I have longed for veggie food having a real meaty taste and mouthfeel. Yes, I do know it is against the philosophy of true vegans who think that vegetables are not meant to taste like meat. Nevertheless I made a small R&D project and developed the “pick-antti” recipe.
Cheating a meat-eater with soy products is not that easy. Soy bits are devoid of oil, and miss the mouthfeel and palatability of meat. Additionally, soy has a slightly bitter side-taste. I believe it is better to play with this property than fight against it. With appropriate spices such as cumin, caraway, coriander (cilantro) and thyme you can build a nice combo. By applying the following principles, soy bits can be tuned into a really meaty dish.
- Use plenty of oil. 250 g dry soy bits require roughly 1 dl oil. This improves the mouthfeel and enhances the flavors of spices.
- Use acid (vinegar, lemon juice etc.) to freshen and enhance the taste. With plum or apricot jam both acidity and sweetness can be achieved.
- Use spices which provide a dark and slightly bitter taste pallet (cumin, caraway, coriander, dill seeds, thyme). Use tomato paste to make the marinade thicker and to bring a meaty aroma.
- Add soy sauce, fermented soy paste or oriental sauces to bring “umami” taste
- Use chili or pepper in a heavy-handed way.
- Balance the sweetness/saltiness by adding a little bit sugar.
Ingredients
- 1 dl oil
- 0.5 dl soy sauce
- 5 tbs plum or apricot jam
- 40 g (3 tbs) tomato past
- 2 tbs sugar
- 20 ml (1-2 tbs) wine vinegar
- Juice from ½ lemon
- 1 ts chili pepper seeds
- 1 tbs cumin (jeera) or caraway
- 1 tbs coriander seeds
- 1 tbs thyme
- 1 ts fennel seeds
- fresh chili and garlic
Procedure
- Put the soy bits into a large bowl. Pour in 1 L boiling water Mix to let every soy bit immerse water. Cover with a plate and incubate for 20 min.
- Prepare the marinade. Blend oil, soy sauce, jam, sugar and vinegar. Grind the spices in a mortar and add into the other ingredients.
- Pour off excess water and add the soy bits to the marinade. Let the soy bits stay in marinade for 2 h or overnight. Heat the oven to 170 °C.
- Spread the marinated soy bits onto baking tray covered with baking paper. Bake in oven for 45 min (mix two times), turn of the heat and let the soy bits cool in the oven. Note that when the soy bits really start to dry, they prone to burning.
Serve the soy bits as an appetizer with carrot and cucumber sticks and a sauce of your choice (mayonnaise, salsa, guacamole, veggie yogurt. You can also use soy bits for ”meat sauces” or ”meat stews” or in pasta salads.
Dine with a Vegan 