Easy Recipe: Eager Vegan’s phenomenal mushroom pilau

Claudia Njambi is a digital creator. On Instagram she is the Eager Vegan who curates vegan dishes.

She cannot live without garlic as she believes that garlic can elevate the most basic of meals into phenomenal dishes by boosting flavour in food.

1. Mushroom pilau recipe (serves 5)

Ingredients

250g Button Mushrooms Diced onions and garlic Mustard seeds Salt Cooking oil Tomato paste 2 large skinned tomatoes Garlic powder Mixed spices Coriander powder Whole Pilau masala 2 Cups rice 4 cups water Bell peppers Veggie stock Cucumber for garnish

Recipe

· To a pot, heat up some oil for about a minute and add 1 tbsp. of black mustard seeds. Cook them for about two minutes before adding in onions. This allows the seeds to release their signature mild nutty flavor.

· Proceed to add in garlic and fry them until fragrant/ golden brown. Add in your mushrooms and cover them to cook for about a minute. Lower your heat as mushrooms tend to soak up the oil and high heat may burn the mushrooms. Feel free to use about 2 tbsp. of your veggie stock or water to deglaze your pot in case it gets too dry.

· Add in a pinch of salt as this will help breakdown the mushrooms much faster and get them flaccid.

· At this stage, add in all your spices and cook them on low heat to allow them to release their flavors gradually. Be careful not to burn them. Once again, deglaze using your veggie stock in case the spices begin to dry out.

· Proceed to add in 1 tbsp. of tomato paste and stir it in before adding your finely diced skinned tomatoes (one can opt to blend as well) and mix everything together. Cook for three minutes to allow the tomatoes to breakdown.

· Once the mushrooms and tomatoes mix is cooked and thicker, proceed to add two cups of rice along with four cups of hot water, stir everything up and cover to cook for 15- 25 minutes.

· As your rice cooks, slice up your cucumber and bell peppers for the final stage.

· Once your rice is cooked, with a fork, fluff it out before tossing in some bell peppers for that extra crunch.

· Plate, serve with some fresh cucumber slices and enjoy

2. Vegan shepherd’s pie - serves 5

*You will need an oven and casserole dish

Ingredients:

Shepherd's Pie Potatoes 10 Potatoes Bunch of dhania or coriander leaves Garlic cloves ½ tablespoon of oil Salt 1 glass unsweetened plant-based milk

Ingredients for the pie base/ curry:

1 onion dices 2 tomatoes- blend Bunch of dhania or coriander Salt Garlic cloves Curry Powder Cumin Coconut cream 1 tbsp. oil for frying Boiled Green peas and chickpeas (a cup each) Vegetable bouillon cube A cup of diced carrots

Ingredients: Salad Dressing

2 tsp vinegar or lemon juice Salt 1 tsp olive oil Black pepper

Ingredients for the salad

1 cup shredded lettuce ½ cup mango slices 1 handful purple cabbage Handful grated carrots 1/4 cucumber diced Chopped mint leaves Chopped green chili Pickled onions

Recipe

Potatoes

· Peel and boil your potatoes for about 10 minutes or until they are tender to a fork. Drain any excess water but don’t throw it out. It’ll serve as a thickener to your curry base.

· Proceed to mash your potatoes up working them progressively to ensure they are soft and well done and not lumpy.

· Flash fry (in relatively hot oil) your garlic and coriander until fragrant. Add them into your potatoes along with the milk and keep mashing. The garlic and coriander pack a punch of flavor into the potatoes while the milk helps with the creamy result of the mashed potatoes.

 

Salad

· Combine all your dressing ingredients in a bowl and whisk until well mixed.

· To a large bowl, add in all your salad ingredients and mix them.

· Once you’ve mixed them, proceed to pour your salad dressing over the salad and give it a toss to ensure everything is well mixed.

· Cover with cling film and refrigerate as you prepare your curry.

Curry Base

· To a sufuria/pot, add your onions, garlic and some oil and proceed to fry until golden brown. Add your coriander and fry until fragrant. Add in your spices (curry powder, salt and cumin) and let them cook on low heat for just under a minute. Be careful as ground spices burn faster.

· Add in your blended tomatoes and let them cook for about a minute. At this point, crush about ¼ of your bouillon cube into the pot and mix it in. Proceed to add your green peas, chickpeas and carrots at this stage and stir them in. Allow them to cook for three minutes.

· Add in 2 tsp. of coconut cream and stir it in, ensuring it melts into the pea curry. Proceed to cover and let the curry cook for an additional 2 minutes before taking it off the heat.

· Preheat your oven at 180oC for ten minutes.

· To a medium sized casserole dish, transfer your curry and spread it out. Proceed to layer on your potatoes, working from the corners towards the center. Spread them out and ensure the curry is fully covered from corner to corner.

· Bake in the oven at 180oC for 20-25 minutes or until the curry is dried out.

· Proceed to plate, serve and enjoy