Chow Vegan

Since I only shop at Trader Joe’s occasionally, I was delighted to see some new (at least new to me) vegan food. While they’ve always had vegan items, there’s many more options now. So what’s the best of the various vegan offerings? Time for a little Trader Joe’s vegan food smackdown!

First up is the cookie round, Soft-Baked Snickerdoodles ($2.99) vs Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookies ($3.99). The snickerdoodles just edges out the chocolate chip cookie, so soft and chewy with a bit of a cinnamon taste. The chocolate chip cookies were good too with plenty of chocolate chips and bits of walnut, but not quite as soft and chewy.

Next, is the Asian frozen food entree round, Vegetable Panang Curry with Jasmine Rice ($2.99) vs True Thai Vegetable Pad Thai ($1.99). The curry had a nice spicy flavor, plenty of sauce and veggies ranging from zucchini to kale to baby corn, all for 590 calories.

The pad thai had a tad less calories, weighing in at 520. It also had a spicy flavor. The veggies, mostly bean sprouts and chives, were on the bottom with the noodles on top, which seems to help prevent overcooking of the veggies. It was also very light on the tofu, only a few small pieces were included.

It wasn’t too bad but the vegetable curry was definitely the better of the two. Both entrees also were fairly high in fat and sodium – probably something to get only once in awhile.

Continuing on with Asian food, up next is the frozen dumpling round, Thai Vegetable Gyoza ($3.79) vs Cucumber Wonton Rolls ($2.69). I didn’t care for the cucumber wontons and so, there’s no photo (I couldn’t bring myself to buy another bag of it). I guess I’m just not used to having a cucumber filling in wontons. The gyoza on the other hand are quite tasty.

The filling is nicely seasoned with a gingery and chive taste. The wrapper is the chewier, thicker potsticker variety. It comes already lightly browned on the bottom, just steam or pan-fry to heat up.

Onto the savory snack round, Crunchy Curls ($2.69) vs Baked Onion Rings ($1.99). I struggled with this round as I liked them both, so I’m going to have to call it a draw. You really can’t go wrong with either one.

Made out of lentils and potatoes, the curls are nice and crunchy. It doesn’t really taste like lentils at all, it’s kinda like Pringles but in a thicker, curly form. 130 calories in a serving of 31 curls with 4 grams of fiber and 3 grams of protein. Fun to dip in hummus too.

The Baked Onion Rings are basically the vegan equivalent of Funyuns but with fewer ingredients and no artificial colors or flavors or preservatives. They’re crisp with just a bit of sweetness. Nutritionally, they don’t stack up as well as the lentil curls, 150 calories in a serving of 14 pieces with less than 1 gram of fiber and 2 grams of protein.

Lest you think I only stock up on sweet treats, snacks and frozen dinners, I do like Trader Joe’s tofu, tempeh, fresh bread, olive oil, tortillas, soy yogurt, nuts…

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The winner of the Wildly Affordable Organic cookbook is number 9.

Congratulations Sarah S.! Please email me your mailing address and I’ll send the book out to you.

Thanks everybody for playing, more stuff coming soon!

The newest book to plop on my doorstep for review is Wildly Affordable Organic: Eat Fabulous Food, Get Healthy, and Save the Planet – All on $5 a Day or Less by Linda Watson. I remember when I first started buying more organic food way back when, it was definitely a shocker compared to prices for conventional food and produce.

I’ve acclimated now and shop at the farmers market for what’s in season and wouldn’t think of buying non-organic produce, especially anything listed on the Organic Dirty Dozen. Wildly Affordable Organic is helpful for those just starting out with shopping, cooking and eating tips and strategies, as well as seasonal menus and recipes.

The book begun as an experiment to eat well on a food stamp budget which I found quite interesting (that could have been a whole book in itself). The plans and menus are less interesting for me as I rarely follow them.

But I do like to try new recipes, not all of them are vegan though, some call for eggs and dairy. But in the back, there is a list of which recipes are vegan-friendly. I tried the Noodles in Spicy Peanut Sauce with Seasonal Vegetables – it’s quick and simple to make with easy to find ingredients.

To get you organized and onto the organic path, I’m giving away a copy of Wildly Affordable Organic.

To enter the giveaway:
Leave a comment in this post with your favorite must-have organic food, affordable or not. Comment must be made by midnight PST on Sunday, July 24th; one entry per person. No purchase is necessary to enter or win.

One winner will be randomly selected (using random.org) from the comments received and announced in a new post on Monday, July 25th. Winner will have 48 hours to respond or a new winner will be randomly chosen. Prize awarded is the book that I received from the publisher (approximate retail value $17.00). I did not drool on it.

Official Rules
Open only to U.S. residents age 18 and over. Odds of winning depend on the number of entries received. Void where prohibited by law. Any tax is the sole responsibility of the winner. Winner releases Chow Vegan from any liability arising out of participation in this giveaway or the acceptance, use or misuse of the prize.

Disclosure: I received the book free of charge from the publisher to review. The opinions and experience with the book expressed herein are my own. There was no pay to say.

This post also contains Amazon links, I get a few coins tossed my way if you click on any of the links and make a purchase of anything.

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You know what I haven’t done in a long time? Experiment with the roasted tofu recipe. This would be #6 – roasted tofu cubes in a Coke-a-Cola and leek sauce. You’re unlikely to see this cooked-with-cola dish at any Chinese restaurant as it’s a home kitchen kind of a thing. Normally made with chicken wings, I subbed in tofu and added leeks.

I don’t know the exact origin, but I picture a cook long ago with a soda bottle saying “Hey, let’s add some of this stuff to the sauce and see what happens!” I imagine it’s the same way Coke got added to sauce for BBQ (but said in English).

You don’t actually taste the cola in the finished dish but it does add a subtle flavor and sweetness. You have to use Mexican Coke since that has sugar in it instead of the high fructose corn syrup in American Coke. Mexican Pepsi works too. I even tried Zevia, a natural cola soda with Stevia.

Like all of the previous roasted tofu recipes, it’s fairly easy to make. Basically, roast the tofu and make the sauce. The only difference is the tofu blocks in the store nowadays are 14 instead of 16 ounces. Anyone else noticed that?

Chinese Coke-a-Cola Tofu
Serves 2

1 14-ounce block of extra-firm tofu
1 teaspoon olive oil
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1/4 teaspoon paprika

Sauce
1/2 medium leek, white and some green part, chopped
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon Shaoxing rice wine
6 tablespoons Coca-Cola
1 tablespoon oil
Sprig of cilantro for garnish (optional)

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. In a bowl, combine the oil, salt and paprika. Cut the tofu into cubes and gently toss to coat with the mixture. Place each tofu cube in a single layer on a baking sheet lined with parchment. Roast for 15 minutes, flip over and roast the other side for 15 minutes.

While the tofu is roasting, prepare the sauce. Combine all of the sauce ingredients except the leeks in a bowl.

Heat a wok to hot, add the oil. Swirl the oil to coat the wok. When the oil is hot, add the leeks, stir-fry for a minute or so. Add the rest of the sauce ingredients. Reduce the heat to low and simmer until the tofu is ready.

Add the tofu pieces, stir to coat well. Cover with a lid and cook down until the sauce is thickened (there shouldn’t be very much liquid left), about 5 minutes on medium-low.

Garnish with the cilantro if using. Serve with steamed rice.

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Honey Walnut Tofu
Buffalo Style Roasted Tofu
Roasted Tofu with Leeks and Black Bean Sauce
Roasted Tofu Cubes From Vegan Soul Kitchen