Monday, May 1, 2017

Vegan 'Surf and Turf' Taco Plate

'Surf" Tacos made with seaweed infused rice, dilly tartar sauce, and radish relish.

This weekend I had the privilege and honor to do a cooking demo and prepare lunch for 300 dedicated community activists at the Crisis in the Oceans event which led up to the People's March on Climate Change in Irvine, California. Speakers included Jonathan Balcombe, Kate Mackey, and Gene Bauer! What an honor to be feeding these fine folks!



Over 2000 attendees showed up for the march. Many of the marchers holding vegan and plant-based messaging signs! This is huge. 2000 people may not seem like a lot for a march these days, but in previously ultra-conservative Irvine, this showing up in solidarity with Mother Earth was a real inspiration.

I couldn't have done this without the help of some incredible individuals. A huuuuge heartfelt thanks so much to all of the food prep and food service volunteers. Without you, I would never have been able to pull this off.

I promised all of the eco-aware attendees that I would post the recipes from the demo (so as not to waste paper on hand-outs) and lunch today, so here you go...'Surf and Turf' Taco Plates!

'Surf' Tacos
For the Flaky Fish-y Rice
1 cup (180 g) uncooked long grain rice (such as basmati or jasmine)
2 cups (470 ml) water
1 tablespoon (3 g) hijiki seaweed*
1/2 teaspoon salt, or to taste
1/4 teaspoon cumin
1/8 teaspoon red chile flakes, or to taste
*Hijiki seaweed works best because it keeps its form when boiling and has a strong sea flavor. If you want to use another type of seaweed, double the amount, make sure to tie it up in a cheesecloth and place it in the water when boiling. Remove before serving. Do not use nori. It will dissolve into a slimy mess.

For the Radish Relish
1 cup (116 g) finely diced red radish
1 cup (160 g) finely diced red onion
1 green chile (jalapeno, anaheim, pasilla...depending on your heat preference) finely diced
1/4 cup (4 g) chopped cilantro
1 tablespoon (9 g) minced garlic
1 tablespoon (15 ml) lime juice
salt and pepper to taste

For the Dill-y Tartar Sauce
3/4 cup (168 g) AquaFaba mayo (see recipe below)
1 tablespoon sweet pickle relish
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon minced garlic
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1/4 teaspoon dried dill, or 3/4 teaspoon fresh

For the Tacos
2 cups (140 g) finely shredded red or green cabbage (or a mix of both!)
6 to 12 corn tortillas (depending on the size you use), toasted in a dry pan
roasted pepitas, for garnish
chopped green onion, for garnish, optional

To make the flaky fish, stir together all ingedients in the bowl of your rice cooker and cook according to machine instructions. If you do not have a rice cooker, add water and seaweed to a pot with a tight fitting lid. Bring to a boil, stir in rice and spices to the boiling water, reduce to a simmer, cover and simmer for 15 to 20 minutes until fluffy and tender. Make the relish and tartar sauce while rice is cooking.

To make the Radish Relish, mix together all of the ingredients and keep refrigerated until ready to use.

To make the Dill-y Tartar Sauce, mix together all ingredients and keep refrigerated until ready to use.

To assemble your tacos, layer on cabbage, fish-y rice, drizzle with dill-y tartar, add a generous helping of radish relish and sprinkle with pepitas. Add garnish as desired.

'Turf' Tacos. I SWEAR there is a toasty grilled tortilla under all that goodness!
'Turf' Tacos
For the Spicy Taco Chickpeas
2 (15 ounce) cans garbanzo beans, drained (reserving the liquid from the can for later use)
2 tablespoons (30 ml) mild flavored vegetable oil
1/2 cup (80 g) finely diced white onion
1 teaspoon evaporated cane juice
2 teaspoons chili powder
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper (or ground chipotle powder)
1/2 teaspoon sea salt

For the Chipotle Crema
3/4 cup (168 g) AquaFaba mayo (see recipe below)
1 teaspoon chipotle powder (more or less, to taste)
1 tablespoon (8g) minced garlic, or 1 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon smoked salt

For the Tacos
2 cups (140 g) finely shredded red or green cabbage (or a mix of both!)
6 to 12 corn tortillas (depending on the size you use), toasted in a dry pan
1 cup (160 g) finely diced white or yellow onion
1 cup (16 g) chopped cilantro
sliced jalapenos, for garnish, optional
chopped green onion, for garnish, optional

To make the spicy taco chickpeas, add oil to a frying pan and heat over medium high heat. Add in onions and saute until fragrant and translucent. Add in garlic and saute for about 2 more minutes. Add in beans and spices. Toss to coat and continue to cook until warmed through. About 3 to 5 minutes. Remove from heat and serve.

