Pulled Jackfruit Rogan Josh Sliders with Slaw

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Pulled Jackfruit Rogan Josh Sliders with Slawwm

These are my super easy pulled stuff sliders. Who needs pulled lamb sliders when you can just open a can of jackfruit? Just saying.  It passed the test in my house! And I can tell you now, if you serve it to a meat eater and don’t say anything, they will not realise that this is vegan.

YOU NEED

1 x 565 gram can of young green jackfruit **in brine**

¼ cup water

1 x 350 gram jar of vegan friendly Rogan Josh Simmer Sauce Medium

1.5 teaspoons of vegan friendly gravy powder

125ml of boiled water

1 cup of finely shredded red cabbage

½ cup of finely sliced carrot

½ cup of finely sliced cucumber skin

4 soft buns, cut in half

 

YOU DO

Drain and discard the brine from the jackfruit. Trim the triangle ends from each piece of jackfruit and set them aside for another use and remove and discard any visible pips.  Now gently rub the remaining jackfruit between your fingers. It should easily break apart and form a stringy texture. As you do this you may discover more pips, so toss those out too.  You will end up with a generous cup of pulled jackfruit.

Place the ¼ cup of water and the jackfruit into a small non stick pot and simmer on a low heat until the water has almost dissolved. Add the Rogan Josh Simmer Sauce to the pot. Continue to gently cook.

Place the gravy powder into a small bowl and add the boiled 125 ml of water. Whisk well till its combined and lump free. Add it to the pot. Stir the mixture until it’s all well combined and gently simmer till you get a wet, but not runny mixture.

Allow the mixture to cool a little. Distribute onto the bottom half of each bun. Add the cabbage, carrot and cucumber. Top with the rest of the bun.

Serve immediately and ENJOY!!

 

Time: 15 mins preparation, plus 10 minutes of cooking.

Yields: 4 serves

Notes: You can get jackfruit from most well stocked Asian grocers. Be sure to get “unripe” jackfruit and jackfruit in “brine/water” – NOT the one in syrup.

I used the Patak’s brand of simmer sauce which you find in most supermarkets in the Asian aisle. But always double check ingredients as brands are often changing product ingredients.

These are gorgeous with crisp baby cos lettuce too. You get an awesome crunch with the contrast of the soft bun.

Avocado, Pomegranate & Lime Bruschetta

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Avocado and Pomagrantate on Rye 2 wm

 

Avocado, Pomegranate & Lime Bruschetta

YOU NEED

½ cup of water

2 cloves of garlic, peeled

1 tablespoon of olive oil

Pinch of rock salt

1 teaspoon fresh lime juice

1 large avocado peeled and cut into a rough dice

4 slices of rye sourdough

handful of washed, crisp baby rocket

¼ cup of pomegranate seeds

cracked black pepper to taste

 

YOU DO

Heat the water in a small pan. Add the garlic and gently simmer for a few minutes. Discard the water and crush the garlic.

Put the crushed garlic, olive oil, salt and lime juice into a bowl and mix till they are well combined.

Stir the avocado through the oil mixture and check the seasoning

Cook the toast and top with the avocado. Garnish with the rocket and pomegranate seeds and finish with a generous amount of cracked black pepper over the top.

 

Yields: You decide.

Time: 10-15 minutes

Notes: There are not many components to this simple dish, so good quality ingredients such as a good olive oil, rock salt, fresh garlic and lime juice and crisp washed baby rocket all make a difference.

I usually take the time to cook garlic for a few minutes for recipes like this. It removes that harsh astringent taste raw garlic can have.

Cucumber & “Cream Cheese” Pinwheels

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YOU NEED

1 unsliced loaf of wholemeal bread. * See Method
1 cucumber
2 tablespoons of dairy free cream cheese
Salt and pepper to taste
YOU DO

Purchase the loaf of bread from your local bakery and request that they slice the loaf lengthways for you. Place the crusts aside for another recipe.

Line a plate with some paper towel and cut the cucumber into thin slices, lengthways. Place the sliced cucumber onto the plate with the paper towel and put it into the fridge over night. You will need enough slices to be able to cover one slice of the bread. Put any remaining cucumber aside for more sandwiches another day.

When you are ready to make the pinwheels, lay one slice of bread on your bench and spread the dairy free cream cheese evenly onto it. Make sure that there is cream cheese right to the edges. Then place one layer of cucumber slices lengthways onto the bread, without overlapping them. Season the cucumber with salt and pepper to taste.

Roll the bread slice from one of the short ends until the whole slice is rolled into a snail shape. Cut the roll in half, so you end up with 2 good size pin wheels. Put the rest of the bread into an airtight container to use throughout the week.

