Tag: cooking

In North Hampshire, summertime is near the end, and autumn is around the corner. As soon as the weather turns chilly, the food I crave the most is soup. Soup is not only easy to make, especially plant-based soups, but it also is the easiest way to use up what’s left in the fridge. Remember: cutting down food waste reduces our climate impact!

So, in this post, I want to show you one of my favourite vegan soup recipes. It’s quick, satisfying, and of course, yummy, too! You might ask why vegan soup. Because I firmly believe the fewer animal products we consume, the more positive impacts we’ll have on the environment.

Why soup?

Soup is primarily liquid food by boiling various ingredients in water or stock. When making it right, it’s comforting, nourishing, and flavourful. Other reasons people might prefer soups over other dishes are:

Soups can be a budget-friendly dish and don’t require much cooking time, especially plant-based soups.
It can be made ahead of time and freezes well – suitable for a busy lifestyle.
It makes us full for longer.
It provides better dietary quality, such as getting our 5-a-day and other nutrition, minerals and proteins for our body health.
Hot soups can increase our body temperature quickly on cold weather days.
The dish is versatile and can be modified to suit everyone’s taste buds.
When people are sick, they want to have soups because they’re soothing and easier for digestion.

Thick soup vs thin soup

Some people might refer to the thin soup as ‘broth’, but the former can be further divided into two sub-categories, passed soup and unpassed soup. Thick soup can also be broken down into five sub-groups: cream soup, puree soup, veloute soup, bisque soup and chowder soup.

As a home cook, I don’t care too much which type (or subtype) of soups I’m making as long as it’s tasty and quick to make. Before moving to the UK, I used to have mainly thin soups. Thin soups are prepared without a thickening agent, such as cream or starchy vegetables.

I make thick soups these days more often because they have all the ingredients extracted and are easier to digest. In addition, they’re a perfect pairing when served with a slice of soft white bread.

Homemade soup vs canned soup

Although canned soup is super convenient, I would always go for homemade soup because you just can’t beat the freshness and nourishment from making your own soup. Besides, canned soups are known for adding too much salt – something soup manufacturers do to enhance the soups’ flavour. Others could have too much fat. They taste good, but their excessive salt or fat could cause damage to our health.

If I only have time to prepare canned soup, I would pour the soup into the saucepan, add at least 1/3 cup of water and some veggies that can be quickly cooked, such as spring onion, spinach, lettuce, frozen peas, then heat them all together to make it as a quick meal. That way, the sodium in the canned soup can be diluted, and I also ensure I get my 5-a-day.

Hot vs cold soup

I don’t do cold soup at all. I always have my soups, either thin or thick, hot because I feel only hot soups can bring me comfort. Cold soups, to me, feel more like unfinished business. However, I know plenty of people enjoy a bowl of cold soup on a hot day.

When I think of cold soups, I am thinking of those soups commonly served cold, such as gazpacho, beet soup or chilled cucumber soup. But what if one takes out the soup from the fridge and eats it without heating it? Some culinary experts might argue that it shouldn’t be classified as ‘cold’ soup. Instead, they should be called ‘chilled’ soup. But some soups taste better the next day because flavours blend better over a more extended time.

If cold soups are your cup of tea, you can try the recipes here.

courgettes, celery, peas, onions and spices

sliced courgettes in a single layer in the baking tray

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Vegan courgette pea soup

Hearty, tasty and nutritious vegan soup

Course dinner, Lunch

Cuisine American

Keyword light meal, soup, vegan

Prep Time 10

Cook Time 25

Servings 4 people

Calories 240kcal

Cost £4.00 (see *note 1)

Equipment

1 immersion blender (or food processor)
1 saucepan with a lid

Ingredients

1 yellow onion
2 courgettes (1 large and 1 medium size or 3 medium size)
100 grams peas (fresh or frozen)
2 tbsp spring onions
1 celery stick (keep some leaves)
3 garlic cloves
3 tsp smoked paprika
3 tsp garlic powder
1 vegetable stock (dissolve it in 500ml boiling water)
2 tsp mint (optional)