To make the Chipotle Crema, mix together all ingredients and keep refrigerated until ready to use.

To assemble the tacos, layer on cabbage, then chickpeas, top with onion and cilantro, drizzle with chipotle crema, and garnish with jalapenos and green onions, of desired.

Hey! That's me! With one of my heroes...Gene Bauer of Farm Sanctuary!
AquaFaba Mayo
This mayo makes a great base for many sauces and spreads! Be patient when blending and remember to SLOWLY drizzle in that oil.

1/4 cup liquid from a can of garbanzo beans (aka AquaFaba)
2 teaspoons lemon juice, lime juice, or apple cider vinegar (your choice!)
1/2 teaspoon dried ground mustard seed
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon sugar*
3/4 cup mild flavored vegetable oil
*If you prefer to use a liquid sweetener such as agave or date syrup, do not add until after the mayo has emulsified and thickened. Simply stir it in afterwards

Add the AquaFaba, mustard seed, salt, and sugar* to the cup of your immersion blender. If your immersion blender did not come with a cup, a wide mouthed glass jar will work. Make sure to use a tall, slender container for this. A regular bowl will not work.

Blend until white and foamy, about 15 seconds. Slowly drizzle in oil in a very thin stream, a small amount at a time, while constantly blending. Allow the oil to completely incorporate before adding more. DO NOT STOP THE BLENDER DURING THE ENTIRE PROCESS! Continue to add oil until it is all incorporated. This process should take up to 5 full minutes. Be patient. Be very, very patient. Upon adding the last of the oil, it should be thick and silky...just like mayo!

Keep refrigerated in an airtight container until ready to use. Should last up to two weeks. Use as is as mayo or add additional seasonings to make a variety of aiolis, spreads, and sauces.

Yield: 1 cup (235 ml)


Cilantro Lime Sticky Rice
1 cup (180 g) Jasmine rice, unrinsed
2 cups water
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup (16 g) chopped cilantro
1/4 cup (60 ml) mild flavored vegetable oil
2 tablespoons (30 ml) lime juice
salt and pepper to taste

Prepare rice according to package directions adding the salt to the water. Once rice is cooked, mix in cilantro, oil, lime juice and salt and pepper to taste.

Yield: 8 servings

Black and Tan Beans
2 tablespoons (30 ml) mild flavored vegetable oil
1 medium white or yellow onion
2 tablespoons (16 g) minced garlic
1 jalapeno, diced (for spicier beans, leave in the seeds)
2 (15 ounce) cans pinto beans, with liquid
1 (15 ounce) can black beans, drained and rinsed
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
salt and pepper, to taste

Add oil to a pot with a lid and heat over medium high heat. Add onions, garlic and jalapeno and saute for two to 3 minutes. Add remaining ingredients, bring to a simmer, reduce heat to medium, cover and simmer for 30 minutes. Remove lid and continue to cook for an additional 15 minutes to allow some of the liquid to evaporate. Stir regularly during cooking.

Yield: 8 servings

For more information and ways to get involved in future events, check out OCClimateChange.org!


4 comments:

Pura Horgan said...

What a delicious recipe! I tried it yesterday and everybody here loved it. In no time there was non left! ahahah. Thank you for posting the recipe!

college paper writing service said...

Stunning... adequate substance material best, especially pulled in toward the design of your blog and the substance material too. You have imparted extraordinary bits of knowledge to regard to this internet organizing. no two ways about it I were given a few new matters from perfect here I increased in value over read your weblog appropriate.

David Johnathan said...

I appreciate your efforts in preparing this post. Operating System Project Help Service I really like your blog articles.

Aleson John said...

Pretty helpful material, PHP Programming Homework Help much thanks for this article

2012 Copyright/Permissions/Disclaimers

All recipes written by me, Joni Marie Newman, unless otherwise noted. Please feel free to refer to or link back to any of my recipes, but please ask for permission, and remember to give credit when reprinting recipes in their entirety. I do provide links to affiliate programs (such as Amazon) in which I receive a small commission for items purchased. I do not provide paid reviews. All reviews done on products or books are of my own unsolicited opinion. On occasion I may receive a book or product to review. I will note when this is the case, but rest assured, it will not affect the authenticity of my review. Thanks!--Joni