food

Sorry that the lighting looks odd

This recipe is for the entire serving I had in this image.

Sweet 'n' Spicy Soya Chunks

Ingredients:

• 1 cup dry soya chunks
• 2 cups hot water

Marinade:

• 2 tbsp soy sauce
• 1 tbsp vegetable oil
• 1/4 tsp garlic powder
• 1/4 tsp onion powder
• 1 tbsp cornstarch

Sauce:

• 2 tbsp hot sauce
• 1.5 tbsp agave
• 1 tbsp vegetable oil
• 1 tsp apple cider vinegar
• 1/4 tsp garlic powder

Instructions:

1. Let the chunks sit in the hot water for 20 minutes.
2. Drain, rinse, and squeeze the water out of them.
3. To make the marinade, put all listed ingredients (soy sauce, vegetable oil, garlic and onion powder) except the cornstarch in the container. Stir it all together.
4. Add the soya chunks to the marinade, sprinkle the cornstarch on top, and then shake the container until the soya chunks are evenly coated.
5. Baking them, I did 15 minutes in the oven, flipping after 10. Should work well with pan frying or air frying, too.
6. While they were baking, I microwaved the sauce for 45 seconds.
7. When they are done, add the soya chunks to the sauce, shake in a container until everything is coated.

Cashew Mac

I tried to enhance it from the last time I made it.

In the previous recipe, I used raw cashews, but for this one, I did a quick soak. I also used an immersion blender rather than a high-speed blender, especially since I was making a smaller amount.

Ingredients:

• 2 cups small shells pasta
• 1/4 cup + 2 tbsp soaked cashews
• 1/2 cup very hot water (can either be boiled or very hot tap water) for soaking the cashews
• 1/3 cup water + 2 tbsp reserved pasta water (this one be for the sauce itself)
• 1 tbsp vegetable oil
• 1 tbsp nutritional yeast
• 1.5 tsp cornstarch
• 1/4 tsp liquid smoke
• 1/2 tsp paprika
• 1/4 tsp garlic powder
• 1/4 tsp onion powder
• 1/4 tsp ground mustard
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/8 tsp black pepper
• 1/8 tsp MSG
• pinch of turmeric

Instructions:

1. Prepare pasta according to package instructions.
2. While pasta is boiling, soak the cashews in the very hot water for 10 minutes. After the cashews are soaked, drain and rinse them.
3. Add the following ingredients to a tall cup: the cashews, the 1/3 cup water + 2 tbsp reserved pasta water, vegetable oil, nutritional yeast, cornstarch, liquid smoke, paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, ground mustard, salt, black pepper, MSG, turmeric (basically everything except the pasta itself)
4. Blend with an immersion blender at the bottom of the cup until there is a smooth, creamy liquid consistency and no noticeable solid pieces of cashews. I have a 2-speed one, and I use the higher speed.
5. After that is done, pour it over the pasta in the pot, and stir everything together.

Ranch

I start with my aquafaba mayo recipe in this post.

From there, add the following ingredients to the container:

• 2 tbsp water (for thinner consistency)
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 1/2 tsp onion powder
• 1/2 tsp dried dill
• 1/4 tsp dried parsley
• 1/4 tsp chives
• a pinch of salt
• a pinch of black pepper
• 1/2 tsp of agave

Stir everything together, and you'll get a nice ranch! Then you can pour however much you want on the chunks and mac.