Instructions

Slice courgettes and place them in a single layer on the baking tray.
Spray a bit of cooking oil on the courgettes and rub in smoked paprika and garlic powder.
Set the oven to 180C and roast courgettes for 15 – 20 minutes in the oven. (see *note 2)
At the same time, finely chopped onions, celery and mint.
Heat the oil in the saucepan, add chopped onions, and fry until the onion is soft.
Add spring onion. Add a splash of vegetable stock if the pan gets too dry.
Add chopped celery, celery leaves and mint and fry for a minute.
Add peas.
Add roasted courgettes and mix them well with the ingredients in the pan.
Add vegetable stock. (see *note 3)
Turn the heat down and put the lid on. Let the soup cook for another 10 minutes.
Turn off the heat. Once the soup cools down a bit, blend it.
Taste the soup and add salt and pepper if needed.

Video

Notes

*note 1: I grow courgettes in my garden. So it’s completely free! If you never grow courgettes, you should try them because they’re so easy to grow and a very productive crop, too!

*note 2: You can skip this step if you don’t want to roast courgettes. Instead, sauté them after you cook the onion (step 5). I like roasting them because they add a nutty flavour to the soup. Also, it saves cooking time on the hob. Of course, you can always roast them ahead of cooking the soup.

*note 3: Don’t pour in all the vegetable stock in one go. Instead, add it until it’s slightly over all the ingredients in the pot. Hold back some liquid and use it to thin the soup if you feel it is too thick after blending.

Plant-based Diet: Vegan Tikka Masala Recipe (Creamy & Healthy)

By Rachel

On August 19, 2022

In Plant-based-diet

What’s your favourite Indian curry dish? When asking the same question to British people, the national favourite curry dishes are chicken tikka masala, chicken korma or rogan josh (lamb curry), which all involve cooking meat. However, I believe vegan curry can be tasty, too.

Even if you aren’t ready to become a full-time vegan, simply cooking vegan dishes as much as possible shows your caring for the planet, the only place we can call home. So in this post, I want to share a vegan tikka masala curry recipe with you. It’s creamy and healthy, too!

Why go vegan?

There are many benefits of going vegan. To me, it’s more about the environment than anything else. According to a study from the University of Oxford, dietary change, i.e. from a meat/dairy-based diet to a plant-based diet, can deliver significant environmental benefits, such as a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions. Moreover, reducing meat and dairy consumption can prevent deforestation as we won’t need to destroy forests to raise livestock.

What is ‘curry’?

The word ‘curry’ was a British invention when India was a colony of Britain in the 17th century. Back then, the British couldn’t remember all the names of each Indian dish, so they invented the term ‘curry’ and used it as a generic term to refer to dishes with Indian spices.

Although the curry powder originated in India, nowadays, there are more than hundreds of types of curry powder around the world, each with its distinctive mixture of curry powder. Check out the video below to learn more about the origin of the curry powder and how it’s made.

How many different types of curry are around the world?

There are hundreds of types of curry around the world, such as:

Types of curry	Spices/paste used	Example dishes
Cambodian curry	Kroeung, prahok paste	fish amok, Khmer curry
Filipino curry	coriander powder, patis, peanut butter, soy sauce, turmeric	Kare-kare, beef Kulma
Indian curry	cumin, curry leaves, fresh ginger, tamarind, turmeric	aloo gobi, Goan prawn curry
Jamaican curry	garlic powder, onion powder, pimento berries, turmeric, dried thyme	curry goat, curried Jamaican patties
Japanese curry	coriander, cardamom, cumin, grated apples, sautéed onion, turmeric (see *note 1)	katsu curry, kare pan (curry bun)
Korean curry	coriander, cumin, fennel, fenugreek, turmeric (see *note 1)	bulgogi curry (Korean BBQ curry)
Malaysian curry	garlic, Kashmiri chill, lemongrass, onion	curry laksa, Kari Ikan (fish curry)
Thai curry	fenugreek seeds, lemongrass, garlic, galangal, shrimp paste	Choo Chee Goong (prawns in red sauce), Kaeng Kiew Waan Gai (Thai green curry)

The table below illustrates curry around the world in alphabetical order.

*note 1: Instead of curry powder, Japanese and Korean curry spices often come in curry blocks, also called curry roux.

How does curry get its colour?