These are great for parties and picnics or just a different lunch box idea for the kids.

Yields: 4 pinwheel sandwiches. Note that you will get up to 14 pinwheels from one loaf.

Time: 5- 10 minutes. Plus the draining time for the cucumber.

Notes: Cucumber has very high water content. So it is an important step to lay the cucumber slices on draining paper, otherwise you will end up with very soggy sandwiches.

It’s important to lay the cucumber lengthways on the bread. If you lay them along the short side of the bread slices you will have trouble rolling the pin wheels.

You can purchase dairy free cream cheese at Coles. It is usually located where the dairy cream cheeses are kept.

If your children like herbs, these are also beautiful with finely chopped dill mixed through the cream cheese.

You can make the pinwheels with bean dip, hummus or any dip or filling that the kids love.

Rainbow Rice Paper Rolls

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Ingredients

½ cup of fresh coriander

8 round rice paper rounds

½ cup of finely sliced red cabbage

½ cup of finely sliced savoy cabbage

½ cup of very finely sliced red capsicum

½ cup of peeled carrot, cut into fine match sticks

 

Method

Trim the roots from the coriander, wash it well, pat dry with a clean tea towel and set aside.

Lay all your prepared ingredients out on a plate.

Place 1 rice paper round in a shallow bowl of lukewarm water for about 10 seconds. When you pull it out of the water, it will still feel firm. It will soften as you work with it though and it is much easier to work with this way. Place it down flat onto your bench top.

Put equal amounts of each of the ingredients down the centre of the rice paper round. Make sure there is space at the ends and don’t be tempted to over fill it, or you will have trouble rolling it.   Fold the ends of the rice paper in and roll up firmly, to enclose the fillings. Repeat with the remaining rice paper rounds and fillings.

Serve with fresh lime and/or organic tamari or sweet chilli sauce.

 

Yields: 8 rolls

Time: 20 minutes

Notes: You can purchase rice paper rolls at Asian supermarkets and in the Asian section of most supermarkets.

If you want the fillings to show, you can place the ingredients all to one side of the rice paper round and only fold one side of the round, before you roll it. This is great for parties and gatherings, but for lunches its best to enclose all the ingredients.

For a more filling snack or lunch, add a small amount of vermicelli rice noodles to each roll.

Cheesy Semi Dried Tomato & Olive Scrolls

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YOU NEED (for the bread)

1kg of plain flour

3 x 7gram sachets of dry yeast

2 tablespoons of salt

625ml of warm water (NOT hot)

 

YOU DO (for the bread)

Combine all the dry ingredients in a large bowl, add the water and work into dough.

Turn out onto a floured bench and knead for about 5 minutes until it becomes silky. If it’s too wet, add a little more flour. If it’s too dry add a little more water.

Place the dough back into the bowl, cover it with a tea towel and allow your bread to proof until it doubles in size.

Once proofed, place the dough back onto a floured bench and roll it into a long rectangle.

 

YOU NEED (for the filling)

200 grams of semi dried tomatoes

1 cup of raw cashews

1/2 cup of the oil from the semi dried tomatoes (you may need to top it up with some olive oil)

3 tablespoons of nutritional yeast, also known as savoury yeast flakes. (This is where you get the cheesy flavour from)

3/4 cup of Kalamata olives, pipped and quartered

 

YOU DO (for the filling)

Blend all ingredients except for the olives

 

YOU DO (to assemble)

Using a butter knife evenly spread the cashew mixture onto your dough rectangle being sure not to cut the dough.

Sprinkle the olives evenly across the dough.

Gently roll the dough from the longest side of the rectangle onto itself until it is completely rolled.

 

Evenly slice the roll into 12 smaller rolls and place them into a large (baking paper lined) tray.

 

Allow the rolls to proof.

Place them into a preheated oven at 200c for approx half an hour. Once cooked, remove and cool on cooling rack.

 

Servings:  Made 12 large or alternatively you could cut smaller slices for 24 small.

Time: Haven’t timed this one

Freezing: Not suitable

Pistachio & Coriander Pesto Pinwheels

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YOU NEED

1 batch of my “Pistachio & Coriander Pesto”

1 unsliced loaf of bread

YOU DO

Using a serrated knife carefully slice all the crust off the loaf of bread. You want the entire loaf to be crust free for this recipe. Place the crusts aside for another recipe.

Then slice the loaf along the long side into about long slices. So you should end up with about 7 long rectangle slices of bread, depending on how thick you cut them.

Lay one slice of bread on your bench and spread a thick layer of pesto across the top. Then roll the bread slice from one of the short ends until the whole slice is rolled into a snail shape. Cut the roll into 2 so you end up with 2 good size pin wheels and place aside. Repeat this with all of your sliced bread until you have about 14 pin wheels.

