Monday, June 16, 2008
Spice up meatless meals
We’re often told that eating just one vegetarian meal a week is good for our health. As the price of meat keeps going up, eating more vegetarian meals also will be good for our food budgets. But meatless doesn’t have to mean boring, especially when a few seasonings can spice things up.
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Sweet and Sour Kidney Beans
1 8-ounce can unsweetened pineapple chunks
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 cup white vinegar
2 tablespoons soy sauce, regular or reduced sodium
1 medium onion, cut into wedges
1 large green pepper, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 medium carrot, sliced
1 garlic clove, minced
1 16-ounce cans kidney beans, rinsed and drained
1 medium tomato, cut into 1-inch cubes
Hot cooked rice
Drain pineapple, reserving juice. Set pineapple aside. In a bowl, combine the brown sugar, cornstarch, and ginger. Add enough water to reserved juice to measure 1/2 cup; stir into cornstarch mixture until smooth. Add vinegar and soy sauce; set aside.
In a large nonstick skillet coated with nonstick cooking spray, stir-fry the onion, peppers and carrot until crisp-tender, about 5 minutes. Add garlic; stir-fry 1 minute longer. Add the beans, tomato, and reserved pineapple. Cook and stir until heated through, about 3 minutes. Stir soy sauce mixture and add to bean mixture. Bring to a boil; cook and stir until thickened, about 1 to 2 minutes. Serve with rice if desired. Makes 4 servings.
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This is an easy version of a popular Indian dish.
Chana Masala
1/2 teaspoon dried ginger
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon turmeric
1 teaspoon paprika
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 large onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 15-ounce can diced tomatoes with green chilies, undrained
1 15-ounce can chickpeas, drained
Hot cooked rice, optional
In a small bowl, combine ginger, coriander, cumin seeds, cumin, turmeric, and paprika; set aside. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onion and garlic; cook until onion softens, about 3 minutes. Add spice mixture; cook 1 minute, stirring constantly. Add tomatoes and chickpeas; reduce heat to low. Cook until thickened, about 30 minutes. Serve with rice if desired. Makes 4 servings.
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Pantry Pointers
Paprika is made from dried and ground red peppers. Most recipes that call for paprika are calling for Hungarian paprika. This variety is sweet, holds a lot of flavor, and often is the least expensive of the paprikas.
The Practical Pantry ©2008 Tammy P. Olson
http://www.practicalpantry.com