Veganuary top tips and must-try vegan dishes that might surprise you
Prashad Head Chef Minal Patel shares her favourite vegan dishes and her top tips for Veganuary. ..
Happy Veganuary everyone! Now in our books, vegan food isn’t just for January. We cook up seriously tasty veggie and vegan food all year round, and have done since way before it became all trendy. But we still love ‘Veganuary’! It’s a great chance for more people to give plant-based cooking a try. Whether you’re a full- time carnivore, flexitarian, veggie, or vegan, I can promise you will fall in love with our vegan-friendly dishes.
Our top vegan dishes
Both mine and Bobby’s favourite dishes from the whole Prashad menu just happen to be vegan. But it’s not really that surprising, as around 80% of our menu is vegan (and not just for Veganuary), and Gujarati cuisine tends to use plenty of vegan ingredients. It’s hard to pick just one dish, but I just can’t resist Pani Puri; a popular Indian street food dish made from fried puris that are cracked and stuffed with tasty fillings. If I’m craving something sweet, I reach for Gujlawa (my GUJarati twist on BakLAWA). You can always rely on Bobby to go for Chevti Dhal and rice, for a protein packed, feel- good meal, but he’s got a soft spot for our Chowpatti Bhel too.
The vegan tasting menu
Developing the seven-course tasting menu is one of my proudest achievements at Prashad. We’ve always wanted to run a restaurant that’s welcoming to customers with different dietary requirements, so it was key to me that we could offer a vegan tasting menu that’s just as good as the vegetarian one. Whilst vegan food is improving across the board, many restaurants offering tasting menus are still letting down the veggies and vegans, with random vegetables stuck on a plate in place of meat.
I put the same time and care into developing the vegan version as the classic tasting menu, and it goes down a storm every time. My favourite dish is the second course, featuring Pattra. For anyone who doesn’t recognise the name, it’s a Prashad favourite that’s been on our menu since our deli days. I hand-roll Colocasia leaves with a beautifully sweet, spicy and tangy filling. Cooking it brings me so much joy – I’ve put my fine dining spin on traditional Indian cooking methods, and fused a complex mix of spices for a multi-layered taste explosion. And it looks great on the plate too. Fancy giving it a try? Just book a table as normal and let your waiter know you’d like the Vegan Tasting Menu (no need to pre-order).
Left: The second course from the vegan tasting menu
Right: Prashad’s Thali, which also comes in a vegan version
Try the vegan Thali
Our Thali is another show-stopper, and we’re always happy to whip up a vegan version for our customers. It’s actually one of our most popular vegan offerings. It’s a great way to try a range of different plant-based dishes and discover your favourites, with the chef’s pick of five curries, starters, rice, bread, and dessert all on one beautiful tray. Good gluten-free vegan food can be hard to find, but we do our best to make our menu as inclusive as possible, so just ask and we’ll swap out the items that contain gluten (like some of the starters) for gluten free options.
Meet the surprisingly vegan dishes on our menu
Flicking through our menu, you might be surprised to find out certain dishes are vegan. It’s good news for any of you that love Pethis as much as I do: the original family recipe we used wasn’t vegan, but I played around to make it plant-based and keep the same fluffy texture inside, the crisp outside, and the bold flavours that our regulars know and love. Another must try dish this Veganuary is our Masala Dosa. Yep, those huge pancakes. the warming spiced curry, and side of coconut chutney are all suitable for vegans, so crack on (or should we say in?) and enjoy.
Top tips for cooking great vegetarian and vegan food at home
There are so many great swaps out there that it’s becoming easier and easier to turn a non-vegan recipe vegan, with a few easy tweaks. We tend to avoid ‘fake meat’ at home, and in the Prashad kitchen, because there are so many great ingredients out there that we prefer to cook with:
– Paneer is one of our top veggie picks for flavour and texture, and we use tofu for our vegan friends.
– Cauliflower is super versatile, and marinades well, picking up plenty of flavour. Pan-fry it, roast it, cook it whole or slice it up… cook it however you fancy.
– Using swedes in your cooking is a really affordable way to bulk out dishes, and it’s got a great flavour to it.
– Mushrooms bring that lovely umami flavour to veggie dishes. At home, I’ll often whip up a batch of garlic mushrooms, with a little cumin and coriander too.
Dairy can be a difficult one for people to give up but it’s easier than ever to find tasty alternatives.
– Oat milk is my go-to plant-based milk, especially for Ginger Chai – a hot drink that’s very popular with the whole Prashad team, and tastes just like ginger biscuits dipped in tea. The oat milk makes it extra creamy, and it’s perfect to warm you up on colder days.
– Coconut is one of my favourite vegan ingredients to cook with. I use the milk to create a vegan yoghurt, that makes a great addition to hot dishes if you’re not a big spice lover. Coconut makes for a superb chutney too!
If you need some plant-based recipes ideas, our Prashad vegetarian cook books are packed with them. And if you go a little heavy on the veggies this Veganuary, a pinch of Asafoetida in your dishes will help you digest all that fibre in your lovely tummy, as well as adding a bold flavour to your dish, not too different to garlic and onion.
We’re always developing new dishes and twists on the menu, so if there’s something you’d like to see, head to our Instagram or Facebook pages and let us know. We always get requests for vegan naan bread, but I’m still working on creating one that’s as good as our original, so whilst I keep tinkering, I’d recommend our vegan chapatis to pair with your feast.
Minal x