It depends on the spices and types of chillies used in the dish. Curry can come in three different colours: yellow, red and green. Turmeric gives the curry dish a golden-yellow colour. On the other hand, tomato-based curry and red chillies give the vibrate red colour. As for the green curry, the colour comes from green chilli and fresh herbs, such as basil or coriander.

Is curry a healthy dish?

The mixed spices in the curry give several health benefits. Take turmeric powder for example, a spice used in many different types of curry, it can:

lessen inflammation
regulate blood pressure levels
lower cholesterol

Cumin, another commonly used spice, promotes gut health and helps fight diabetes. A study also shows that curry spices may fight Alzheimer’s disease. So, just cooking 1 to 2 tablespoons of curry powder with other ingredients can help us obtain those benefits when consumed regularly.

However, curry can also be unhealthy if one adds too much oil or full-fat cream when cooking. Also, if the person consumes too much rice or bread together with curry, the whole meal will become high in carbohydrates, which generates a rapid rise in blood glucose. In addition, some ready-made curry sauces can be unhealthy, as they can contain a surprising amount of salt, sugar and fat. So make sure you check the ingredients when getting store-bought curry sauces.

What side-dishes go well with curry?

Possible side dishes for curry dishes are:

Bread

chapati, dosa, naan, roti, baguette

Rice

basmati rice, brown rice, jasmine rice, jeera rice, short-grain white rice, cauliflower rice

Noodles

rice noodles, udon noodles (or any Asian noodles)

Salad

carrot salad, cucumber salad, mango salad, tomato coriander salad, potato salad

Others

poppadom, couscous, potato (mashed, roast or boiled), spring roll, chutney

Regarding personal preference, I’d say either short-grain white rice or udon noodles for Japanese curry. As for Indian curry, warm naan would be my go-to. And I like having jasmine rice that gives a fragrant aroma to the Thai curry.

How to cook vegan tikka masala curry?

Let me show you how to cook an easy, quick, tasty vegan tikka masala curry. I’m using curry powder instead of ready-made curry sauce because I believe it’s a healthier way to cook a curry dish.

Ingredients for vegan tikka masala curry

When it comes to ingredients for the dish, I am quite flexible. I believe as long as we have the essential ones, such as curry spices, garlic, onion, and chopped tomatoes, the rest of the ingredients can be flexible. Cooking a curry dish is a good way to use the vegetables that need to be used up soon. So, be experimental and use different vegetables if you don’t have the ones listed below.

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Vegan tikka masala curry

A healthy, creamy, one-pot wonder and low-fat

Course Main Course

Cuisine Indian

Keyword chickpea, curry, vegan

Prep Time 10

Cook Time 20

Servings 4 servings

Calories 380kcal

Cost £10

Ingredients

Essential

1 medium onion (yellow or red onion)
1 cup red lentils
1 tin tomatoes (or fresh tomatoes)
1 tin cooked chickpeas
1 tin light coconut milk (you can use the full-fat one if you prefer)
3 garlic cloves (or use garlic granules if you don't have the fresh ones)
2 tbsp tikka curry powder
2 – 3 tbsp cooking oil

Optional (or just use whatever vegetables need to be used up in your fridge)

1 medium potato (you can substitute this with sweet potatoes)
2 carrots (you can replace this with courgettes)
2 stalks of celery (you can swap this with red/yellow pepper)
1 lime, juiced
2 tbsp fresh herbs, such as basil, coriander or spring onion
½ tsp cayenne pepper (or red pepper flakes if you like your dish to be spicier)

Instructions

Soak the red lentils for half an hour
Drain the water from the tinned chickpeas
Save the chickpea water for making a vegan mayo (optional).
Drain the water from the lentils
Gather the rest of the ingredients
Finely chop all the vegetables, including onion and garlic.
Heat the oil in the saucepan, add chopped onions, and fry until the onion is soft.
Add tikka curry powder, and continue cooking for another minute. (see *note 2)
Add carrots and mix them with what’s in the pan.
Add a bit of water if you feel there isn't enough liquid in the pan.
Add garlic and then celery.
Add cayenne pepper (optional).
Add diced potatoes (make sure they aren’t chunky so they won’t require long cooking time).
Add chopped tomatoes and coconut milk.
Add drained lentils, and mix them well with all the ingredients in the pan.
Add salt and pepper.
Turn the heat up. Once the liquid starts boiling in the pan, add chickpeas and set the heat at mid-low. Put the lid on and let it cook another 20 minutes until the potatoes are soft.
Taste the dish before serving.

