Category: Blog

Prashad’s favourite low-calorie vegan dishes

Have you discovered a love for plant-based foods this Veganuary? Over 500,000 people from 178 countries around the world have participated in Veganuary since 2014, and the numbers keep going up.

At Prashad, we’re proud to have been far ahead of the vegan boom, serving a collection of mouth-watering vegetarian and vegan dishes inspired by traditional Gujarati cuisine since we began all those years ago.

If you’re looking to keep up your vegan efforts through February and beyond, we’ve got a few suggestions for bringing the flavours of Gujarat into your own home with our tried, tested and much-loved low-calorie vegan recipes!

Hungry for more? Our cookbooks are absolutely packed with veggie/vegan dishes – some are fantastic healthy options, while others are far more indulgent…

For starters: Bafela Patra

A popular choice from our days as a deli, our bafela patra always had customers coming back for more.

 A delicious mix of spices wrapped in colocasia leaves, patra is traditionally served at parties or family gatherings, but in recent years we’ve seen people start to use it as a healthy, vegan addition to a cooked breakfast.

This recipe is vegan, free from nuts and can serve up to four people.

Notes from Minal: If you want to be extra healthy, I’d recommend being a little more conservative on the salt and to consider using olive oil instead.

To create the masala, you will need:

• 8 medium patra (colocasia) leaves
• 2-4 fresh green chillies (trimmed but not de-seeded)
• 2-4 cloves of garlic
• 3cm piece of root ginger (peeled and roughly chopped)
• 1 pinch of salt

To create the paste, you will need:

• 50g dried tamarind (from a block
• 150ml boiling water
• 200g chickpea flour
• 50 chapatti rice
• 50g rice flour
• 1½tsp salt
• 40g jaggery (finely chopped)
• 1½tsp carom seeds
• 1½tsp turmeric
• 2-4tsp ground coriander
• 1tbsp garam masala
• 5tsp sesame seeds (4tsp will be used as garnish)
• 60ml sunflower oil
• 200ml warm water

Notes from Minal: If you can’t find any jaggery, I suggest using demerara or soft brown sugar.

Method:

Wash your Patra leaves and place them vein-side up on a chopping board. Using a small knife, carefully slice off the thick central vein.

Crush your chillies, garlic and ginger together with a pinch of salt with a pestle and mortar (or in a blender) to make a fine masala paste.

Soak the dried tamarind in boiling water for five minutes, then pulp with your fingers and a sieve, draining the tamarind water into a small bowl. Squeeze the pulp to get as much flavour as possible!

Sieve your flours together and mix in your masala paste, salt, jaggery, carom seeds, spices, one teaspoon of sesame seeds and your oil. Mix well to make sure all the masala is worked in.

Pour your tamarind water and warm water into the mixture and mix to form a sticky but workable paste, before leaving the mixture to rest for 10 minutes.

Take one of your larger Patra leaves and place it vein-side facing up on a chopping board or your work surface, leaf tip furthest from you. Gently spread the leaf with enough paste to cover with a 5mm layer.

Take a second leaf and lay it on top of the first, again vein-side up. Spread the surface of the new leaf with paste.

Carefully lift the sides of the leaf stack and fold about 4cm in towards the centre, keeping the sides straight.

Spread a layer of paste over the leaf sections that you have just folded in (the new top surface). Then gently lift the closest end of the Patra leaf and fold about 4cm onto itself, then fold again and continue to fold away from you until you reach the tip.

Repeat the pasting, layering, folding and rolling three more times to use up the remaining six leaves, giving you four Patra rolls.

To cook, put a flat-based heatproof bowl in a large, deep pan. Pour water into the pan until it reaches most of the way up the bowl, leaving about 2cm of the rim sticking about the water. Place your pan over a high heat.

Lightly oil a medium plate with a 2cm rim or lip that will fit in the pan (the rim will give you something to grip when you remove it from the steamer and help to prevent the Patra falling into the water).

Put the four rolls, with the seam of the rolls facing down, on the oiled plate and gently place it on top of the bowl in the pan. Put the lid on the pan, wrap the rim of the lid with a cloth or tea towel (if it is a flat lid) and put weight on the lid to secure it.

Reduce the heat to medium and then leave to steam for 35 minutes, turning the rolls after 15 minutes. To check they are fully cooked, insert a sharp knife into the middle of a roll. The knife should come out clean.

