Category: recipe

This dish has a very strong curry flavor. Not for those just wanting a hint of curry. I adjusted down the oil used in the original recipe and simplified the steps a bit. I found some rice noodles that are long tubes with a hole in the middle. They cook up to be about the size of udon, maybe a little smaller. If you can find these, they feel very satisfying in the mouth and take the sauce inside and out so more of it sticks to the noodles.

Last time I made this, I also threw in half a can of Curried Braised Seitan Tidbits that I picked up on a recent trip to Buford Highway. These are more spongy rather than the texture we’re used to in seitan we get at the heath food store. The curry flavor on them was pretty mild and a little sweet. It didn’t take away from the flavor of this dish. It was a great addition that made the dish a little more hearty.

Curried Rice Noodles

8 ounce dry rice noodles
3 quarts warm water

—Curry Mixture
1 tablespoon peanut oil
2 teaspoon fresh ginger, minced
1 ½ teaspoon fresh garlic, minced
2 tablespoon fresh coriander , minced
1 ½ tablespoon curry powder, mixed with 1 1/2 tablespoons vegetable stock
3 tablespoon vegetable stock
2 ½ tablespoon soy sauce

—To complete the dish
2 tablespoons peanut oil
1 slice fresh ginger, 1 1/4-inch thick
¼ teaspoon salt
1 ¼ cup snow peas
6 scallions, cut into 1 1/2″ slices, white portions quartered
1 medium sweet red bell pepper, julienned (1 cup)

1. Cook or soak noodles according to package directions until moderately softened. Drain well, tossing occasionally to assist the draining process. Allow to stand at least one hour.

2. As the noodles drain, prepare curry mixture. In a saucepan, heat the peanut oil over high heat. Ad ginger, garlic and coriander and stir well. When the garlic turns light brown, add the curry powder-stock mixture. Stir and allow to cook for 1 minute. Add the vegetable stock, stir and simmer for 10 minutes, covered, over lower heat. Add the soy sauce and stir in well. Cook for 5 more minutes, stirring 3 or 4 times until smooth and blended. Reserve.

3. Heat a wok over high heat for 45 seconds and add the remaining peanut oil to coat the wok. When a wisp of white smoke appears, add the slice of ginger and salt. Cook for about 30 seconds, until the ginger turns light brown. Add all vegetables and stir-fry for 1 1/2 minutes, or until the snow peas turn bright green. Add noodles and and cook stirring until well combined, another 2-3 minutes. Serve hot.

Adapted from From the Earth: Chinese Vegetarian Cooking by Eileen Yin-Fei Lo.

About a week ago I took this to a Shabbat potluck where it was a big hit. People went for seconds and I didn’t bring a scrap home. The original recipe seemed a little too salty & oily so I adjusted those ingredients down. Also, instead of frying the pita in oil, I toasted it in the oven to cut down on fat. The result was good. You will probably end up with a good amount of dressing left. I bet it would be good tossed with steamed green beans.

I enjoy the cookbook it came from, Food For the Vegetarian Traditional Lebanese Recipes by Aida Karaoglan, but the directions are not always 100% clear. It really isn’t a cookbook for a beginner. You need to be a comfortable enough cook to question ingredient amounts. This recipe originally called for 2 1/2 teaspoons of salt and that would have completely overwhelmed it.

Bread Salad (fattush)

1 pita bread, stale is okay
2 cups romaine or spring mix lettuce, in bite sized pieces
½ cup onions, coarsely chopped
½ cup scallions, coarsely chopped
1 cup tomatoes, diced
1 cup cucumber, seeded and coarsely chopped
½ cup fresh mint leaves, packed, chopped
½ cup fresh parsley, packed, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
⅓ cup fresh lemon juice
½ cup olive oil
1 ½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon pepper
1 tablespoon sumac

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Break the bread into bite sized pieces. Arrange in a single layer on a cookie sheet and toast in oven until just starting to brown but not to the point of being crunchy, about 5 minutes. Set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, mix the chopped vegetables and herbs. Add the bread.

Put garlic, lemon juice, olive oil, salt, pepper, and sumac in a jar and shake until mixed. Pour a third of it over the salad and toss. Add more to taste.

Adapted from Food For the Vegetarian Traditional Lebanese Recipes by Aida Karaoglan.

I’ve posted this before, but since it’s stuck in my old archives I wanted to repost it since I’m still seeing search requests for it. Adapted from a recipe I found online to be vegan.

1 cup warm water
½ cup natural sugar
1 tablespoon agave nectar
½ cup vegetable oil
2 ½ teaspoons salt
2 tablespoons flax seeds
4 cups bread flour
¼ teaspoon turmeric
2 ¼ teaspoons bread machine yeast
1 tablespoon poppy seeds or sesame seeds, optional

Mix turmeric with flour until well combined.

Grind flax seeds in a coffee/spice grinder until fine. Whisk with 6 tablespoons of water.

Place warm water, sugar, agave nectar, vegetable oil, salt, flax mixture, flour/turmeric and yeast in the pan of the bread machine in the order recommended by the manufacturer. This order works in my Sunbeam. Select Dough cycle; press Start.

After the machine is done, take the dough out, and place it on a very lightly floured board, punch the dough down, and let rest for 5 minutes.

Divide the dough in half. Then divide into 3 equal pieces, roll into ropes about 12 to 14 inches, pinch three ropes together at one end and braid into a loaf. Do the same with the remaining other half.

Gently put the loaves on a greased cookie sheet, mist with water or wet hands and run over dough surface, cover loosely with plastic wrap, and let rise for 1 to 1 1/2 hours in a warm, draft free place, until double in size.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). If desired, sprinkle loaves with poppy seeds, sesame seeds, etc. Bake in the center of preheated oven for about 20 to 25 minutes. If it begins to brown too soon, cover with foil.