This past weekend the boy, his sister who is visiting from Hungary, and I went camping on Franklin Island in the Georgian Bay area. It was absolutely beautiful; super sunny, sparkling water, tons tons tons of frogs. It was supposed to be a paddling trip, but I spent most of is lying in the sun, drinking cold tea (much better than algae-flavoured lake water), reading and eating. Oh my god, I ate so so much that I actually couldn't have paddled. We did go on a very nice little trek before the eating began; there was a beautiful little washed out beach, lots of beautiful lake and much general georgian bay gorgeousness.
For food, we had:
- trail mix (naturally)
- PC brand vegetarian chili (I was very perturbed and disappointed to realize that it had no vitamin C in it, despite being a tomato base and having veggies in it...maybe because of the cooking process? unfortunate as I was counting on it to ward off the scurvy)
- bbq beans
- sesame fudge
- cookie balls
- brown rice tortillas (to go with the chili and beans)
- salsa and blue tortilla chips
- cereal and soy milk (for the boy)
- instant oatmeal
- veggie soup with lentils, and
- marinated tvp on rice noodles (made the marinade - sesame oil, tamari, rice vinegar - at home)
Anyway, this trip reminded me of my love for TVP. TVP, or textured vegetable/soy protein, is defatted soy flour, a by-product of making soybean oil. It's super cheap, filling, delicious, high in protein and low in fat and carbs. It has a great texture and soaks up flavour from what it's cooked with, making it an adaptable ingredient for a wide range of dishes; I've had it in everything from tacos and chili, to pasta sauce and king's cafe's kung pao soy chicken.
Peanut-ginger TVP stirfry
TVP slices or chunks (see note on how to cook below)
peanut-ginger marinade
kale, chopped
chinese eggplant, sliced
peanut-ginger marinade
peanut butter (or almond butter)
tamari sauce
rice vinegar
ginger, chopped
water, as needed
Let TVP marinate 1-2 hours. Put marinated TVP in frying pan, saving marinade for later. Cook on med heat with eggplant, until eggplate sauted. Add kale, cover and let steam cook kale. Toss ingredients with leftover marinade. Serve on rice, rice noodles, or on its own.
How to cook TVP
put dry TVP in a bowl, cover with boiling water
cover and let sit 10-15 min
TVP is pretty much tasteless on its own; adding flavouring is a must. Luckily TVP is pretty much a sponge and as such is super easy to marinade. If you're adding to a chili or soup, add the dry TVP directly to the dish, so that it'll absorb the flavour of the dish while reconstituting. If you're adding the TVP to a stirfry, and have rehydrated it in boiling water, then I find it's best if you squeeze out the water from the reconstituted TVP and then cover them in the marinade.
Comments
THANKS
xo
It all looks so good, I just wanted to double check before I made it for myself! I'm glad you enjoyed your trip and I've been loving your blog.... Keep it up!