VTA's 28-Day Vegan Challenge Journal by Rida Mendoza

This is Ma'am Rida's experience on her vegan challenge. 

Thank you so much for sharing and doing this challenge with us.

We are glad that you had a blast doing it!

Kudos! 

Although I am a few days late, better do this than never. I am up and determined to do this challenge. If others can do it I can do it, too.

 

TIPS:
It seems to be like overwhelming doing all these meals, but it should not be when you have the ingredients available in your pantry or refrigerator. I usually do not plan what dish should I cook for a certain day. I just go shopping and buy what I like to eat once a week. I make my dish in an instant, tried balancing the food that I will cook for the day. If I know I am eating and cooking too much or repeatedly food with too much carbohydrates or more sugar, etc. I change it for another ingredient. I do not follow anyone's recipe, whatever comes to my mind and that's it.

I used mostly fruits and vegetable that are in season or on sale. As noticed some ingredients were used over and over in different dishes such as Cilantro, Spinach, Strawberry, etc. If fruits or vegetables are freezable then I freeze them to save money and time for shopping. When I know I have to go out of the house for a while on a certain day, I cooked the meals in the morning before leaving. When all ingredients are organized, cooking or preparing meals will be in a breeze. Preparation cooking and plating will not take a long time. If not have enough time in the morning to cook all meals, then I prepare them and be ready for cooking when I come back home.

NOTES AFTER THIS 24/28 DAYS CHALLENGE:

The challenge is over although I am 4 days of the 28 days short..and I feel awesome... seems my body is so light.....and honestly, although I haven't weighed myself yet....my pants became too loose on the waist 2 sizes down, at least...I have to adjust the hook or button. I am willing to continue this diet as long as I can have more sources of protein beside from beans and tofu. I can't consume much of the soy beans and other type of beans. Other than that this diet gave me more energy, enjoyed the dishes that I made instantly....3-meals a day...no cheating, I ate less carbohydrates, less fat and less sodium and sugar and most of all no MSG. No need of using that, the food tastes good by itself. Being a cook myself, I or my whole family haven't gone or buy our food at restaurants anymore, if we do, very rare. We enjoy our own cooked meals because we know what is in there...especially MSG, which most restaurants, especially Asian restaurants use in every dish they cook, either Thai, Filipino, Chinese and other Asian food. Ask any Asian cook, their restaurant buy big buckets of MSG that they use in their restaurants.



Thanks Veggie Takeout Army for doing this challenge, that inspired me to eat better and healthy food.

Pad Thai

So this is my take on Pad Thai. 

I can't say that I have tasted the authentic version but I had it

and I did some research on it. 

It is sweet, sour and savory noodle dish originated in Thailand

and it's popularity is understandable because of its simplicity yet

not disappointing.

INGREDIENTS: 

flat rice noodles

tamarind paste

peanut butter

chili-garlic paste

hoisin sauce

mung bean sprouts

spinach

coriander

red bell pepper

brown sugar

garlic

onion

oil

salt 

pepper

egg (optional)

This is the type of rice noodles you I used and you can buy them from 

regular groceries. You have to soften them first by soaking them in

cold water for half hour, sometimes even longer. It should be

soft enough that you can bite them but not too soft that

it would instantly go saggy when you cook it.

This is my tamarind paste. I used this one because it

is more natural and doesn't have preservatives. It has seeds and

some parts from the tamarind fruit so I diluted it with hot water.

Let it  soften for a while and when it becomes thinner, drain it. 

Some would cook the sauce first and go for the balance of sweet and sour. 

But for this, you can just cook as you go.

  

 In a hot pan, add some oil and saute the garlic and onion.

As soon as they are cooked,  pour the tamarind sauce and 

season it with salt, pepper and sugar. You want to find a perfect balance

between sweet and sour but you can always adjust.

You can even add chili if you want it spicy.

 Add the noodles and stir them until they are cooked.

