3 Quick & Easy Asian-Style Vegetarian Recipes

Having been veggie for over a year now, I’m still constantly on the look-out for new and exciting but quick and easy vegetarian meals to enjoy.

I really enjoy cooking. Asian foods in particular are my absolutely favourite to eat and cook – I find them so versatile and full of flavour, there’s plenty of rich tastes to discover with different dishes. Here are few of my absolute favourite tried and tested veggie recipes for a quick, easy, healthy and satisfying meal:

Duck Donburi Bowl

This is something I have discovered very recently and it has quickly become one of my absolute favourite meals to make. It’s so quick and easy! Put the rice on to boil and, whilst that’s cooking, slice up some fresh vegetables such as cucumber, carrots or radish. When the rice is done, leave it in a covered pot for a few minutes to steam and, in the meantime, add some of Linda McCartney’s Vegetarian Shredded Hoisin Duck to a hot pan with a tablespoon of olive oil. Fry for around 4 minutes and then add a splash of water. This will soak up very quickly and make the vegetarian duck more sticky. Fry for another 4 minutes or so and add some hoisin sauce to taste, then simply plate up with the rice and veg!

Easy Vegan Pho

BBC GoodFood is my food bible. They have tons of fool-proof and really great recipes that are delicious, that work, and the ingredients and quantities are accurate. I use BBC GoodFood for breakfast, lunch, dinner and dessert recipes on a weekly basis, and this Vegan Pho is one of my favourite discoveries. The mint and peanut garnish really tops off this Asian staple so don’t skip these ingredients! The dish makes a perfect, low-calorie and healthy lunch, and it can easily be adapted using your favourite vegetables. I used mushrooms, leeks and pak choi. Check out the recipe here https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/easy-vegan-pho

Green Peppercorn and Lemongrass Coconut Broth

Credit: BBC Food

Another great find from BBC Food, this Green Peppercorn and Lemongrass Coconut broth is perfect for lovers of Asian soups and coconut. This sweet, fragrant and creamy soup is great for a tasty and healthy lunch or a light dinner. Make a batch and re-heat to enjoy over a few days! Check out the recipe here https://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/peppercorn_coconut_broth_84709

Halloween Baking 2020

With Halloween only 6 days away, I thought I’d try a bit of easy, spooky baking. I didn’t want anything complicated, just something to enjoy on a quiet Sunday afternoon, so Olive Magazine’s Skeleton Gingerbread Men recipe seemed perfect.

This particular recipe has made me feel like my baking skills have gone back to basics, but nonetheless it’s a bit of fun!

https://www.olivemagazine.com/recipes/baking-and-desserts/skeleton-gingerbread-men/

Let’s start with the negatives:

1. It doesn’t make 30 biscuits

I made a total of 9 biscuits. Looking back, it seems that the biscuits in the picture must be bite-sized, whereas I used a regular sized gingerbread man cutter. However, the recipe doesn’t specify the cutter size needed, so this was quite disappointing.

2. It took well over an hour

It’s a little more time-consuming than I wanted, especially for something as simple as gingerbread men. Overall, this took me over an hour to make as the dough turned out quite wet and didn’t roll out very easily. Naturally, you have to factor in cooling time, and the decorating isn’t something I’m too familiar or confident with, so this added to it quite a bit. I’m also very impatient and didn’t give the icing enough time to set – if I did, it would’ve take even longer.

Now, the positives:

1. You can’t go wrong with gingerbread men

Even if you’ve never made gingerbread men before, you know what to expect, so it’s quite nice and easy from that perspective. It’s a simple recipe, and one to enjoy with little ones.

2. They’re fun and cute

Decorating and presentation isn’t my strong point in baking at all, but this doesn’t really matter with a recipe like this one; even if it’s messy, you can’t really tell!

I’d like to give a recipe like this another go, but I probably won’t be running back to Olive Magazine. This was a fun, risk-free experiment, and it did the job for some fun Sunday baking, but overall it didn’t work for me. Next, festive bread!

3 Genuinely Delicious Veggie Recipes

I can’t believe how quickly 2 and a half years has passed. I hadn’t planned to stop blogging, it just became increasingly difficult to do for fun as I started working full time. I have recently realised just how much I missed it, so I thought I’d pick this up again, and do so by writing about one of the biggest dietary changes I’ve ever made.

It was spontaneous but I have not looked back. In February 2020, I decided to try a vegetarian diet. The main reason for this is because meat was making me feel very unhealthy, very sluggish, and I was realising more and more just how bad it is for the environment.

Luckily, I LOVE vegetables, and there is so much variety to be had with them, so I thought I’d share some of my favourite tried and tested vegetarian recipes. All of them are easy and relatively quick, with no pretentious ingredients.

1. Tom Yum Soup

(https://www.diet-health.info/en/recipes/re/kvbxv500-vegan-tom-yum-soup-with-mushrooms-and-water-chestnuts)

Tom Yum Soup from the cookbook “Bosh!” by Henry Firth & Ian Theasby, p. 62

BOSH! by Henry Firth and Ian Theasby has become a kind of bible to me since becoming veggie. It’s full of vegan-friendly, delicious recipes that actually work, and it offers a range of meals, from breakfast, lunch and dinner, to desserts and even cocktails.

I have made this particular recipe now a thousand times, and it never disappoints. There are some ingredients which I leave out, such as ginger and spring onions as I don’t particularly like them or find them necessary, but the dish still comes together beautifully.

If you’re a lover of Thai food, this is a definite must. It has just the right amount of kick, it’s warm and hits the spot, and it’s easily adaptable – I’ve tried it with bamboo shoots instead of chestnuts, but it would also work other alternatives such as baby corn and mange tout.. It is also great for meal prepping – I get 4 days’ worth of lunches out of this recipe.

