In a way the day that Jitka starts eating meat again, whether it’s tonight, tomorrow or even twelve years from now, will be a sad day. I truly admire the way she’s stuck to her vegetarianism for so long.
Having said that, most of what we cook will remain vegetarian – I quite like cooking with tofu and soya meat. Now, the trick to making good tasting soya meat is quite simple (note: I tend not to use measuring cups and spoons, so apologies for the non-specifics – cooking’s only fun when you’re experimenting anyway). You don’t just boil it in salted water the way most restaurants with soya meat do. Add a bouillon cube (vegetable, of course) and plenty of soya sauce to the water, as well as any other herbs or spices that strike your fancy (I usually add crushed garlic and a few slices of ginger every now and again). Dump in the soya meat, cover with a lid that’s got a smaller circumference than the pot to keep everything under the liquid. Bring to a boil, lower to medium, then cover with the pot’s proper lid. Let it cook about 15-20 minutes or so, then turn off the heat and let the soya meat soak in the liquid for at least an hour or two, if possible leave it overnight. And then you can start working with it.
To make the schnitzels, take an egg or two and mix in some flour until you’ve got a reasonably thick batter. Cover your schnitzels batter, then dip in bread crumbs. Then simply fry in hot oil (burner on medium-high). These babies are not only good fresh, but are delicious leftovers. You can also skip the breadcrumbs part and just start frying the batter-covered soya meat – I usually add mustard to the batter when I use this method.
While I’m at it, here’s how to make great soya meatballs. Cook soya granules according to the method described above, only leave out the soya sauce and use crushed garlic and some oregano or spaghetti seasoning mix (offered in the herb and spice sections of most supermarkets). Boil, simmer, soak for about an hour. Drain the granules, and let them cool. Fine-chop an onion or two, crush a clove of garlic, crack an egg or two and mix into the soya granules. Add breadcrumbs, mash the mixture with your hands. Keep adding bread crumbs until you can make balls out of the mix without them falling apart. Then fry the balls in oil (ouch!). Add those to your homemade tomato sauce (don’t tell me you don’t know how to make tomato sauce), and you’re good to go.
Ok, so it ain’t exactly James Barber or Jamie Oliver, but trust me, it’s good eatin’.
Jun 5, 13:47 (Filed under: Personal )
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