Pambazos

One day, when I was sloping around the internet looking for recipes, I stumbled across this delicious-looking one for Pambazos by Warren Elwin, and thought I have to make this vegan. Pambazos are salsa-coated fried sandwiches from Mexico. I filled this one with vegan sausage, capsicum and potato and topped it with coleslaw. Wrapping them in paper before you eat them is a good idea if you don't want to be covered in sticky salsa.

Pambazos

Inspired by this recipe.

Serves 4

Ingredients

500 ml red cabbage

1 tbsp white wine vinegar

1 tbsp sugar

1 tsp salt

1 onion

1 capsicum

2 cloves garlic

1 pack vegan sausages or chorizo

3 potatoes

1 tbsp smoked paprika

1/2 tsp cayenne powder

1 tsp salt

a pinch black pepper

4 big ciabatta-style rolls

lots of salsa

vegan margarine

Method

1. Thinly slice red cabbage. Toss with vinegar, sugar and salt. Set aside. Peel, dice and boil the potatoes.

2. Dice onion and capsicum and mince garlic. Heat 1 tbsp margarine in a pan over medium heat. Fry vegetables for 10 minutes, or until soft. Chop up the sausages, add and fry for 5 more minutes. Remove mixture from the pan.

3. Add 1 tbsp more margarine to the pan and fry potatoes until browned, about 10 minutes. Add the spices to the pan, along with the fried vegetables and sausages. Mix well and fry for a few more minutes. Remove from the pan.

4. Cut rolls in half, remove some of the dough from the inside, and coat completely in salsa. Add 1 tbsp margarine to the pan. Fry two at a time on both sides until browned. Add more margarine between batches as needed.

5. Put the filling on the rolls and top with coleslaw. Wrap in paper or foil and enjoy!

Delicious Kimchi Recipes: Part 1

So you made some vegan kimchi last week. Now what should you use it for? Well, you could eat it straight, or you could make one of these great recipes. Kimchi-based recipes taste complex, but are usually quick and easy. So if you find yourself wanting to get dinner on the table fast, it helps if you have some kimchi in the fridge.

Firstly, if you haven't had kimchi before, this kimchi fried rice (with the bacon and egg omitted) is a great introduction. It's tasty and comes together very fast if you have leftover rice.

Or, if you're in more of a mac and cheese mood, you could cook up a creamy pan of kimchi mac & shews, by replacing the sauerkraut with kimchi. Add some more chili flakes if you want this to have a kick - the kimchi doesn't make it very spicy. Warning: this recipe, although wonderful, does take some time to make.

If you're feeling the cold and want a bowl of spicy stew, this kimchi jjigae along with some rice might hit the spot. It's my favourite winter meal, and, best of all, it comes together in less than half an hour, since we don't have to cook the meat. You'll end up with more than you see in my picture - this is the pot minus one serving, and I was a bit short on kimchi.

Looking for more Korean recipes?

Jjajangmyun (Korean-Chinese Black Bean Noodles)

Easy Vegan Kimchi (Mak Kimchi)

Easy Vegan Kimchi (Mak Kimchi)

Have you tried kimchi? It's amazing. You can use it in heaps of recipes (I'll be posting some of my favourites soon), or just eat it straight.

This recipe is quite easy to make, but you do need to get the cabbage soaking about two hours before you start. The kimchi should also be made from a day to a week in advance of when you want to use it, depending on how fermented you like it.

Easy Vegan Kimchi (Mak Kimchi)

Adapted from this recipe, by Hyosun Ro.
Makes about 1 litre

Recipe notes

• Gochugaru are Korean chili flakes. Substituting with another kind of chili flakes isn't a good idea. They have a different flavour and spiciness level.
• It's best to use gloves to make this - your hands will get dyed red from the chili otherwise.
• If you can't find or don't want to use wakame, it's alright to leave it out.
• You can start eating this straight after the 24-hour fermentation period, or wait for a few more days, depending on how fermented you like it. It keeps for around two weeks after you make it, or longer, if you don't mind eating it a bit sour.

Ingredients

1 tbsp wakame
1 napa cabbage
120 ml sea salt or 90 ml table salt
3 cloves of garlic
1 tbsp sugar or one pear
a bunch spring onions
120 ml gochugaru
2 tbsp soy sauce, preferably korean or tamari

Method

1. Pour 120 ml boiling water over the wakame and set aside.

1. Dissolve the salt in 750 ml water in a large bowl. Quarter the cabbage, core it, and chop into 3-5 cm pieces. Mix with the salt water. Let sit for about two hours, mixing occasionally. Drain and rinse well.

2. Strain the wakame-flavoured water into a bowl. Add the gochugaru and soy sauce. Mince garlic and pear (if using) and chop spring onions into 3-5 cm lengths. Add to bowl.

3. Mix together the sauce and cabbage with your (gloved) hands. You want to coat all the cabbage pieces in sauce.

4. Put the kimchi in a container, and pour 100 ml of water over it. Squash down with a fork to remove any air bubbles. Put the lid on. Leave out for 24 hours, then put in the fridge.

Looking for more vegan Korean recipes?
Delicious Kimchi Recipes: Part 1
Jjajangmyun (Korean-Chinese Black Bean Noodes)
Kimchi Jeon

Jjajangmyun (Korean-Chinese Black Bean Noodles)

Jjajangmyun is a Korean-style Chinese takeaway meal of meat and vegetables cooked in a delicious thick black bean sauce on noodles. I'd been looking forwards to trying it for ages, so I adapted it to be vegan by using some baked tofu. It turned out pretty good!

If you have leftover sauce the next day, but ate all the noodles, you can make jjajangbap by eating the sauce on rice. I topped my version with cucumber, but it's also nice to eat with yellow pickled radish.

Jjajangmyun

Serves 4

Ingredients

450g tofu
2 tsp sesame oil
2 tbsp Korean soy sauce or tamari
1/4 tsp black pepper
1 pack udon or sutamyun
2 onions
2 potatoes
1 zucchini
2 carrots
vegetable oil
250 ml chunjang (Korean black bean paste)
500 ml water
2 tbsp cornstarch
1/2 tbsp sugar
1/2 cucumber

Method

1. Dice the tofu, toss with the sesame oil, soy sauce and pepper, and put in the oven at 200 C for 30 minutes, turning once.

2. Cook noodles. Dice the onions and zucchini. Peel and dice the carrots and potatoes. Heat oil over medium heat in a pan and add all the vegetables except the cucumber. Fry for a few minutes.

6. Add some more oil and the chunjang. Fry for 5-10 minutes, stirring frequently. Add the water, bring to a boil, and simmer until the vegetables are done. Add the tofu.

8. Mix the cornstarch with a few tablespoons of cold water. Add it and cook for a few minutes, until thick. Add sugar and turn off heat. Julienne the cucumber.

9. Place the noodles in bowls. Top with sauce and garnish with cucumber. Mix up and eat!