2. Coconut and Squash Dhansak

https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/coconut-squash-dhansak

This was one of the first veggie recipes I tried, and I have gone back for more! It’s such a delicious, creamy curry, and so easy to make.

I would recommend this if you like sweet, creamy curries, like korma, and a peshwari naan makes a perfect side with this dish. If you’re looking for something healthy, that’s another reason to give this speedy meal a go – it’s full of goodness, containing spinach (great source of iron) , squash (fibre) and lentils (vitamin B, zinc and magnesium).

This dish is so quick and easy to make, and will definitely make you proud of your home cooking!

3. Reverse Puff Pastry Pizza

https://www.jamieoliver.com/videos/reverse-puff-pastry-pizza/

There isn’t a written recipe for this particular dish, but this video from Jamie Oliver is very easy to follow, and even easy to remember so you don’t necessarily need to watch and follow.

Full of chunky, flavoursome veg, this puff pastry pizza is an interesting spin on traditional pizza, and far easier to make at home. It’s not quite as speedy as the above two recipes, but it does involve a lot less effort as most of the time is spent just roasting the vegetables.

What I love about Jamie’s recipes is that nothing needs to be perfect, and the end result is still amazing.

The courgette, tomatoes and peppers go perfectly with the creamy mozzarella and fragrant basil, and the puff pastry as an alternative to regular pizza dough makes the whole recipe so easy that there’s no reason not to try it!

A Few Dishes to Kick-Start the New Year Cleanse

Though a meat-eater, I’m a huge lover of vegetarian and some vegan meals. Over the past year or so, I’ve really been enjoying getting to explore different flavours and health benefits as vegan and veggie have both been on the rise. With more restaurants accommodating the trending lifestyle and tons of new as well as pop-up restaurants appearing on the market to cater to the demand, it’s been a truly eye-opening experience for me. Getting to love meat-free alternatives is definitely something that has made my 2017 better so I’ll take it with me into the New Year.

Forget horrible smoothies or chewing on coffee beans to lose weight – I’ve discovered some great meat-free and vegan recreations of food you already know and love, so you can actually follow through with your New Year’s resolution.

Kati Roll at Giraffe 

(Credit: Giraffe)

Completely veggie, this Kolkata street food from Giraffe is unforgettable and something I’m very keen to either have again or re-create at home. It consists of cumin-roasted cauliflower, chickpeas, pomegranate, red onion and corinader in a naan, with yoghurt and chutney. Something handy about this dish is that the yoghurt is served separately on the side so, without it, it’s completely vegan! Also, the image doesn’t do the portion any justice because it is huge and incredibly filling, so you do get your money’s worth. The roasted cauliflower is also incredible and works extremely well with the sweetness of the pomegranate and chutney, topped with fresh coriander to bring it all together. To top it all off, this’d be very cheap to make at home, no matter where you do your weekly shop.

 

Creamy Coconut Vegetable Korma, http://www.theendlessmeal.com

(Credit: The Endless Meal)

For such a simple dish, its vegetarian version has really surprised me and has become one of my favourite go-to meals when I don’t know what to cook. The recipe is incredibly easy to follow and, even on my first try, my creation has come out to match the pretty picture. The meat substitute in this dish is potatoes, which work incredibly well with the other flavours and textures. If you’re concerned about the double carbs though (which I was too), simply take the rice out completely or replace potatoes with chickpeas, cauliflower or other similar veggies. A korma, both meat and veggie, is one the few dishes that is really and truly transformed with a sprinkle of fresh coriander; personally, it makes all the difference for me. This is the recipe to follow if you’re after a veggie korma this Jan!

 

Lemony Courgette Linguine, Jamie Oliver’s 5 Ingredients: Quick and Easy Food

(Credit: Jamie Oliver)

Jamie Oliver’s Quick & Easy Food has been a real game-changer in 2017. It has saved me so much time and effort with planning and making lunch every day. I prefer a veggie lunch so that I have more to work with at dinner time, so the 5 Ingredients books has proven to be a true life-saver. The most important thing I’ve learned from it though is to never underestimate a simple dish! It might not contain much but can still taste incredible in half the time spent in the kitchen – win. An incredibly quick, easy, cheap and filling lunch that you can make over and over again – all you need it a courgette, pasta, parmesan, a lemon and a bunch of mint (optional). It’s refreshing, light and fresh. I’ll definitely be sticking to this one in my 2018 cleanse. The Super Green Spaghetti and the Egg & Mango Chutney Flatbreads are also worth a try (replace egg with paneer if it’s not for you)!

 

Tom Yum Soup

Kindly prepared by my sister (who always cooks up a treat), this has truly been one of the best meals I’ve ever had, and it’s a shame I don’t know the recipe! Completely meat-free, this one will have you going back for seconds without the guilt, so feel free to incorporate this dish into your cleansing regime this new year. It’s a perfect blend of spicy and creamy with lots of nutritious veggies and filling noodles.

 

Leggera Padana, Pizza Express

(Credit: Pizza Express)

I’ve gone back for this skinny pizza time and time again since 2016 (it helps to have an O2 Priority voucher for a £5 main as well!) This pizza comes with goat’s cheese, caramelised onions, spinach, red onions, tomato and garlic oil, topped with a mixed salad, and meat is definitely not required to round this one off. The sweetness of the caramelised onions combined with the creamy goat’s cheese is what has made me fall in love. And, at under 600 calories, it’s the most delicious, guilt-free pizza you can have any day of the week – perfect for a new year’s cleansing resolution.