vegan beef and barley stew

Overview

Time: 6 to 8 hours slow cooker or 30 minutes high pressure cooker
Dishes: Instant Pot or slow cooker and medium pot 

Hello, hello Dear Readers!

Whenever I see a photo of a beef stew, the beef gets lost in my mind, but the stew itself looks really great, and I always wind up wanting to make it vegan. This is an easy meatless, vegetarian and vegan version for the slow cooker, but my mini Instant Pot does not seem to be getting hot enough during slow cooking, which is odd, but if you find the barley not cooked by hour 6 or so, pressure cook it for 15 minutes and it'll be just fine. I suspect the regular Instant Pot (and, of course a typical slow cooker) would work just fine. 

I used hull-less barley in this dish, but since pearled barley is faster to cook and more popular, I recommend that. I used Beef Not! by Dixie Foods (a textured soy protein which I like a lot) but you can use Gardein or even substitute green beans or kidney beans. The flavor is in the broth so you can get away with using a different protein. 

Surprisingly, my son-in-law loved this dish! He, and even my son, went back for seconds. They are a bit on the choosier side and it was nice to see them both really digging this meal. 

I would classify this as an Easy dish, but there are a few more ingredients being used that kick it to Moderate. I tried trimming the ingredients list but the broth really needs the flavors and it is worth it to see your boys devouring barley!

Enjoy!

Speedy Cooking Tips:

• Heat the pot. Add the vegetables as they are chopped. 
• Follow recipe otherwise. It is straightforward.

 

Vegan Beef and Barley Stew

Makes 4 servings 

easy/moderate (ingredients list kicks it to moderate)

Slow Cooker Recipe. Pressure cook option possible; high pressure, 30 minutes.  

1. Sautee: Heat a pot or Instant pot over medium heat (Sauté function if using Instant Pot). Add the oil, onion, carrot, garlic and thyme. Cook for 5 minutes. Transfer to a slow cooker, if not using Instant Pot.

1 tablespoon olive oil

3 small onions, finely chopped

2 medium carrots, sliced

5 garlic cloves, sliced

1/2 teaspoon thyme

2. Add the tomato paste, vegan beef option and barley. Stir well and cook for 2 minutes.  

1 tablespoon tomato paste

1 1/3 cup Beef Not strips or 1-pound vegan beef (like Gardein or seitan)

1/3 cup pearled barley

3. Add the broth bullion, water, tomato, tamari and wine. Cover and cook on high until the barley is tender 6 to 8 hours.

1 tablespoon Better Than Bullion or equivalent

3 cups hot water

1 (15 ounce) can fire roasted crushed tomato

2 tablespoons tamari

2 tablespoons red wine (optional)

4.Serve: Season with salt and black pepper and sprinkle with parsley.

1/4 cup minced parsley

 

© 2020 Copyright Zsu Dever. All rights reserved.

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black bean chili

Meal 4 in the Prep Ahead Week 4 plan is a warm and comforting Black Bean Chili. This chili is packed with wholesome hull-less barley, black beans, bell pepper, onion, tomato, spinach and spices.

On the prep ahead menu the vegetables are cooked before hand, the barley soaked the night before and the whole dish is assembled and cooked in the slow cooker. It takes about 6 hours to cook on low (you can set the delay function).

Add some chopped canned tomatoes and a bunch of spinach during the last five minutes of cooking, and your chili is ready for the tables.

I topped mine with some finely grated vegan cheese, cilantro and chopped onions, but you can serve it as you like.

The chili is a welcome meal on a long cold day and there is wonderful chew that comes from the whole grain barley.

