. The only problem with the latter, of course, is that jagged chip bits might stab your mouth as you chew.)

The following is sort of a recipe, but more so a general guide about how one might go about creating something similar to "the Emilio."

1. Rinse and drain a 10 oz can of mock duck. You may want to cut up its contents into bite-sized hunks. Then, to achieve a sweet and savory taste, rub the pieces w/ paprika (1/2 teaspoon) & a little cayenne + sweet cane syrup or some other liquid sweetner (1 teaspoon, plus maybe another 1/2 teaspoon for good measure)
1.  Allow to marinate
2. Roast it in the oven or blacken it in a hot skillet
2. Obtain spicy peach preserves
1. Foremost, you could purchase it from somewhere; Blue Ridge Jams, for example. But, otherwise, add hot sauce and/or chili flakes to regular peach preserves (or apricot jam/preserves) and allow it to sit for at least ten minutes so the ingredients can mingle. You could even mix in some hot pepper jelly, if you have some on hand.
3. Find something crunchy to replace the fried duck skin: Fried tortilla strips? Crumbled vegetable chips from the health food aisle? Fried wonton strips? Your choice.
4. Cut sweet potatoes into either hunks or long strips, coat with a light tasting oil (such as canola), perhaps sprinkle with S&P, then bake until tender.
5. Chop green onions and cilantro for garnishing.
6. Wrap up all the components in the tortilla, then toast the burrito in a  frying pan or put it in a hot oven
1. Tips for burrito folding
7. Taste. Unwrap & adjust components' amounts to suit your preference.

Version with crushed sweet potato chips.

This shit right here, this shit right here, mofo: it'll make you cry! Because this shit right here will remind yo ass of the fleeting moments of beauty in this ugly-ass world......Yeah, I don't know where that came from. I've been clicking and smiling through Thug Kitchen lately.

 

Walnut Crusted Tofu

"Walnut-Crusted Tofu w/ Spinach & Orange" from Vegan on the Cheap. (Go buy this book. You will not regret it.)

1 lb extra-firm tofu, drained and cut into 1/2 inch slices
2/3 c dry bread crumbs or panko
1/3 c ground walnuts
2 T soy sauce
1 & 1/2 T Dijon mustard
1 & 1/2 T pure maple syrup
1 T mayo (vegan mayo if you’d like, but you might also use some of your family’s homemade yoghurt, so long as it’s not too sweet)
1/3 c all-purp flour

3 T olive oil
9 ounces spinach, trimmed
2 navel oranges, peeled and sectioned (supremed)
1/2 t ground sage, or 6 fresh, chopped sage leaves
2 T of capers
Salt & pepper

This recipe was modified to suit my preferences, and winds up adding sodium via the marinade, but I think it makes for a better dish. As many chefs say: season at every stage.

1. Marinate the sliced tofu with drops of soy sauce (Control your sodium by a modicum!) and rub with garlic that has been minced and mashed into a rough paste; salt and pepper as desired. 
2. Set up your dredge station. First, add the bread crumbs & ground walnuts a bowl. Second, put the flour in a shallow bowl and stir in some extra ground sage (i.e. not including the 1/2 teaspoon of the original recipe) and pepper. Third, blend the soy sauce, mustard, mayo, and maple syrup.
3. Have your spinach, orange slices, capers, and sage already prepared and measured, standing by in a dish.
4. Heat two tablespoons of oil over medium-high heat. While waiting, begin dredging your tofu slices in flour, adhesive, then crumbs. The slices cook for 2 to 4 minutes on each side.
5. Heat the remaining tablespoon of oil. Sautee the spinach just until wilted, thereafter quickly adding the orange sections, sage, and capers, then S&P to taste.

Pair it with some herby, roasted potatoes. Nom!