Video

Notes

*note 1: For all the veggies in the ‘Optional’ ingredients section, you can use whatever vegetables need to be used up in your fridge as long as they don’t add strong flavour to the dish.

*note 2: You can add curry powder at this stage, or after you add chopped tomatoes (step 12). Also, turn down the heat when adding curry powder so it won’t get burnt.

What side dishes go well with vegan tikka masala curry?

You can choose any side dishes as suggested above. I went for spring rolls because I like the contrasting texture between them and creamy tikka masala curry. I also added a few slices of cucumber, cherry tomatoes, and a splash of lime juice to bring more freshness to the dish. Now, time to dig in! Cooking a vegan curry from scratch is a great way to have a tasty and healthy meal!

How Cooking Vegan Dishes Can Reduce Your Energy Bills

By Rachel

On August 3, 2022

In Eco-friendly lifestyle, Plant-based-diet

With the rising cost of living recently, such as higher energy bills, we all try to find a way to cut down the payout on those bills. People are advised to switch off their standby appliances, turn off the heater, reduce water consumption and invest in double-glazed windows and better insulation. However, I think one thing that has been overlooked is that cooking vegan meals can also cut down our electricity/gas and water consumption.

How long does it take to cook a meat-based dish?

Take an example of cooking a chilli con carne. Regardless of preparation time, the typical cooking time for the beef chilli con carne takes around an hour, and so does the dish with other kinds of meats.

Why might cooking meat use more water?

Another thing to consider is that some people wash raw meats before cooking them (although it’s not recommended!) or blanch meat. When doing so, water is required. So cooking a meat-based dish could use more water during the preparation.

Cooking plant-based: less time and water

If you substitute meat with other plant-based ingredients, the cooking time will certainly be reduced hence the electricity use. Also, if you use tinned vegetables to replace meats, then no washing is needed. As a result, you save on the water bill, too!

Great things are done by a series of small things brought together.
Vincent Van Gogh

Does no meat mean no protein?

Some people might not like the idea of not having meat because they argue that they need to have meat for their protein intake. I can understand why people think this way because I used to think like that! I was brought up believing that meats and dairy foods are the only two sources I can get my protein. I am so thankful that I no longer have this false belief.

Are plant-based proteins expensive?

Today, there are plenty of plant-based proteins to choose from, such as chickpeas, baked beans, tofu and lentils. They are much cheaper than meats. And you might be surprised that some vegetables also contain protein, like spinach and broccoli.

bowl of spinach — Photo by Jacqueline Howell on Pexels.com

Additionally, they are healthier than animal proteins because they have less saturated fat and are higher in fibre. However, consuming a variety of plant-based proteins is key to ensuring a complete protein profile if you want to be on a plant-based diet.

Vegan chilli con carne with baked beans: preparation and ingredients

Now, I want to show you how quickly a vegan meal can be done. Even better, it’s packed with protein and nutrition. Of course, it’s tasty, too!

The day before:

Let’s say if I plan to cook this dish for Wed dinner. On Tuesday evening, before I go to bed, I like to put all the ingredients together on the kitchen worktops if they’re NOT required to be chilled. I also get the saucepan ready for the next day.

Preparation like this might not mean anything to you. Still, it’s an effective way to make sure we’ll get the cooking done the next day instead of ordering takeaway or getting microwave meals, which are more expensive and not so healthy as home-cooked meals.

When we have everything all together, we’ll feel more like cooking and not find an excuse not to cook because we’re tired or not in the mood.