If you're vegan, you can just add the veggies and serve them up. 

But for lacto-ovos, make space in the middle for the egg to cook a little

and mix them up together with your veggies. 

Taste it one more time and season it according to your taste.

You can also add fried tofu for some protein and texture.

Serve and enjoy!

Investing In Your Pantry

It is not to be underestimated. 

More and more people are now trying to eat right

and that's good! However, whether you're trying to
 eat less meat or go all the way, it is certainly hard to

keep without some mad skills in the kitchen. 

If you can afford it and more convenient for you

to get your food somewhere else, this should not be a problem.

However, doesn't matter who you are, it is

my opinion that every soul should learn how to prepare

a meal for themselves. It's a survival skill. 

"But I do think the idea that basic cooking skills are

virtue, that the ability to feed yourself and few others 

with proficiency should be taught to every young

man and woman as a fundamental skill, 

should become as vital to growing up as

learning to wipe one's ass, cross the street by

oneself, or be trusted with money." 

-Anthony Bourdain

Nuff said. 

Eating healthy shouldn't at all be boring. For me,
 it pushed me to be more creative with what I cook

and challenged me to make it equally, if not better than

 animal meat dishes. 

You cannot possibly enjoy eating and cooking with only few items

in your pantry. The basic soy sauce, vinegar, oil and ketchup

are not enough. For a meat-eater, you could live off with those.

But if you're really serious about making a healthier

choice, it is admittedly pricey at first but it's absolutely worth it.

You'll have to spend on condiments, herbs, seasonings,

powdered spices, oils, etc. Yes.

You don't have to buy them all at once but every time

you go to a grocery, you can pick one item that you

have never used before. Not only it could possibly make your

dishes better, you will be pushed to learn something 

from that item.

One of my favorite quickie meal is a fried rice with veggies. 

It is simply the Lee Kum Kee vegetarian stir fry with rice and

frozen veggies (corn, carrots and peas) that I constantly have

in my freezer. With a minimal help of garlic, onion and pepper, 

I have an epic meal under 15 minutes. 

Having the essentials in your pantry, you'll never have to 

sleep hungry or be stucked with greasy fast food ever again.

That's enough reason, right?

For a vegetarian, you have to have even more

items in your pantry than meat eaters because tofu

and veggie meats has no flavor and you're gonna have to

rely the flavors on your sauces, broth and oils. 

Protein
 Tofu, veggie meat, veggie sausage,
veggie ground meat, textured vegetable protein,
seitan, gluten, and tempeh. These are the basic meat
substitutes  and you don't have to eat them everyday.
In my case, I only eat them 3-5 times a week. They
are mostly soy based and eating too much soy might
lead to high levels of uric acid.
So eat more veggies!

Canned and Dried Vegetables
The most common canned veggies are tomatoes,
beans, lentils and mushrooms.I don't usually stock tomatoes
but having one in case you run out of fresh ones are not
a bad idea. Having a nori (roasted seaweeds) is also
a good thing having around in case you may crave for
fish.

Seasonings/Condiments
One of my favorite is the hoisin sauce. I like Asian dishes
and having hoisin in my kitchen is a life and time saver for me.
It's savory and sweet and really versatile
that I can cook it with pasta, noodles, rice and tofu.
My other favorite is the chili garlic sauce from Lee Kum Kee.
I like it on everything!!!! 
It's not spicy but you can taste the chili, most definitely.

Oil

One of the most cliche meal of a regular Filipino

vegetarian is the chopseuy. We can do a lot better than that

but it is, without a doubt, most commonly cooked 

vegetable meal in this island. A drop or two of a sesame oil 

will make your chopseuy taste way way way better. 

It is also a fabulous finishing touch to any steamed green veggies

like kangkong and broccoli.

