Vegan Bite Size Tonkatsu

Traditionally, tonkatsu is a Japanese preparation of pork where the cutlet is breaded and deep fried and served on a bed of shredded cabbage.  Using vital wheat gluten, you can achieve a vegan version which is tasty and versatile, as it can be used as an appetizer (as shown below), as an entree, or as part of another dish.  This recipe comes from my friend and chef Pat.

Ingredients

For the tonaksu

• 1C vital wheat gluten
• 1t garlic powder
• 1t onion powder
• 1C warm water
• Breadcrumbs (Italian style or Panko style)

Liquid for boiling

• 4C water
• 1/2C soy sauce

Dipping sauce for serving (optional)

• 1C mayonnaise
• 1/2C prepared mustard
• 1/2C honey

Directions

1. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together vital wheat gluten, garlic powder, and onion powder.
2. Add warm water and mix until a soft dough forms.  Ensure that the dry ingredients are incorporated.
3. Let the dough rest for five minutes.
4. After five minutes, cut the dough into bite size pieces.  For me, this recipe makes about 40 bite size pieces.
5. In a large pot, combine water and soy sauce.  Bring to a boil.
6. Place the bite size pieces into the boiling mixture.  Cover and return to a boil.
7. Let the bite size pieces simmer for five minutes.  Remove from the water and drain on paper towels.
8. While the pieces are drying, heat a frying pan filled with 1-inch of oil.
9. When cool enough to handle, dip each bite size in the bread crumbs and place in the frying pan.
10. Fry the bite size pieces for 3-4 minutes.
11. Remove from the fryer and drain on paper towels.
12. In a small bowl, combine mayonnaise, mustard, and honey.  Mix until well blended.
13. Serve tonkatsu with dipping sauce.

Note:  Vital wheat gluten is available at Publix and Kroger grocery stores as well as most health food stores.

Black Bean Burgers

Summer is a time for cookouts, lake adventures, and spending time in the great outdoors. With this delicious black bean burger you don't have to wonder what you'll eat while your friends enjoy their hamburgers and ribs.

 

Ingredients

• 1 medium onion, finely chopped
• 1/2 bell pepper, finely chopped
• 1/4C carrot, grated or finely chopped
• 3-4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 1/2C prepared black beans, drained (reserve liquid)
• 1C brown rice, cooked
• 1C bread crumbs
• 1t salt
• 1/2t chili powder
• 1/2t ground cumin
• 1-2T liquid, as needed

Directions

1. Saute onion, pepper, carrot, and garlic.
2. In a mixing bowl, mash black beans.
3. Add brown rice and bread crumbs to black beans.
4. Stir in saute mixture and spices.
5. Mix thoroughly until all ingredients are incorporated. Mixture should be sticky but not too wet.
6. Form into patties and fry over medium heat in a lightly-oiled pan, 3-4 minutes per side.

Makes 8 patties.

 

If you like this recipe, please also check out Oat Burgers, another great vegetarian burger option.

 

Douglas G Pratt, 2014

Old-Fashioned Homemade Tomato Ketchup

According to Wikipedia, the origin of ketchup begin in China. Gradually, over time, ketchup made its way west, finally reaching the Americas. As early as 1801 there were documented recipes for ketchup. Today, in the United States, the ketchup industry is dominated by Hunts and Heinz. However, homemade ketchup tastes better and uses real brown sugar, not a combination of fructose corn syrups. This recipe makes about 2 cups of ketchup.

Ingredients

• 10-12 Roma tomatoes, peeled or one 28-oz can whole tomatoes
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 2T olive oil
• 1T tomato paste
• 1/2C apple cider vinegar
• 1/4C brown sugar (packed)
• 1/2t salt

Directions

1. Place tomatoes (including juice if using canned tomatoes) in blender and blend until juice consistency.
2. In a 4-quart pot, saute onions in olive oil until translucent.
3. Add other ingredients to onions and mix to combine.
4. Reduce heat to simmer and cook uncovered for one hour, stirring frequently.
5. Place mixture in blender and blend until smooth.
6. Pour into a bottle and cool. An empty Snapple bottle works perfectly!

Douglas G Pratt, 2014

The Quest for a Loaf of Bread

My mother did a lot of baking of pies and cakes.  However, she did not bake bread - at least until we got a bread machine.  When bread machines were first available, it was amazing to be able to dump in the ingredients and come back 2-3 hours later and pull fresh-baked bread out of the machine.  Nothing is better than fresh bread still warm from baking.

In my opinion, you don't need a bread machine to make bread from scratch at home.  You do need a good recipe, though.  The one below is based on a "5 ingredient bread" recipe that I came across on Facebook.  I felt that a combination of flours and the addition of vital wheat gluten enhanced the recipe.

This recipe is faster to make than the other bread recipe that I posted.

To make two loaves, double the entire recipe (including the yeast).

Ingredients

• 1C hot water
• 1/3C honey
• 1pkg yeast (2.25t)
• 2C sifted all-purpose flour
• 1/2C oat flour
• 1/2C whole wheat flour
• 4t vital wheat gluten
• 1t salt

Directions

1. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together water and honey.
2. Stir in yeast and let mixture rest for 10 minutes.
3. While yeast mixture is resting, combine flours, vital wheat gluten, and salt together in a separate bowl or the bowl of your Kitchen Aid mixer.
4. One cup at a time, add flour to yeast mixture and continue adding flour until a soft dough forms.
5. Knead for about 5 minutes.
6. Placed dough in an oiled bowl, cover with a towel, and let rise 1 hour (see tips for ideal rising).
7. Punch down dough and knead for 2-3 minutes.
8. Place dough in an oiled loaf pan, cover with a towel, and let rise 1 hour.
9. Bake at 375 degrees for 35 minutes.  The bread is ready when the internal temperature of the loaf is 190-200 degrees.

Cream of Tomato Soup

According the Campbell's soup company, the top selling soups are chicken-noodle, cream of tomato, and cream of mushroom. These three soups consistently stay in the top ten grocery items purchased every week.

Cream of tomato soup is delicious with grilled cheese sandwiches. Cream of tomato soup can also be used as a sauce component for casseroles. With a little effort, you can quickly make this soup to use in recipes or serve simply as soup.

This particular recipe is sized especially for use in other recipes. If you plan to serve as soup, you will want to adjust the proportions. The yield is about 2 cups of soup.

Ingredients

• 2T olive oil
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 3-4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1t salt
• 1t sugar
• 2T flour
• 5-6 Roma tomatoes, peeled or 1 14-oz can whole tomatoes
• 1/4C tomato paste
• 1/2C homemade almond milk

Directions

1. Saute onion and garlic in olive oil.
2. Stir in salt and sugar.
3. While onion mixture is cooking, blend tomatoes until a juice consistency. Set aside.
4. Stir flour into saute mixture and continue cooking for 2-3 minutes.
5. Pour tomato juice into saute mixture and add tomato paste. Stir to combine well.
6. Reduce heat to medium low and cooking for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
7. Pour mixture into blender and add milk.
8. Blend until creamy and smooth (a couple of minutes in a Vitamix).

Oat flour

Oat flour

Take 2C of oats (quick or regular) and grind in a blender or food processor until a flour consistency is reached.  Store in a sealed container or plastic bag.

A blender will yield a finer flour while a food processor will preserve small fragments of oats for a hearty texture.