5x Plant-based alternatives for your favorite dishes
Say wine, snacks or haute cuisine and the gourmands at online food magazine FavorFlav know where to drink, how to eat it and what to cook. This time our cheffies serve you: 5x plant-based alternatives for your favorite dishes.
If you've just started (or have been eating plant-based for a while), there may be a few dishes in particular that you miss. With some research, you can of course find a whole community full of tips and recipes (also here on FavorFlav) and exchange the tastiest and most fun ideas. Who knows, these recipe tips might be included there soon.
Because with a little creativity it is not difficult at all to replicate popular dishes that traditionally contain fish or meat and thus create a plant-based alternative. We found a number of very good ones:
Chickpea melt
If you want to skip the tuna from the classic tuna melt, and also if you no longer want to eat cheese, try making an easy chickpea salad as a replacement. Mash drained chickpeas and mix that with lemon juice, salt, pepper, spring onion, capers, and plant-based mayo. Crumble a few nori (sushi) sheets into it for a taste of the sea. If you eat cheese, you can add it to the chickpea salad between two slices of bread and fry it like a panini, and if you want to keep it vegan, you can use vegan cheese (although it is quite a search for tasty vegan cheese).
Kung Pao tofu
Chicken Kung Pao is a real hit on the menu of Chinese restaurants, and we have a great chicken Kung Pao recipe on FavorFlav. But did you know that you can make this completely plant-based with just two simple substitutions? Get oyster sauce but based on mushrooms from the Asian store (they are always just next to each other on the shelf of a well-stocked Asian store) and replace the chicken with firm tofu. First, let the tofu drain in a clean tea towel with something heavy on top on a deep plate; the drier the tofu is before you cut it into cubes, the better it absorbs the flavors and the less crumbly it becomes. And just follow the mentioned recipe.
Pulled jackfruit sandwich
We love pulled chicken (and pork) and especially a sandwich with a tangy accent. But it works just as well with jackfruit. You can pull this fruit apart into nice firm fibers and season it just like you would with meat. Jackfruit gyros, also so delicious...
Mushroom ‘carbonara’
No, this is of course not a traditional carbonara with pancetta, eggs, and cheese, but you can give mushrooms a very nice salty smoky flavor by letting them sit overnight in some coconut aminos and liquid smoke and frying them well the next day. Also, let cashews soak overnight in a bowl of water and blend them (drained) the next day, then you have a soft ‘cashew cream’ that you can use instead of one with dairy. Delicious, and lighter too!
TAST sandwich instead of BLTA
A BLT with avocado is tasty, but if you want to remove the bacon from the formula Bacon/Lettuce/Tomato, you should try this: just like with the mushrooms for the aforementioned ‘carbonara’, marinate a few slices of tempeh in a nice umami marinade. Mix a teaspoon of liquid smoke, apple cider vinegar, soy sauce, and maple syrup and spread it on the tempeh. Let it rest for a moment and then fry it crispy and golden brown in a frying pan while you toast some bread, slice a tomato and an avocado, and wash and dry some sturdy lettuce leaves (like Romaine). Spread the toast with vegan mayo, top with the ingredients, and give yourself a pat on the back.
