Really, it’s all about the sauce!
No matter what you make, it’s the seasonings that make it taste so good. Think about it: When you have a hamburger, or tacos, or a pizza. it’s what’s on top that makes the difference. Whether you top with pickles or salsa, aioli or vinaigrette, your flavors are in the sauce!
So when I made to the move to a whole food, plant based diet, I knew that one way to make this a delicious and fun way to live would be how the food was prepared. Yes, carrot sticks and roasted potatoes are delicious, but if you have a nice dip for the carrots or some fresh rosemary over the potatoes, you’ve really got some good eats! I find that one of the things that holds people back from pursuing a plant based diet is the thought that the food won’t be as good. There’s almost this idea that meat has some special wonderful flavoring that makes the meal. But if you really think about it, you know that isn’t true. An unseasoned piece of meat would be awful – it’s all in how you prepare it.
The real problem is that people are creatures of habit. We know how to quickly season some chicken wings or burgers. But learning new ways of preparing to eat can be intimidating and that keeps us from trying new foods. So this week, I’m going to give you two sauce recipes to get you started. In 20 minutes, you can have two sauces made for the week that you can use as toppings, salad dressings, or flavorings for your plant based meals. Of course, you can buy some, but it can be a challenge to find a vegan sauce that doesn’t have added sugar (Trader Joe’s has three good ones). But if you make yours, you know exactly what’s in the sauce and know the quality of your ingredients.
Change is hard. When I’ve tried preparing different food styles, the time I’ve had to spend learning seemed like too much compared to when I just make what I know. And, if I’m trying to be “good”, I feel restricted about all the things I can’t eat. But instead of thinking about what I can’t have, I’ve learned to figure out what I can have. When I want chocolate, I looked for recipes on raw vegan cacao desserts – and found some easy ones! Once I change my mindset, going forward is so much smoother – I just execute my plan!
This week we’re going to make an Asian inspired pad Thai sauce that you can use on noodles, in veggie rolls (like the ones in the picture above), or on a salad. Chop a bunch of veggies, throw them over a bed of lettuce, top with some tofu cubes and drizzle with this sauce, and you’ll think you ordered an Asian salad from your favorite restaurant! I modified this recipe from a un-cook book called Raw and Simple, a wonderful book on raw food philosophy and recipes. This recipe calls for tamari, a non-wheat soy sauce alternative, but I prefer coco aminos because it has about half the sodium content of soy sauce and tamari and has no wheat, but still tastes very much like soy sauce. I also left out the stevia because I didn’t think it needed to be sweetened, but a couple of drops of stevia or monkfruit extract could be added if you want!
Asian Almond Butter Dressing
1/2 cup almond butter (unsweetened)
1/4 cup water
1/4 cup coco aminos
2 tbsp rice vinegar
2 tbsp red Thai curry paste (yes, a little unusual, but absolutely worth buying!)
one clove of garlic
1 tbsp ginger paste (or fresh grated ginger or ginger juice, but the paste is easiest!)
1/2 tsp crushed red pepper (optional, but good)
2 tbsp agave nectar or a few drops of monkfruit extract or stevia (optional)
First, gather your ingredients.
Put everything in the blender.
Blend and store in a clean jar or bottle and enjoy!
Our second sauce is a Mexican inspired sauce, so if you don’t want Eastern flavors, you can go south of the border to shake up your meals! You can drizzle it over rice and beans, or use it over fresh greens, avocados, grilled onions and peppers, topped with corn, tomatoes and jalapenos for a Mexi-Cali salad. Or for another low carb option, use a coconut wrap and fill it with a cauliflower rice saute, flavored with taco seasoning and this sauce, and topped with more grilled peppers and onions and some plain non-dairy yogurt and hot sauce to finish it up. This sauce recipe came from a website called thekitchn.com, and they used it over a veggie saute wrapped in chard leaves. Sounds good, right? Well, let’s make some sauce!
Mexican Cumin-Lime Dressing
This recipe makes a small jar’s worth, so if you like it, double or triple the recipe!
1 tbsp fresh limes juice ( 1-2 limes)
1 tsp lime zest
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1-2 scallions minced (or in larger chunks if you’re using a blender), white and light green parts
1 tsp ground cumin, more to taste
1/8 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1 tbsp honey
1/2 tsp fine grain sea salt
First, gather your ingredients.
Then put it all in the blender. If you don’t have one, you can put all the ingredients in a jar with a lid (like a mason jar).
Then blend (or shake hard!), and store in a a clean glass jar. Enjoy!
What are your favorite sauces and seasonings? Let me know and I can put together more quick ways to get these in upcoming posts. How do you flavor up your favorite vegetables? Please share in the comments below!