Dried Herbs/Powders
You can decide on which dishes you like, then you
can decide on what herbs or powdered spices that you'd like to buy.
For example, you like Italian dishes. Get dried oregano, basil
and Italian seasonings. For Asian dishes, get some coriander,
curry powder, turmeric, laurel, five spice, etc.

These are just few of many examples on how how stocking
up your pantry can exponentially make your healthy
cooking better.

I could go on and on but these information are useless
if you do not have a legitimate interest in having an
enjoyable meal prepared by yourself. Bottom line is,
in order to feed yourself mindfully, one must possess
common sense and a little enthusiasm on
trying out different flavors.

That's it for now. Hope you find this helpful
and encouraging.

Thanks for reading! 

Beanuguan

For those who aren't familiar with Dinuguan,, it is a blood stew.

A traditional Filipino dish that was invented to make somethin

out of pig parts that are usually left behind after butchering it. 

Of course there's blood, intestines, and other 

parts that I have no plans on knowing further.

Well despite its gory description, it really does taste good. 

It's pungent, salty, sour and savory. Beyond savory. 

When I first heard about a vegetarian version of this,

I was grossed out coz I knew that it is really hard to replicate.

Grossed out. The irony.

But when you are trying to eat better and crave for something

that is part of your culture, I don't weep. I make something close to it.

Hence, my version of Beanuguan.

INGREDIENTS:

1 can of cooked black beans (not the salted ones)

1 nori sheet

8 calamansi

1 tofu/tokwa

veggie meat

vegetable oil

1 vegetable bullion or 

1 cup of regular vegetable stock

garlic

onion

chili

salt

pepper

First, you have to use the food processor the liquify the 

beans and nori.

In a hot oil, fry the hydrated veggie meat until it is slightly brown.

I like frying them up first because it makes the veggie meat eliminate

the extra liquid. 

Put garlic and onion and keep stirring so the veggie meat

won't stick. Next is the bullion or the stock, let the flavors come together.

Pour the liquified beans and nori then let it

simmer for 5-7 minutes, depending on how thick you want it to be.

Put the tofu and make sure to cover your pot.

When your desired thickness is achieved, 

put the calamansi juice and the chilli.

Here, I used 8 whole calamansis. But the acid will

always depend on your taste and on how sour the citrus is.

Season with salt and pepper and  let it simmer

for another minute. 

Serve with rice or steamed rice cakes.  

Veggie Afrtida

Ingredients:

1/2 cup veggie meat or tofu (optional)

tomatoes

bell pepper

green beans

garlic

onion

oil

1/4 cup soy milk or regular milk

2 tbsp. tomato paste

1 tbsp. brown sugar

salt 

pepper

1 tbsp.soy sauce

1 cup water

Cut the vegetables into big chunks just like this.

Cook the potatoes in cooking oil until they are slightly cooked or until

they attain a little bit of color. Add your choice of protein and then saute 

garlic, onion and tomatoes until the onion is translucent. 

Season them with salt and pepper and then add the tomato paste, bell pepper, 

soy sauce, sugar, soy milk and water then let it simmer for few minutes

until potatoes are fully cooked.

Add green beans and let it simmer for another 3 minutes.

Serve with rice or bread.

You can add your own ingredients to make it something of your own.

If this was my normal afritada, I'd add vegetable stock and a little

bit of sriracha or chili garlic sauce.

For the meantime, this recipe is meant to be simple so that ingredients are

very easy to find and are available even from your neighbor's sari-sari store.

Assuming that most people are like me, skipping recipes when there's

an ingredient that I can't even pronounce, this is a jackpot.

3 More Ways To Use Veggie Meatballs

I have millions of veggie meatball leftovers and I didn't know what to do with them.

I thought of making teriyaki balls.

Thought of making like a curry hummus dip.

Thought of making pasta with it.

Crazy that I am, I made them all. Just made them out

of whatever ingredients available in my fridge and pantry.

Ha!

