This vegetarian sloppy joe recipe is one mess you won’t mind making.
Artwork by Ed Gloor
Welcome to my first in a series of “Home Cooking” articles, each featuring a specific ingredient and a recipe with a tasty way to stimulate your senses. This week we will explore two of the main myths about soy meat, and I’ll tell you the truth about how to make it taste delicious.
Soy meat or meat analogue (analogue means something the same as or similar to) is commonly made of soy protein concentrate, wheat gluten, and water, with various flavorings and additional ingredients varying by brand and product. The type of soy meat I use in the following recipe is Morningstar Farms Meal Starters Grillers Recipe Crumbles (available at all localKingSoopersand Safeways, $4.99 for a 12oz package). This week, I’ve included a recipe I used for vegetarian soy sloppy joes.
MYTH NUMBER ONE:
A vegetarian can’t get enough protein from soy meat and vegetarian foods to sustain a healthy lifestyle.
This is false. Although vegetable-based products don’t have much protein by themselves, there are several other ways to get enough protein. Dairy products such as low-fat milk, yoghurt, and cottage cheese are chock-full of protein, not to mention Vitamins C and D, plus plenty of calcium. Nuts and legumes (beans) are also excellent vegetarian sources of protein, essential fatty oils, and fiber.
MYTH NUMBER TWO:
Soy meat is gross. It tastes weird and feels funny.
False, again. Soy meat, when cooked and seasoned properly, can be indistinguishable from ground beef or turkey in any recipe. Its texture is rather like meatloaf: soft, like ground meat, and it takes on the flavor of the sauce and spices used to cook it. Add vegetables for nutrients and crunch, and you can have a great meal over pasta or rice, or even on buns, like the following recipe.
Photo by Aviva Getschel
Sloppy Joes
Ingredients:
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 large onion, diced
1 small red pepper, trimmed, seeded and diced
4 large cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon dried marjoram (I used Italian seasoning, which includes marjoram)
2 pounds ground beef (chuck preferred) – I used soy crumble
3 eight ounce cans tomato sauce (I substituted 1 of the cans for 1 cup ketchup)
3 tablespoons sugar (I would use 2)
3 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce (add more if too sweet)
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1 1/2 tablespoons yellow mustard
1/2 to 3/4 cup water
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
6 hamburger buns, toasted
Directions:
In a large sauté pan, heat the oil over medium-low heat, add the onions, sauté for five minutes. Add the peppers and cook for five minutes more. Stir in the garlic and marjoram, continue to cook for two minutes more. Transfer vegetables to a bowl with a slotted spoon and reserve. Add the meat to the pan, increase the heat to medium, and cook the meat, breaking it up with a wooden spoon, until it just loses its color, about five minutes. Or, heat thawed soy meat thoroughly, about five minutes. Pour excess fat from the pan and discard. Combine the meat and vegetables in the pan along with the tomato sauce, sugar, Worcestershire, vinegar, mustard, and 1/2 cup of the water. Bring the mixture to a simmer, cover, and cook for 20 minutes. (If the mixture appears to be too dry add the additional water.) Season with the salt and pepper to taste. When ready to serve divide the mixture evenly between the buns. Serve.
Now that you’ve been initiated into the world of soy meat, I hope you continue to use and enjoy this mouthwatering vegetarian substitute. Next week, check in for two new ways to enjoy that summer squash, zucchini.