You could also prepare the vegetables you want to use the day before. You can put them in containers and then have those containers in the same compartment in the fridge. So next day, when you’re about to cook, you only need to take those containers out and don’t need to figure out what vegetables you will use. Less mental work means you’ll get your cooking going quicker!

fresh vegetables: red peppers, green beans, mushrooms and onion

Print Pin

Vegan chilli con carne with baked beans

Tasty, healthy and quick one-pot wonder vegan chilli con carne

Course Main Course

Cuisine Mexican

Keyword baked beans, chilli con carne, vegan

Prep Time 10

Cook Time 20

Servings 4 people

Cost £6

Equipment

1 saucepan
1 tin opener

Ingredients

1 tin chopped tomatoes (you can use the fresh ones if you prefer)
1 tin kidney beans, drained (or mixed beans)
1 tin baked beans
2 tsp ground cumin
2 tsp smoked paprika
3 garlic cloves
1 red or yellow pepper
2 to 3 tbsp cooking oil

Optional (or just use whatever vegetables need to be used up in your fridge)

100 gram mushrooms
50 gram green beans
1 onion (yellow or red onion)
50 gram peas (or frozen peas)
1 tin sweetcorn, drained
50 gram vegan mince (you can use frozen ones)
2 tbsp mixed dried herbs

Instructions

Open all the tins and drain the water from the kidney beans and sweetcorn
Chop all the vegetables. (See *note 1, *note 2)
Heat the oil in the sauce pan, add chopped onions and garlic, fry for 1 minute.
Add ground cumin, smoked paprika, and red/yellow peppers, and continue cooking for 2 minutes. (See *note 3)
Add those vegetables which might require longer cooking time, such as mushrooms, frozen peas etc.
Add kidney beans (or mixed beans), and cook for another minute.
Add chopped tomatoes. (and frozen vegan mince if you have some)
Add a bit of water if you feel there isn't enough liquid in the pan
Add 1 tbsp mixed dried herbs and 1 tsp balsamic vinegar to boost flavour (optional)
Add salt and pepper
Bring the liquid up to boil, then put the lid on and let it cook for 10 – 15 minutes. Make sure you set the heat at mid-low and stir the dish from time to time
Add a tin of baked beans five minutes before the dish is done
Add some chilli flakes if you like it spicier (optional)
Taste before serving

Video

Notes

*note 1: Chop mushrooms into chunks if you use them.

*note 2: If you like your green beans a bit crunchy, boil them in a separate pan. And only add them to the main dish five minutes before it is done.

*note 3: Adding spices at this stage will make the dish more flavorful. Also, turn down the heat when adding spices so the spices won’t get burnt.

Here you go! This dish takes around 20 minutes (compared to 1 hour with the meat dish), and it can easily serve for 4 to 5 people. I hope you’ll see how much electricity consumption will be reduced by switching to cooking vegan dishes.

Side dishes: what to serve with chilli con carne?

Bread: Yes, that’s right, especially with the first/end slice of a loaf of bread. The thick slice goes much better with this dish.

Tortilla chips: I usually go for this one when I have a pack of tortilla chips opened.

Pasta: If you have enough leftovers for the next day, then you just need to cook pasta to make it a complete meal.

I really hope you’ll give the dish a try! This will save your cooking time and reduce your energy bills. Moreover, not ordering takeaway/buying ready meals save us money, and we won’t add more non-recyclable food packaging.

Tag: cooking

Plant-Based Diet: Vegan Courgette Pea Soup

Why soup?

Thick soup vs thin soup

Homemade soup vs canned soup

Hot vs cold soup

Vegan courgette pea soup

Equipment

Ingredients

Instructions

Video

Notes

Plant-based Diet: Vegan Tikka Masala Recipe (Creamy & Healthy)

Why go vegan?

What is ‘curry’?

How many different types of curry are around the world?

How does curry get its colour?

Is curry a healthy dish?

What side-dishes go well with curry?

Bread

Rice

Noodles

Salad

Others

How to cook vegan tikka masala curry?

Vegan tikka masala curry

Ingredients

Essential

Optional (or just use whatever vegetables need to be used up in your fridge)

Instructions

Video

Notes

What side dishes go well with vegan tikka masala curry?

How Cooking Vegan Dishes Can Reduce Your Energy Bills

How long does it take to cook a meat-based dish?

Why might cooking meat use more water?

Cooking plant-based: less time and water

Does no meat mean no protein?

Are plant-based proteins expensive?

Vegan chilli con carne with baked beans: preparation and ingredients

The day before:

Vegan chilli con carne with baked beans

Equipment

Ingredients

Optional (or just use whatever vegetables need to be used up in your fridge)

Instructions

Video

Notes

Side dishes: what to serve with chilli con carne?