Curry Sauce with Meatballs and Pita Bread

Ingredients:

2 cups of fresh milk

or 

2 cups of pure coconut milk 

pinch of salt

1tsp. turmeric powder

1tbsp. curry powder

1tsp. cumin powder

coriander leaves

fresh chili

 1 tbsp. cooking oil

2 pita breads

In a small pan, infuse all the powdered ingredients. Infusing means, heating them

up on a very low fire until all the flavors are done waking up
and come together. Pour the milk and let it 

simmer until it thickens just a little. In this photo, I cooked it around dinner time

so no fresh coconut milk anywhere. I NEVER use powdered or canned. But if

you're a vegan, you can use them as an alternative. 

I'm not so I used milk and little bit feta cheese.

No cheese is still good. You're still good.

When it thickens, add the fresh chili and coriander leaves.

I always like having coriander leaves in my curry coz it makes the strong flavor

of the curry a little lighter and fresher. Anyway, it's totally optional.

Heat up the pita breads directly on the stove and cut them

into pieces.

Teriyaki Balls

 

Ingredients:

1/4 cup soy sauce

1/4 cup water

1/4 cup brown sugar

1tsp. finely chopped ginger

2 tbsp. cornstarch and 5 tbsp. water for thickener

1 tsp. sesame oil

sesame seeds

spring onions

Combine soy sauce, water and sugar into a pan and stir until the

sugar dissolves. Bring this to a simmer and then add the cornstarch and 

water solution. Mix continuously until it thickens. 

Add the sesame oil, sesame seeds and the spring onion

Meatball Marinara Sauce

 Ingredients:

1 and 1/2 cups of tomato sauce

2 tbsp. chopped garlic

1 tbsp. onion

1 tbsp. brown sugar

dried or fresh oregano

salt and pepper

3 tbsp. cooking oil

cheese (optional)

Infuse the garlic and onion in cooking oil. Pour the tomato sauce and 

brown sugar. Yes, we like our spaghetti a little sweeter. 

When it comes to a simmer, season it with salt and pepper and then 

sprinkle with a little oregano. And there's your spaghetti meatball sauce.

Use the sauce for your pastas or hotdog bun for a meatball sub!

Top with cheese if you like.

DIG IN!

*Remember, this recipe is only a guide. Your experience is your own teacher 
and your own preference is the only thing that will make any recipe a 
perfect dish! Enjoy!

Veggie Meatball Misua Soup

This recipe is perfect for the season. In making the meatballs, you can either use ground veggie meat or ground/finely chopped cooked puso ng saging (banana bud). You may follow the instructions on making the meatballs from my previous post, but I added a little something else to this particular meatball recipe so it's really up to you which you will be doing.

INGREDIENTS:

MEATBALLS

1 cup dried ground veggie meat (soaked in hot water and properly strained)
or

1 whole medium puso ng saging (blanched and finely chopped)

 1/2 cup flour
1 large egg or 1/4 cup cornstarch if you're vegan
chopped kinchay 
1tbsp. LeeKum Kee chilli garlic sauce

chopped spring onions
(optional)1 vegetarian bullion dissolved in 5 tablespoons of hot water

3 tbsp. soy sauce
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. pepper
1/2 chopped garlic
2 medium chopped onion

cooking oil

SOUP

1 tbsp. chopped garlic

1tbs. chopped onion

2 sliced tomatoes

misua

petchay

salt and pepper 

Form them into a small ball shapes and them fry them in a medium hot pan.  

 

They should look like this. Set aside.

Saute garlic, onion, and tomatoes in a 3 tablespoon of cooking oil. Season.

Add 2-3 cups of water and let it simmer for 2 minutes. 
Add the misua and petchay.

Put the meatballs in your soup right before you serve it so you could still have the crispy

texture when you eat it. 

Remember, this recipe is only a guide. Your experience is your own teacher

and your own preference is the only thing that will make any recipe a

perfect dish! Enjoy!

-o