These are great for parties and picnics or just a different lunch box idea for the kids.

 

# For a quicker recipe have the pesto made and in the fridge ready to use. You can also pre slice your bread and just keep it over night in an air tight container or sealed in the plastic it came in so all you have to do on the day you want your pin wheels is top , roll and cut them.

Cucumber and Cream Cheese Sandwiches

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Another super simple but always popular recipe. It’s great for an afternoon tea, for something easy, but a little bit fancy pants.

 

YOU NEED

1 large cucumber

1 tablespoon of fresh dill

½ tablespoon of fresh lemon juice

dairy free cream cheese

salt/pepper to taste

8  slices of fresh bread

 

YOU DO

Wash & dry the cucumber. Cut it into sections that are the same length as the bread. Then cut those sections into very thin slices. You need enough slices to have one layer of cucumber for each sandwich. Probably 2 slices per sandwich will be enough, depending on the width of the slices. Lay the cucumber slices onto draining paper and set aside while you prepare everything else. Put any leftover cucumber aside for another recipe.

Wash and dry the dill. Finely chop it and mix the dill and lemon juice through the cream cheese and then season with salt and pepper

Trim the crusts from the bread and set them aside for another recipe.

Lay 2 slices of bread onto your bench and liberally spread them with the cream cheese mixture.

Place 1 layer of cucumber onto 1 of the slices, until all the cream cheese is covered and put the 2nd slice of bread on top, with the cream cheese facing down onto the cucumber.

Cut the sandwich into 3 even rectangle finger sandwiches and put them on a plate. Repeat until all your finger sandwiches are made and serve.

If you are not serving straight away, cover the sandwiches with cling film and refrigerate. Use in the same day though.

 

Yields: 12 finger sandwiches

Time: 15 minutes

Notes: Giving the cucumber time to sit on some draining paper is a really important step because otherwise you will end up with very soggy sandwiches.

You can get dairy free cream cheese in the supermarket, where the dairy cream cheese is.

Cheesy Olive Scrolls

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I LOVE these if I say so myself.

 

YOU NEED

You simply make my Olive Tapenade recipe then pop it in a sieve, over a bowl for a few hours to drain the extra juices.

While the tapenade is draining make my Basic Pizza Dough recipe. #Both recipes can be found using the “Search” button on the top right hand corner of my “Home” page.

You also need  nutritional yeast (which you get at your local health food stores.) This is what makes your scrolls “cheesy”. I used 1-2 cups.

oil to brush over the scrolls

salt

 

YOU DO (to assemble)

Using a butter knife, evenly spread the olive tapenade onto your dough rectangle, being sure not to cut the dough and spread right to the edges of your rectangle.

Sprinkle a cup of nutritional yeast evenly over the rectangle.

Gently roll the dough from the longest side of the rectangle onto itself until it is completely rolled.

Evenly slice roll and place onto a large (baking paper lined) tray…..cut side up. Brush generously with oil and sprinkle more nutritional yeast over the top of the scrolls. I also then seasoned with some salt.

Allow the scrolls to proof. You want them double in size.

Place into a  preheated oven at 200c for approx 20 minutes. Cooking time will depend on the strength of your oven and size of your scrolls. Once cooked, remove and cool on cooling rack.

 

Yields: This made 18 scrolls. Alternatively, you could obviously cut much larger scrolls or much smaller scrolls.

Freeze: I prefer to eat recipes like this fresh so I haven’t tried freezing this one. You can certainly freeze the pizza dough though and just let it that which makes for a much quicker cheesy olive scroll recipe.

Notes: #Try not to get intimidated by what seems to be a long recipe. In essence you are simply making some bread dough and a tapenade..both of which are EASYYYYY.

Don’t stress if you don’t have nutritional yeast. You can still make olive scrolls 🙂

 

Scented, Crunchy Black Rice Salad

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Scented, Crunchy Black Rice SaladBlack rice is also known as “Forbidden Rice” in China because it is said to be only for emperors. It is said to be a super food that we are fortunate to have access to. Zhimin Xu, PhD, of Louisiana State University Agricultural Centre is quoted to have said “Just a spoonful of black rice bran contains more health promoting anthocyanin antioxidants than are found in a spoonful of blueberries, but with less sugar and more fibre and vitamin E antioxidants…”

There are many varieties of black rise from China, Korea and I think Thailand too.

Someone asked me today what they should do with some black rice they purchased to make a salad. Having not done a black rice salad before I just made suggestions on flavours and ingredients I thought would compliment such a staple. Then I decided to see how it would turn out so I made one.

