I have been asked by friends and family to share some good vegetarian recipes. I have tested these on my family and friends and have gotten their approval. I would like to think I have a food critic's taste buds, being a self-professed foodie all this time, so I hope you enjoy these recipes as much as I do. All of these recipes are gluten-free, dairy-free and vegetarian (with options to add seafood). If recipes call for sugar, I use a very limited amount of coconut palm sugar, raw honey, maple syrup or stevia. You will notice that most of these are international dishes, because of my worldly friends and travel experiences ;). "The Whole Life Nutrition Cookbook" (you can find it under my Healthful Reads page) mostly follows my diet principles so that is a great resource as well. I plan to include some of their more memorable recipes here. Feel free to leave comments below. Bon appetit!
Nepali-Style Yellow Split Pea Dahl (serves 6-8)
(Thank you to the Shakya family for introducing us to this!)
1 cup dry yellow and/or red split pea lentils, rinsed
2 onions, finely chopped
1/2 teaspoon freshly grated ginger
1/2 teaspoon freshly minced/crushed garlic
1 teaspoon turmeric
1.5L of water (or more depending on preferred consistency)
2 tablespoons organic virgin coconut oil
Himalayan sea salt to taste
1. Put lentils and water in a medium-large pot. Bring to a boil.
2. As the lentils begin to boil, add turmeric, ginger, garlic, and half the chopped onions. Once boiling, cover and reduce heat to simmer. Add salt to taste. Let boil about 30 minutes or more depending on how soft and soupy you like your dahl. Add more water if needed.
3. As the dahl is finishing, heat coconut oil in a pan. Add the rest of the chopped onions and saute until it is browned (almost burnt!). Stir into dahl.
4. Enjoy this dahl on brown basmati rice with a vegetable curry, as a side soup or as a meal on its own.
Nepali-Style Vegetarian Curry (serves 6-8)
(Again, thank you Shakyas for inspiring this recipe!)
2 tablespoons organic virgin coconut oil
1 large onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1" ginger, finely grated
1 teaspoon (or more) turmeric
1 teaspoon (or more) garam masala
3 medium organic tomatoes, chopped
The juice of 1/2 organic lemon
1/2 cup water (approx)
Your choice of chopped organic vegetables and/or seafood
cayenne (optional)
1. Heat coconut oil in a large, deep skillet. Add chopped onion and saute until clear.
2. Add garlic, ginger and spices. Stir in well to mix.
3. Add tomatoes and lemon juice, mixing well. Cover and let simmer on medium heat. Stir occasionally and add water to keep it from drying or sticking.
4. Once the tomatoes have softened, add your choice of vegetables. Always add longest to cook veggies first. Examples of good combinations: potato+cauliflower+peas, cauliflower+chickpeas, sweet potato+chickpeas+spinach, mushroom+shrimp/fish. Cook until the vegetables have a soft bite to them. Adjust salt and other spices to taste.
5. Enjoy over brown basmati rice, with a side of wilted spinach and/or yellow lentil dahl.
Vegan Chilli (serves 10)
(Adapted from one of Jamie Oliver's online recipes)
This is one of the best chillis (veg or non-veg) I have ever tasted. I followed the online recipe almost to the tee so won't bother typing up the entire thing here. You can access it on Jamie Oliver's website under Kerryann's Chilli con Veggie. It is also one of the easiest recipes to make. It does make enough for 10 meals so great for freezing too! Or you can cut the recipe in half. Tastes great garnished with fresh organic cilantro, over brown rice or on its own. I always prefer to rehydrate organic dry beans/lentils by crockpot (1 part beans to 3-4 parts water, high heat for about 3 hours, checking occasionally until preferred tenderness) instead of buying them from cans. Here are other tweaks I made to this recipe for convenience and to cater to my taste buds:
Used 2 cups red lentils instead of 1 cup each green and red
Added 2 red chillis instead of one
Added 1 cup organic frozen corn kernels
Added the juice of one lime
More recipes to come...
Nepali-Style Yellow Split Pea Dahl (serves 6-8)
(Thank you to the Shakya family for introducing us to this!)
1 cup dry yellow and/or red split pea lentils, rinsed2 onions, finely chopped
1/2 teaspoon freshly grated ginger
1/2 teaspoon freshly minced/crushed garlic
1 teaspoon turmeric
1.5L of water (or more depending on preferred consistency)
2 tablespoons organic virgin coconut oil
Himalayan sea salt to taste
1. Put lentils and water in a medium-large pot. Bring to a boil.
2. As the lentils begin to boil, add turmeric, ginger, garlic, and half the chopped onions. Once boiling, cover and reduce heat to simmer. Add salt to taste. Let boil about 30 minutes or more depending on how soft and soupy you like your dahl. Add more water if needed.
3. As the dahl is finishing, heat coconut oil in a pan. Add the rest of the chopped onions and saute until it is browned (almost burnt!). Stir into dahl.
4. Enjoy this dahl on brown basmati rice with a vegetable curry, as a side soup or as a meal on its own.
Nepali-Style Vegetarian Curry (serves 6-8)
(Again, thank you Shakyas for inspiring this recipe!)
2 tablespoons organic virgin coconut oil
1 large onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1" ginger, finely grated
1 teaspoon (or more) turmeric
1 teaspoon (or more) garam masala
3 medium organic tomatoes, chopped
The juice of 1/2 organic lemon
1/2 cup water (approx)
Your choice of chopped organic vegetables and/or seafood
cayenne (optional)
1. Heat coconut oil in a large, deep skillet. Add chopped onion and saute until clear.
2. Add garlic, ginger and spices. Stir in well to mix.
3. Add tomatoes and lemon juice, mixing well. Cover and let simmer on medium heat. Stir occasionally and add water to keep it from drying or sticking.
4. Once the tomatoes have softened, add your choice of vegetables. Always add longest to cook veggies first. Examples of good combinations: potato+cauliflower+peas, cauliflower+chickpeas, sweet potato+chickpeas+spinach, mushroom+shrimp/fish. Cook until the vegetables have a soft bite to them. Adjust salt and other spices to taste.
5. Enjoy over brown basmati rice, with a side of wilted spinach and/or yellow lentil dahl.
Vegan Chilli (serves 10)
(Adapted from one of Jamie Oliver's online recipes)
This is one of the best chillis (veg or non-veg) I have ever tasted. I followed the online recipe almost to the tee so won't bother typing up the entire thing here. You can access it on Jamie Oliver's website under Kerryann's Chilli con Veggie. It is also one of the easiest recipes to make. It does make enough for 10 meals so great for freezing too! Or you can cut the recipe in half. Tastes great garnished with fresh organic cilantro, over brown rice or on its own. I always prefer to rehydrate organic dry beans/lentils by crockpot (1 part beans to 3-4 parts water, high heat for about 3 hours, checking occasionally until preferred tenderness) instead of buying them from cans. Here are other tweaks I made to this recipe for convenience and to cater to my taste buds:Used 2 cups red lentils instead of 1 cup each green and red
Added 2 red chillis instead of one
Added 1 cup organic frozen corn kernels
Added the juice of one lime
More recipes to come...
