Category Archives: Sides

Royal Indian Biryani Rice

The Vegetarian Blog|Royal Indian Biryani Rice
Biryani is a festive colorful rice dish from India, that is cooked with many spices and herbs. Growing up my mother would make a similar rice dish, but in a Bengali style,  which is called Pushpanna and it is much sweeter and mixed with dried fruits. Both are very delicious, but I’m more inclined to vegetable biryani which is a bit more on the savory side. My Biryani (kinda like the Indian version of Chinese fried rice) version has lots of vegetables and i usually use leftover rice, and stir fry it in ghee or coconut oil. You can also cook fresh rice and just let it chill. This biryani dish is a great companion with any Indian curries, dal, and yogurt raitas. With so many layers of flavors and textures, this veggielicious dish is perfect for any special occasion.
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Grilled Teriyaki Tofu & Sesame Coconut Rice

Grilled-Tofu-&-Coconut-Rice

I cooked up this experiment yesterday for lunch and it was veganlicious!!! You can’t really ever go wrong with coconut and asian sauces. I posted it on Facebook yesterday after I made lunch for my boyfriend and I was extremely pleased to see all my sweet friends and family looking forward to this recipe so here it is. This is definitely one of the most unplanned and creative posts I’ve done, so I hope it’s clear and easy to understand. Please comment if you have any questions, I’ll be happy to answer promptly.

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Mexican Cilantro Rice

Mexican Cilantro Rice

Mexican Cilantro Rice Cilantro Rice The Vegetarian Blog

Today I am feeling very happy for the soccer team from MEXICO 🙂 and in the celebration of their win today at the FIFA World Cup in Brazil, I was inspired to make a Mexican rice; but not just your regular Mexican rice. Ohh no, today I made Mexican Cilantro Rice. In Mexico or (I’m sure) in all most every latin country, everyone has a tía Lupe in their family (tía means Aunt and Lupe is short for Guadalupe). When my family moved to Mexico from the US, my tía Lupe was the first person to serve me a plate of bright green cilantro rice. It was incredible cilantroso!
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Pico de Gallo, Salsa Roja & Totopos

salsas

Salsas are the typical tomato sauce you can serve with any Mexican dish, it’s like your chutney for your samosa or the tzaziki for your falafel, etc. And in Mexico there are many types of salsas, hundreds!!! So for your previous Molletes recipe that I posted earlier this week, I have made two different types of salsa’s you can serve or enjoy with Totopos which is the spanish word for chips (like the nacho chips). Well I hope you enjoy them with something delicious and you can share what you created with these recipes :p Continue reading

Eggplant Bruschetta

Eggplant Bruschetta

Eggplant BruschettaMy boyfriend’s mother, Sanatani, LOVES eggplant with a passion (but it’s got to be well cooked)! I’ve known her since my childhood, and i grew up with her and her whole family, so she is my other dear mama and mentor!  She is a great cook and i have definitely learned a great deal from her. So the other day i was at her house and i decided to treat her a dinner with a juicy eggplant bruschetta. This was an experiment that actually turned out delightful and i was happy to see her content and smiling. Mother’s are the best! And it’s awesome when you have more than one!

3 long asian eggplants
2 garlic cloves minced
1/2 diced onion
6 diced sweet mini bell peppers; yellow, red & orange
2 minced celery sticks
2 grated carrots
2 TB of vegetable oil
1/2 cup of cilantro
1/2 cup of mint leaves
3 tomatoes; diced
1 tsp of sugar
greek feta cheese for topping

Halve the eggplant lengthwise and then split in half. In a saucepan at a high flame, put 1 TB of oil and add the garlic, onions, carrots, celery, bell peppers, 1/2 mint, and 1/2 of the cilantro. Stir for about 2 minutes until they are a bit golden and wilted and add the eggplant, stirring for another minute. Add water enough to cover the eggplant and boil till the water is almost evaporated. Remove the eggplant and in the remaining water add the 3 diced tomatoes and cook till it has reduced into a chunky sauce and simmer. Meanwhile in a nonstick pan at a medium flame, add 1 Tb of oil and spread all over the pan, add the eggplant facing the sliced part down and cover for about 10 minutes, remove the lid and if you can prick the eggplant with a fork it is nicely cooked. Turn the eggplants so they can cook on the bottom, sprinkle the sugar evenly and cover for 5 minutes. Turn facing down on a medium high flame for a couple of minutes to caramelize the sliced top.  Check to see if they have a golden color to them, and are soft but not mushy. Turn off the eggplant and check the tomato sauce, add the remaining cilantro and mint and turn off. Place a couple of eggplants, facing the sliced part up, and add the sauce carefully on top, sprinkle with feta and fresh cilantro and serve immediately!

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