Chow Vegan

Deliriously happy to finally have the chance to eat at The Veggie Grill in El Segundo, I pretty much stuffed my face full. Since our whole group went to the all-vegan restaurant (a family first), I actually got to try quite a few items.

Chinese Chickin’ Salad, pictured above – I thought it was great, I usually don’t like getting salads in restaurants since I can make it so much better at home. But this was so nice and fresh tasting. And it wasn’t too heavy on the sesame-rice vinaigrette.

Mac n’ Cheese – I only had a couple of bites of this, but it was enough for me to say it’s yummy. I love how the Daiya cheese is all melty and creamy.

Uptown Nachos, pictured above – Also had just a few bites of this. Oh my gosh, it’s been forever since I’ve eaten nachos. It’s just like how I remember it. Another awesome winner.

Steamin’ Kale – No one else really ate this but I thought it was quite good. The kale was tender and the ginger-miso dressing went well with it.

Sweetheart Fries – Sweet potato fries, just as good if not better than french fries. But really the chipotle ranch that came with it, now that was to die for.

All-American Stack, pictured above – I only liked this okay. It may just be too much for one bite, what with all the onion rings, lettuce, tomato, pickles, grilled veggie-steak pieces stacked on a really thick whole wheat bun. Or maybe it was because I wanted to eat those nachos instead.

The V-Burger – I had about a fourth of this. It was my nephew’s lunch, since he’s only 7, he wasn’t able to finish the whole burger. He likes it with just the bun, grilled veggie-steak burger and ketchup. I liked this burger better. Go figure.

Chocolate Pudding – Delicious end to a great meal. Smooth and sweet, with a nice chocolate flavor. You would never know it was vegan.

The decor is modern-looking, hip and clean. There’s outdoor seating, which normally would have been nice if it wasn’t for the threatening storm clouds. They have four locations, all in Southern California. If only there was a Veggie Grill in NoCal, I would for sure be a permanent fixture there.

Over the holiday weekend, I traveled to Southern California to visit with my brother’s family. While there, we got lunch to-go at Versailles Cuban Restaurant in Manhattan Beach.

Since Cuban food is better known for its meat dishes, I didn’t think there would be much for me to eat besides the typical rice and beans. Sure enough, there was just two vegetarian plates on the menu, both included rice and beans.

I got the Moros, Platanos Fritos Y Ensalada Verde plate – black beans and rice cooked together, fried sweet plantains, mixed green salad and some mystery root vegetable hidden underneath the salad. It’s sorta like a potato but it’s not. I never had it before.

Normally, I’m not a huge fan of beans but moros is delicious! It’s savory and flavorful with just the right ratio of rice to beans. I had no idea rice and beans can be this good.

I’ve been experimenting with a vegan version of sticky rice in lotus leaf (called lo mai gai in Cantonese). It’s very popular at dim sum, although I have yet to come across a veggie one in a restaurant. It usually has chicken and maybe other meats in it. Hence the experiment.

It’s basically sticky rice (which is also known as glutinous or sweet rice) with a savory filling wrapped in a lotus leaf and then steamed. The lotus leaf imparts a fragrant, delicate flavor to the rice. While steaming, it smells a bit like tea.

Lotus leaves are sold dried and can be found at the Asian supermarket. To use, soak in hot water until they become pliable and darker in color. The sticky rice (sweet rice) can also be found at the Asian grocery store. It is not the same as sushi rice; it’s stickier. Above is the brand I always use, I cooked it in my fuzzy logic rice cooker on the sweet rice setting.

Surprisingly easy to make, as it’s mostly just assembly and waiting for things to soak. Well, I wasn’t actually standing there waiting, that would be silly. But it’s well worth the little bit of effort and planning to make this classic dim sum dish.

Sticky Rice in Lotus Leaf
Makes 6 dim sum sized packets

2 cups sweet rice (using the measuring cup that came with the rice cooker)
3 dried lotus leaves
Vegetable oil

Filling
4 dried mushrooms, soaked and diced
1 medium carrot, finely diced
3 1/2 ounces vegan sausage (or 1 Tofurky Italian sausage), sliced into 1/8 inch rounds
2 medium green onions, diced
1 teaspoon vegetable oil

Sauce
2 teaspoons soy sauce
2 teaspoons vegetarian oyster sauce
1 teaspoon Shaoxing rice wine
1/4 teaspoon sugar

Cooking directions is for use with a rice cooker with a 5.5 cups capacity. Using the inner pot of the rice cooker, rinse the rice in several changes of water until the water is clear. Add enough water to cook the sweet rice as indicated on the inner pot. Let the rice soak in the water for 2 hours before cooking. Cook the rice according to the rice cooker directions.

Trim off the ragged edges of the lotus leaf with kitchen scissors, then cut off the hard knobby part at the pointy end and cut the leaf in half. Soak in hot water for about an hour, turning them over halfway through and weighting the leaves down if necessary.

Combine the sauce ingredients and set aside.

Heat a wok to hot, add the oil and swirl to coat the wok. Add the veggie sausage and stir fry until lightly browned. Add the mushrooms and carrot and continue to stir fry for another minute or so, if it seems dry, add a little bit of water. Add the green onions and then the sauce, combine well. Place on a plate and set aside.

Rinse the lotus leaves and gently squeeze out any excess water. Place on a work surface with the curved edge facing away from you. Rub a little oil evenly onto the leaf.

Take 1/6 of the rice and divide it in 2, place one half onto the lower center of a leaf and work it into a small rectangle shape. Place 1/6 of the filling on the rice, then top with the other rice half and pat down.

Fold the tip end of the leaf up over the rice, then fold in the left and right sides. Roll up towards the curved edge to form a rectangular package. Repeat with the rest of the ingredients to make all 6 packets.

Put the packets seam side down in a steamer and steam for 30 minutes. To serve, unwrap the lotus leaves and transfer the rice onto a plate.

Dim Sum Related Posts
Mock Chicken
Stuffed Tofu Puffs with Chili Garlic Sauce
Chinese 5-Spice Jackfruit with Steamed Buns
Jook
Yuba Rolls

Who doesn’t love a sale? Especially if said sale involves food. My local Whole Foods started carrying the Field Roast Classic Meatloaf and put it on sale.

I really like some of Field Roast’s other products so I had high hopes for this meatloaf. The main ingredient is vital wheat gluten combined with carrots, celery, tomatoes, mushrooms, garlic and savory spices.

Preparation is pretty straightforward, the hardest part was getting the loaf out of its skin-tight plastic bag. Place it on a baking sheet, glaze with ketchup and stick it in the oven for 30 minutes to heat up and brown.

And brown it did. The Classic Meatloaf browns beautifully and smells delicious. Its got a great rich flavor. The texture is very similar to meatloaf as I remember it and just a tab more chewier. It’s kinda on the salty side but that’s pretty much the nature of most prepared food.