Lockdown Recipes

Many people have turned to cooking during the lockdown with not as many ready-made meals about. People are looking to their cupboards to cultivate their culinary experience. The recipes here might not be the quickest, but they’re hearty meals to enjoy with those you’re quarantining with or by yourself in front of the TV.

They all are vegan so anyone can make them, and most of the ingredients can usually be found in your cupboards. If you’re missing anything, you could look up a substitute – searching online for “what can I use instead of…” can save most situations! All of the recipes serve four people, but you can adjust the portions up or down. I hope you give them a go and enjoy!

Lockdown Lentil Dhal

Ingredients:

• 200g red lentils
• 1 can of chopped tomatoes
• 1 can coconut milk
• 500ml vegetable stock
• 2 onions
• 3 cloves of garlic
• 1tsp red chilli flakes or 1 fresh chilli
• 2tbsp curry powder (you can make it yourself using ½tsp cumin, ½tsp ground coriander, ½tsp mustard powder and 1tsp garam masala)
• 2tsp ground turmeric
• Salt and pepper

(Optional:)

• Juice of half a lemon
• 1tbsp fresh ginger
• 2 handfuls fresh spinach

Method:

1. Heat the oil in a pan and cook the onion for around 4 minutes until softened. Then add the garlic and chilli (and ginger, if you’re using it) and cook for a further 3 minutes.
2. Add the spices and cook until the other ingredients are coated (approx. 1 minute).
3. Add the lentils, chopped tomatoes, veg stock and coconut milk. Stir all the ingredients together and season with salt and pepper.
4. Bring to the boil and then reduce to simmer for 20-25 minutes. Keep stirring regularly so nothing gets stuck to the bottom of the pan. Keep tasting and feel free to add more flavour if necessary.
5. Take off the heat (add the lemon juice and spinach if you’re using them) and serve with rice, naan or paratha.

Storage:

You can keep portions in the fridge for a couple days or freeze them for a month.

My Friend Christina’s Tomato Sauce

Ingredients:

• 1 can chopped tomatoes
• 3 cloves garlic
• 1tbsp sugar
• 2tbsp tomato paste or puree
• 1tbsp dried basil
• Salt and pepper

Method:

1. Mix all the ingredients together in a pan.
2. Bring to the boil and then simmer for 1 hour and stir every so often.
3. Take the sauce off the heat and season with the salt and pepper to taste. You can either mix with pasta or spread on a pizza base.

Storage:

Lasts a week in a fridge or freezes for a month. 

My Tacos with Flour Tortillas

Tortilla Ingredients:

• 250g plain flour
• Salt
• Water

Filling Ingredients:

• 2 tins of beans of your choice (I used kidney beans and chickpeas)
• 3 gloves garlic, crushed
• 1 red chilli, diced
• 1tbsp BBQ sauce – if you don’t have BBQ sauce, ketchup could be an emergency substitute
• 1tbsp paprika
• Salt and pepper

Method:

1. Sieve the flour and salt, then add the water until it becomes a dough. Work the dough for ten mins and then roll into eight tortillas. Put these aside to cook later.
2. Heat oil in the pan and cook the garlic and chilli for 3 mins.
3. Drain the beans and add them to the garlic and chillies. Then add the BBQ sauce and paprika and leave on a low to medium heat to warm through.
4. As the beans are warming, cook the tortillas for 30 seconds per a side.
5. Once the beans are warmed through and the tortillas cooked, take them off the heat to assemble. Season the beans with the salt and pepper to taste.
6. You can add condiments of your choosing; I used guacamole and salsa, but you could add what you like. Some fresh chopped tomatoes or other salad vegetables would work. Serve with a side of rice or salad of your choice.

Alice Nott

Sources:

https://veggiedesserts.com/red-lentil-dahl/?fbclid=IwAR23dX3BzkxRErzJJUF6WLZXnpuEwrIHkmyuvgoBMDisSf2fJHVSzYdK8_o

Featured image courtesy of Damian Siwiaszczyk via Flickr. Image license found here. 

Article image 1 courtesy of Marco Verch via Flickr. Image license found here. 

Article image 2 courtesy of thebittenword.com via Flickr. Image license found here. 

Article image 3 courtesy of jeffreyw via Flickr. Image license found here.