I'm 5 days into a vegan week in the hope that it, together with a few other lifestyle changes (less alcohol, less salt, more exercise, more wholefoods) will lower my blood pressure enough before I visit the GP in another week to avoid needing medication.
My partner suggested I buy vegan 'bacon' for our regular weekly risotto, and he take my serving out before he added cheese to his and the kids helpings.
We kept the plant based bacon a secret from the kids until they had eaten it. They wolfed it down and were disappointed there was no seconds. When we showed them the packet of bacon bits they just tucked into them like a pack of crisps
Serves 4/5
350g risotto rice
1 large courgette, grated, or 2 large leeks, chard or spinach
1 small onion, finely chopped
1 garlic clove, finely chopped or grated
85g plant based 'bacon'
100ml white wine (optional)
2 vegetable stock cubes, plus a kettle full of recently boiled water
1 tbsp olive oil
Gently fry onion and garlic over a medium heat with the olive oil in a large saucepan. After a few minutes add the 'bacon',fry for a few minutes then add the courgette or leeks and continue to fry and stir until the courgette starts to look quite wilted. If using chard, finely the stalks and add at this stage. Add the rice, and crumbled stock cubes, and stir through thoroughly.
Pour in the wine and stir regularly whilst it bubbles away. When the wine has nearly all cooked away and the rice is in danger of sticking, add about 100ml of hot water and stir from time to time until the rice is in danger of sticking again. Keep adding the hot water in large ladlefuls, stirring from time to time, and adding more when nearly dried out. This process takes about 20 minutes.
Test the rice after all the stock has been used to see if it is cooked through and not crunchy and uncooked in the middle. You are also aiming for the risotto to be a slightly loose porridge texture - sticky enough to help it stay on a spoon wielded by a toddler but not so sticky it could be used to make a sand castle!
If the rice is not cooked through keep on adding hot water from the kettle and stirring and bubbling away as before, checking the rice from time to time until it is done.
No comments:
Post a Comment