Black Bean Chili
Serves 4 to 6 

The night before:
3/4 cup hull-less barley
4 cups vegetable broth

1 medium onion, chopped
1 bell pepper, chopped
1 jalapeno, seeded and minced (use gloves, if needed)
4 garlic cloves, minced
2 teaspoons dried oregano
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 bay leaf
1/2 teaspoon dry mustard

1 1/2  tablespoons chili powder
2 cups cooked black beans (1 can)

1 (15-ounce) can whole tomatoes
1 bunch spinach

For serving:
1/2 cup cilantro (1/2 bunch), minced
1/4 cup chopped onions
1 cup vegan shredded cheese
Vegan sour cream (optional)
Tortilla chips (optional)

1. Soak the barley in the vegetable broth the night before. 
2. Add the onion to a large skillet or pot (on the Instant Pot insert). Cover and cook until softened, about 2 minutes. Add the bell pepper, jalapeno, garlic, oregano, cumin, bay leaf and
the mustard. Cover and cook until the onions are golden, about 5 to 8 minutes. 
3. Add chili powder and the black beans and move to a slow cooker, if needed. Add the soaked barley with the broth and cook on low for 6 hours, until the barley is tender. 
4. When the chili is ready, chop the tomatoes and add to the chili. Add the spinach and cook 5 more minutes. Season with salt and pepper.
5. Serve the chili with the cilantro, onions, cheese, sour cream, and tortillas, if using.




© 2017 Copyright Zsu Dever. All rights reserved.

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warm spinach salad with barley bacon

Barley Bacon. Why not? Barley is nice and chewy when cooked and lightly crispy when cooked in some oil; it's actually a delicious bacon!

My husband asked me to make him a warm spinach salad and the other week we had a dish with barley. The chew of the barley gave me the idea to make it into bacon - as long as I could achieve a crunch on them.

I loved how these turned out! They were smoky, salty and just crunchy enough to make passing by the bowl without snagging a few a near impossibility.

A pressure cooker is really the best appliance to cook barley and barley that is whole grain is the best grain for this. Pearled barley cooks faster but isn't a whole grain and might not give that distinctive texture.

The black cardamom is the smoke (but you can use liquid smoke) and the sun-dried tomatoes offer a complexity. Once they are done cooking in the pot, it's time to cook them in a pan. I add porcini mushrooms to the pan, which brings its own set of texture and flavors. Working together, these ingredients are perfect to offer that bacon-y experience.

Of course, I had to add some other veggies to the mix! I sauteed leeks and zucchini, but cauliflower or kale would be equally delicious.

To clean your leeks, cut them in half lengthwise and slice them into 1/2-inch pieces. Fill a large bowl with water and add the leeks. Swoosh them around, breaking up the clumps, and set them aside for a few minutes. The dirt will fall to the bottom of the bowl and you can scoop out the leeks with your fingers. Water your plants with the water.

Keep the vegetables warm while you heat up your dressing and toss all the hot ingredients with the spinach.

Serve immediately with the barley and pepitas. Pepitas are extremely high in protein, are delicious and offer another satisfying crunch.

Warm Spinach Salad with Barley Bacon 

Makes 4 servings

1/2 cup hull-less barley, rinsed

2 small black cardamom or 1/2 teaspoon liquid smoke

2 sun-dried tomato halves

1 bay leaf

1 1/2 cups water

2 tablespoons reduced-sodium tamari

1/3 cup dried porcini mushrooms

3 tablespoons red wine vinegar

1 teaspoon sugar

3 tablespoons olive oil

1 large leek, white part, sliced in half and cut into 1/4-inch slices 

1 medium zucchini, cut into 1/4-inch slices

Sea salt and black pepper

2 bunches (about 8 cups) fresh spinach

1/4 cup toasted pepitas

1. Combine the barley, cardamom, tomato, bay leaf, water and tamari in a pressure cooker. Cook on high pressure for 25 minutes. Remove and discard the cardamom and bay. Drain the barley, reserving the tomato and the broth. Set aside.

2. Combine the mushrooms and the reserved broth from the barley in a small saucepan. Bring to boil, reduce to simmer and cook for 5 minutes. Set aside to rehydrate, about 10 more minutes. Drain the mushrooms, reserving the broth, and rinse the mushrooms lightly. Strain the mushroom/barley broth through a coffee filter or reusable tea bag. You should have about 1/4 cup. Rinse the pot and add the broth. Bring to boil and reduce by half. Add the vinegar, sugar and plenty of black pepper. 

3. Heat the oil in a medium skillet over medium heat. Add the barley. Chop the porcini mushrooms and sun-dried tomatoes and add to the barley. Cook until the barley is slightly crunchy, but don’t over cook. Remove, leaving as much oil as possible in the skillet, and set aside. 