The result was an aromatic, garden scented, dish with the black rice the platform for a range of fragrant Asian favourites. The nuts, noodles and coriander roots give it a gorgeous crunch. If you want an extra kick, simply leave in the chilli seeds and/or add more chilli.

 

YOU NEED

For the salad:

½ cup of black rice (I had the glutinous one)

½ small brown onion, peeled and finely diced

10 mushrooms, sliced (I used button as that’s what I had, but some Asian mushrooms would be perfect in this)

3 tablespoons of well washed and finely sliced coriander roots

1 handful of washed and roughly chopped coriander leaves

1 handful of fresh basil leaves, washed and gently sliced (as they bruise)

1 handful fresh spinach, well washed to avoid grit

 

For the dressing:

1 tablespoon of soy sauce (or tamari for a gluten free option)

dash of sesame oil

½ tablespoon of fresh lime juice

¼  teaspoon of minced ginger

1 teaspoon of agave (if you don’t have agave use sugar but add ½ teaspoon and taste again  before adding more)

oil for cooking

1 large clove garlic, peeled and minced

 

For the garnish

1 small red chilli, cut in half lengthwise. Remove the seeds and finely slice.

2 handfuls of roasted peanuts (Mine were raw so I dry roasted them in a hot pan for a minute or 2)

#optional~ a handful of “Chang’s” fried noodles

 

YOU DO

Rinse the rice under cold water. Put it in a pot of water, bring it to the boil and simmer until the rice is tender. Mine took about 30 – 40 minutes. I just pottered around and made the dressings etc while the rice cooked. I rinsed mine when it was cooked too in case there were any starches because I used the gelatinous one. Drain and set aside.

Heat a good splodge of oil in a small pan and cook the onion until it caramelizes. Add the mushrooms and cook till they are softened and coloured. Pull the mushroom and onions out of the pan with some tongs and place them on some draining paper. Set aside

Make the dressing. Place all the dressing ingredients in a bowl and whisk.

Add the cooked rice and all the salad ingredient to the dressing and mix everything together.

Give the rice a good stir when you go to serve it. Sprinkle with the finely sliced chilli. Finally top it with the noodles and nuts, just as you are about to serve, so that they remain super crunchy.

Serve warm or cold.

 

Servings: 2 lunch size serves or serve as a side with other dishes.

Time: 15 minutes preparation. 30-40 minutes of cooking time.

Notes: Don’t be put off by a longer list of ingredients. It’s often the recipes with a lot of ingredients that are the easiest and require the least amount of skill. The result is worth it too!

Spring Onion Pancakes

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Spring onion pancakes are a Northern Chinese dish, that you often see being cooked on the streets. I made these a couple of weeks ago while my parents were here, because they spent many years living in Hong Kong and Beijing.

They are called pancakes but have a pastry like texture. Some eateries in China make them quite thick and others cook them paper thin.

 

YOU NEED

250 grams of plain flour

1/2 teaspoon of salt

1 tablespoon of oil

220mls of boiling water

1 and a 1/2 cups of washed, VERY well drained and finely sliced spring onions

sesame oil for cooking

 

YOU DO

Place the flour and salt into a bowl and mix to combine. Add the tablespoon of oil and the boiling water and mix everything with a wooden spoon. Once the mixture resembles dough, pop it onto a floured bench and knead it for a few minutes. Set it aside and let it rest for 15 minutes.

Place the dough on the bench and shape it into a long roll. Divide this roll into 24 pieces.

Using a rolling pin, roll each piece into a small circle. The circle should be approx 10cms in diameter.

Sprinkle some spring onion onto the circle and roll the circle into a skinny log. Gently press down on the log, to lightly flatten it. Then roll the log onto itself from one end to the other to form the shape of a snail and set it aside. Repeat this process with all the circles. Once they are all in a snail/coil shape. Allow them to rest for 15 minutes.

Finally, place the coils on their side and roll them back into a thin circle. Stack the completed circles of dough on top of each other, separated by floured baking paper. Allow them to rest for a final 15 minutes.

Heat a small pan with some sesame oil and cook the pancakes one at a time. Cook one side till golden, then flip them over and cook the other side. I like to sprinkle a little salt on them as I cook them, to bring the simple flavours out.

Serve straight away. They are beautiful served with a curry or rice or noodle dinner. Or just as a snack.

This is one of my more time consuming recipes, but if you love spring onions like I do, love Chinese food and you enjoy cooking, you will enjoy making (and eating) these too. They are simple, fragrant, crispy and delicious.

 

Yields: 24 pancakes

Time: 30 minutes of preparation and cooking, plus the resting times.

Notes: Make sure your spring onions are as dry as possible. Keep your bench clean, dry and well floured.