Carefully remove the plate from the steamer and leave to cool for five minutes. Put the Patra on a chopping board and use a sharp knife to slice each one into four even slices.

Drizzle with a little sunflower oil (optional), sprinkle with sesame seeds to garnish and serve warm – ideally with Kopru dip and a cup of hot Adhu Vari Chai (see our cookbook).

For the main: Wattana and Flower

Wattana and flower is a Prashad family favourite. This pea and cauliflower curry appeared on Prashad’s very first restaurant menu, and seven years on, it’s still a favourite among our customers.

This recipe is vegan, free from wheat, nuts, onion and garlic, and can serve up to four people.

You will need:

• 3-6 fresh green chillies (trimmed but not deseeded)
• 5cm piece of root ginger (peeled and roughly chopped)
• 1 pinch of salt
• 100ml sunflower oil
• 1tsp cumin seeds
• 1tsp brown mustard seeds
• 1/2 tsp asafoetida
• 1 medium cauliflower (cut into 1cm pieces)
• 1tbsp turmeric
• 1tbsp ground coriander
• 1½tsp of salt
• 1tbsp sugar
• 75ml boiling water (if using fresh peas)
• 400g peas (fresh or frozen)
• 1 medium tomato (finely chopped)
• 1 large handful fresh coriander (roughly chopped)

Notes from Minal: If you’re using frozen peas, I recommend using petits pois – they are smaller and sweeter than ordinary garden peas and really enhance the dish.

Method:

Crush your chillies and ginger together with pinch of salt with pestle and mortar (or in a blender) to make a fine masala paste.

Heat the oil in a large, thick-based frying pan over a medium heat for 30 seconds before adding the cumin and mustard seeds.

When the mustard seeds begin to pop, reduce the heat to low and stir in the asafoetida – heating the spices in this order is essential to the flavour.

Using a wooden (or heatproof plastic) spoon, stir in the cauliflower and return the heat to medium. Stir in the masala paste, turmeric, ground coriander, salt and sugar (and add the boiling water if you are using fresh peas).

Cover the pan and leave to cook for 8-10 minutes, stirring every few minutes.

Stir in the peas and tomato, then recover and cook for a further 3-5 minutes before removing from the heat.

Sprinkle with your chopped coriander and leave to rest for five minutes – this allows the flavours to develop.

For the accompaniment: Mung Dhal Kichdi

Mung dhal kichdi is a warming yellow lentil rice traditionally served to those feeling a little under the weather – but it can be enjoyed by all! A true comfort food, this dish is both delicious and high in protein.

This recipe is vegan, free from wheat and nuts, and can serve up to four people.

You will need:

• 175g mung dhal (yellow split mung beans)
• 175g basmati rice
• 75ml sunflower oil
• 2-4 cloves of garlic (finely chopped)
• 1¼tsp of salt
• ¼tsp turmeric
• 900ml boiling water

Method:

Mix the dhal and rice together, then rinse in warm water, running your fingers gently through to help clean them (and to check for small stones). Drain and repeat – two washes will remove enough starch to make the cooked rice fluffy and loose.

Heat the oil in a large pan over a medium heat for a minute. Add the dhal and rice and fry together for another minute, gently stirring to coat them in the oil.

Stir in the garlic, salt and turmeric and fry for another minute, then pour in the boiling water – it’s essential the water is boiling as it helps the rice to cook quickly and improves the texture.

Bring to the boil, then simmer uncovered over a medium heat for 10-12 minutes until almost all the water has cooked off and it starts to look dry on top.

Put a large square of aluminium foil on top of the rice and dhal, tucking it in at the edges of the pan to create a seal – keeping the rice moist and fluffy while it steams.

Cover the lid, reduce the heat to the lowest setting and leave to cook for 7-8 minutes. Then remove from the heat and set aside to rest for at least 5 minutes.

When you remove the foil, everything should be perfectly cooked. Gently run a spoon through it to loosen, taking care not to break the rice grains, then serve straight away.

Don’t forget to share your cookery creations with us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram – we’d love to see what you’ve made. Best of luck to all of those looking to extend their vegan diets beyond Veganuary, or even those just looking to reduce their meat-eating habits with some healthy veggie dishes!