4. Add the leeks and cook until softened, about 3 minutes. Add the zucchini and cook until golden, about 5 more minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Keep warm.

5. Warm the dressing if it has cooled. Add the spinach to an extra large bowl and top with the vegetables and dressing. Toss well. If it isn’t wilting, warm the bowl slightly (stainless steel only!) on the stove while tossing the spinach. When lightly wilted, divide among 4 bowls and top equally with the barley and pepitas.  Serve.

 

© 2016 Copyright Zsu Dever. All rights reserved.

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food trucks! 3-bean chili and sweet potato fries bowl

Today our food truck road trip takes us to Los Angeles to visit the Bowled and Beautiful food truck on our magic carpet ride. This California-based hopeful food truck is looking to win this season's Food TV's Great Food Truck Race.

The group of ladies dishes up fusion California cuisine served in a bowl. And they do have a chance to win! The ladies have earned one of the top two spots for three weeks in row, and they don't look like they'll be slowing down. We'll see how tonight's episode progresses.

Since none of the trucks this season actually own a food truck, yet, the ladies don't actually have a business or a menu I can peek at. No matter; Food TV has supplied cyber space with a picture of one of their meals.

A signature dish of theirs is 3-Bean, Beef and Bacon Chili Bowl. The picture of the bowl on the Food TV site appears to contain sweet potato fries, so, in addition to the name, I decided to add this golden root vegetable to the bowl.

I call my dish, 3-Bean, Barley and Smoky Chili Bowl. I used kidney, pinto and black beans as my trio. I added the barley to give the dish some bite while keeping the faux meat out of the bowl. 

I grabbed a package of sweet potato fries at my local Whole Foods, baked them up and plopped them at the bottom of the bowl. Topping the fries with the spicy, smoky chili and finely shredded vegan cheese and minced onions, gave me an adequate facsimile of the pictured dish. 

As it turns out, the bowl was quite a hit! The chili took only about 20 minutes to cook. Bonus! However, the fries were the surprise element that we all thought worked quite well with the chili.

Good luck to these women, although given that they are Californian, I'd expect more veg cuisine from them. 

Here's hoping they hear the rumble of the vegan crowd.

3-BEAN, BARLEY AND SMOKY CHILI BOWL

creamy barley and split pea soup

Creamy Barley and Split Pea Soup Recipe

Winter has finally arrived, although I am sure lots of people would think that happened back in November. According to the astronomical society, the Solstice marks its passage. And since winter begets soup, as evidence by Kathy Patalsky's Babble.com article, 25 Classic Soups Gone Vegan, indeed if soup season hasn't arrived for you, yet, it is surely bound to. 

The above easy soup may not be all that quick, given that barley and split peas need about an hour to cook, but the prep and coddling are minimal, therefore this soup lands smack dab in the middle of "easy." In addition to the yellow split peas and pearled barley, it boasts zucchini and cauliflower. 

You could very simply substitute whatever vegetables you like or have on hand. I made this soup creamy by adding almond milk after the cooking was complete. Boiled vegan milk breaks and does not make for a good picture, so be warned, simmer to reheat, but skip the boil.

Cost Breakdown

peas and barley: $1

stock, spices: $3

milk: $1

cauliflower, zucchini, onion, carrot: $5

Total to make 8 hearty servings

$10.00

lentil-barley, kale with sauteed leeks

Green lentils are always a quick meal to make, but when you add the barley, the time increases by around 20 minutes. Still, well worth the time. After the lentils and barley were done, I added the kale and some slivered carrots, cooking them just a moment more. In the meantime, saute leeks, onion and garlic in a tablespoon of olive oil. This takes about 15 minutes, until the leeks are golden. Plate with a grilled-on-your-stove pita bread and the leek saute over the lentils. Add a little heat, chili flakes or cayenne, to tease your taste buds and dig in.

Kids liked this one, too. Most of them.

Cost Breakdown:

lentils, dry: $ .50

barley: $.50

kale: $2

carrot, onion, garlic: $1

leek: $1

pita: $3

Total to feed a family of 5:

$8.00 

Lentil-Barley, Kale with Sauteed Leeks Recipe