Cooking Vegetarian – Simple Ways To Cook Vegetarian Food

In all forms of cooking there are some principles to bear in mind that can make it easier. Vegetarian dishes are no exception. Even the simplest recipe can look really complicated unless we understand the basics.

The simplest of all dishes is a one pot stew or casserole. There are vegetarian versions that taste just as good as meat based ones. If you have the essential ingredients to hand you can make a very simple vegetarian casserole.

All you need to do is add a tin of beans such as kidney beans, pinto beans, butter beans of flageolet beans to a root vegetable casserole. You can develop some variations on this theme by adding a topping of breadcrumbs with or without grated cheese and putting it in the oven for a few minutes. You could even add a pastry crust or a cobbler topping and bake it. Dumplings are an excellent addition and make a hearty vegetarian meal.

Vegetarian soups are just as simple. If you cook some lentils, carrots and onions for about 15 minutes you can whizz the whole thing in a food processor to make soup. Season to taste and stir a spoonful of yoghurt or creme fraiche into each dish as you serve it. A sprinkling of chopped coriander or parsley adds a special touch.

A pea soup is even easier. Cook some frozen peas in boiling water with a sprig of mint. When they are cooked put them in the food processor. Season to taste and serve. A slice of wholemeal bread makes a satisfying vegetarian lunch.

Another one pot stand by is risotto. A mushroom risotto makes a quick and easy vegetarian supper. Arborio rice cooks in about 10 minutes and it will take about the same to chop up some onions, garlic and mushrooms.

Stir fry is a great vegetarian stand by. The great advantage of this kind of cooking is that you can adapt it to whatever vegetables you have available. If you have some tofu in the store cupboard it is easy to make a vegetarian stir fry. Mushrooms also make a good vegetarian stir fry.

A stir fry is not quite a one pot dish because you will need to cook some rice or noodles to go with it. But noodles are very easy and only take about 10 minutes or less.

Cooking brown rice can be a slow business which puts many people off using it. But the best way to make this essential vegetarian food easy is to invest in an electric rice. cooker. Your rice will be done perfectly every time and become the basis of many easy vegetarian meals.

Ways to Enhance Your Vegetarian Recipes

Cooking vegetables can be tricky. Over-cooking vegetables can make them bland, soggy, and most importantly, can remove the necessary nutrients that are bodies need to remain healthy. Boiling your vegetables is the biggest culprit for robbing cooked vegetables of their nutritional components. It also turns this crisp and fresh vegetables into a lifeless, tasteless form.

Vegetables are essential to the human diet and make up a great part of our daily vitamin requirements. There are methods to cook vegetables in a manner which does not deplete these nutrients which are listed below.

Steaming

Steaming vegetables is always a great way to enhance the flavors of your veggie recipe. Cooking vegetables in this manner will leave vegetables crisp and bright in color.

If you do not have an official vegetable steamer, a steamer can be fashioned out a of pot, a metal colander, and a pot lid. Place a small amount of water in the bottom of a the pot. Fit the metal colander into the pot. Start to boil the water. It’s that simple!

Using a Wok

The secret to how a wok works is that it cooks quickly and at a very high temperature. Because of this, vegetables retain their flavors, textures, and colors with only a minimal amount of nutrient loss.

Paying attention to this cooking process is crucial because most foods are cooked over intense heat in a matter of minutes. Again, no matter which method is used, you do not want to over-cook the vegetable in any way.

Grilling

There’s room on the grill for veggies so why not? Many vegetables grill well, but some aren’t cut out for it, especially those high in water content. Cucumbers don’t make the grade, nor does celery, and lettuce. But even a slightly skilled backyard chef can do wonders with asparagus, eggplant, onions, peppers, and even cabbage.

An example of a delicious vegetarian recipe using the grill is:

Grilled Portobello Mushroom Sandwich

Ingredients:

*1 large portobello mushroom, cleaned and stemmed

*1/4 medium green bell pepper, halved

*1 thin slice red onion

*1 whole wheat hamburger bun (split) or whole wheat sliced bread

*2 tablespoons fat-free Italian salad dressing

*1 slice (1 ounce) reduced-fat part-skim mozzarella cheese

Preparation:

1. Brush mushroom, bell pepper, onion and cut sides of bun with some dressing; set bun aside. Place vegetables over medium-hot coals. Grill 2 minutes.

2. Turn vegetables; brush with dressing. Grill 2 minutes or until vegetables are tender. Remove bell pepper and onion from grill.

3. Place bun halves, cut sides down, on grill. Turn mushroom top side up; brush with any remaining dressing and cover with cheese, if desired. Grill 1 minute or until cheese is melted and bun is lightly toasted.

4. Cut pepper into strips. Place mushroom on bottom half of bun or on a slice of bread; top with pepper strips and onion slice. Cover with top half of bun/slice of bread.

Makes 1 Serving