Rice Paper Rolls – Vegetarian/Tofu

Australia has a big Chinese influence and hence Asian groceries are easy to get and Asian food easy to prepare.

Rice paper rolls are a staple of Vietnamese food; light and delicious with intense flavours and texture. Packed with nutrition it’s easy to get kids to eat it
too. And for a hot spring/summer day – it’s easy to make (with less time in the
kitchen) and has a cooling effect too.

Rice paper rolls are easy to make and are a great side, starter or finger food for guests at a party; we had them at home for dinner too : ) Serve them with dipping sauce and experiment with your favourite vegetables.

DISCLAIMER:
I normally do not measure the ingredients that I use. Everything is eyeballed and guesstimated but I will try my best to provide you with some type of  measurements!

Preparation time: 30 minutes

Serves 12-15 pieces

Ingredients:

• 100g vermicelli noodles – if using Asian Brands – 2 cakes will do
• ½ cup bean sprouts
• 1 Avocado– sliced fine
• 1 large carrot – grated
• 1  Lebanese cucumber – sliced fine
• Tofu Skinor Firm Tofu – sliced fine
• ½ cupfresh mint leaves, chopped finely
• Ricepaper sheets

To serve:

• 3 Tbsp sweet chilli sauce – add a bit of water to dilute it

Method: Place the rice vermicelli in a bowl and cover with boiling water. Soak for 6 to 7 minutes, then drain, run cold water on it and place on a serving dish. It needs to be kept this way so as to make it a bit sticky.

• Get all the other ingredients ready. Since most of the vegies are to be consumed raw (without coking) take care to wash them thoroughly. Cut, slice, dice as suggested above. In a large round plate take some luke warm water. Soften the rice paper wrappers by soaking them for ½ minute, either side. Shake off excess water.  (If the water gets cold, you can replace it with fresh luke – warm water)
• Place on a clean kitchen towel or board and start stacking – vermicelli, bean sprouts, cucumber, carrot, tofu, avocado and mint. If you want it hot, you can add few chilli pieces as well.
• Fold and serve with sweet chilli sauce

Note:
• You can use lettuce or Chinese cabbage as another stuffing ingredient, I didn’t have any so excluded it from the recipe.
• You can add cooked shredded chicken or beef or prawns too.

(By Meira D’silva, Melbourne, Australia)

Ma Po Tofu with Steamed Rice

Hi folks – our friend Meira has come up with yet another awesome recipe for us.   Thanks and   “TOFU”  to you Meira ;)!!!!!………………………………..

Ma-Po tofu (or Mapo tofu) is a combination of silken tofu and stir-fried vegetables in a chilli-garlic and black bean-flavoured/soy sauce. The sauce is a thick, (non-runny) spicy brown broth. It’s a very popular vegetarian dish on the menu of many Chinese restaurants. Now you can make your own without stepping out of the house. You can make it non-veggie by adding thin slices of beef quickly sautéed in garlic and scallions. DISCLAIMER: I normally do not measure the ingredients that I use. Everything is eyeballed and guesstimated but I will try my best to provide you with some type of measurements! You can always reduce the ingredients, especially the salt and chilli and add more if you need, as per taste. Ingredients Yields: 6 servings 1 (12-ounce) packet silken tofu (please note: don’t use firm tofu, it needs to be silken tofu). 3 tablespoons corn starch 4 tablespoons soy sauce (I didn’t have black-bean sauce) 2 teaspoons vegetable stir fry sauce 2 teaspoons chilli garlic sauce, (add more if you want it a little more spicy) 4-5 low sodium vegetable soup/broth cubes, as needed, dissolved in water 250 ml water 2 green onions, thinly chopped 2 fresh Serrano chillies, sliced (they are the hot red Mexican chillies) 1 teaspoon sea salt, to taste 1 cup shiitake/button mushrooms, chopped fine in a chopper 2 large cup carrots, chopped fine in a chopper ½ red capsicum/bell pepper, chopped fine in a chopper ½ green capsicum/bell pepper, chopped fine in a chopper 4-5 cloves of garlic, finely chopped (this is large cloves, if you have smaller cloves add atleast 8-10) 4 tablespoons cooking oil, as needed 1 teaspoon red dry chilli flakes 1 tablespoon coriander leaves/cilantro, coarsely chopped Directions Drain the liquid from the package of tofu. Slice the tofu in two, horizontally. Silken tofu is very delicate and easily breakable. Gently cut the tofu into 1/2-inch square cubes. Set aside. Mix the corn starch, soy sauce, vegetable stir fry sauce, and chilli garlic sauce. Set aside. Heat about a tablespoon of oil in a wok. When the oil is hot, Place the slices of Serrano chilli. This will help bring a nice fragrance to the dish. Add a teaspoon of garlic.

As the garlic becomes slightly golden, stir-fry the carrots. When the colour becomes almost translucent, season with 1/4 teaspoon of sea salt. This will help keep a nice orange colour. Cook for about another minute. Don’t overcook the vegetables as they will continue cooking in the broth later. Add the bell peppers, and the mushrooms. To this vegetable mixture, add the 250 ml vegetable soup/broth. Bring to a boil. Add the corn starch-chilli sauce-vegetable stir fry sauce mixed liquid to the boiling broth. Continuously stir the broth as it will thicken very quickly. Add the cubed tofu into the wok. Check the texture of the sauce, it should be thick and syrupy. (If you find the sauce to be too thick, add 2 to 4 tablespoon of water. If you find the sauce to be too thin, add 1 tablespoon of corn starch to a bit of water and it to the sauce) Cook for about 2 minutes. Add the sliced green onions. Stir gently as the silken tofu can break. If you like it a bit hot/spicy add the dry chilli flakes. Garnish with coriander/cilantro leaves. Serve immediately with steamed rice. I served mine with Jasmine steamed rice. Enjoy!

Tropical Flavoured Pina Colada Zucchini Bread

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We have received a contribution of “Tropical Flavoured Pina Colada Zucchini Bread” from our friend Queenie Mendonsa.  Queenie,  runs the famed Website  ”Mangalorean.com”  and is one of our staunch supporters.   A gem of a person,  a fabulous cook and a wonderful friend,  is what I have heard people say about her.  Thank you Queenie, we look forward to your sharing more recipes with us.

You can see the whole recipe at

http://mangalorean.com/recipes/recipearticle.php?articleid=1770

Snowflakes on Crackers

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Thanks to Aqil K studying in the Tenth Standard, our first guest recipe contributor.
A bright sunny day, went to spend time with friends, had a sumptuous meal and now was the time for desserts, when their son volunteered to give us a surprise, and just in minutes came with something so divine, got me intrigued and wanted him to give me the recipe. He gave us a shy smile. Believe me when I tell you how to make it, you all will be surprised too. And next, your little ones will clamour to give you all a surprise.
Ingredients :
Cottage Cheese (Kraft Jocca)
Cream Crackers
Honey

Method :

Spread on a Cream cracker, granules of cottage cheese and pour honey over it.

Believe me you, it is yummy as it looks.

Kraft Jocca Cottage Cheese is a cottage cheese granule-shaped by Kraft. You buy this little box and you get this kind of “cream” (it’s actually thicker than a cream) made of all those granules and it’s fresh.