Vegetarian recipes with dried soya mince wanted!
My boyfriend is a vegetarian and so I bought a load of dried soya mince to help me make some low-cost, veggie-friendly meals.
So far I've come up with a chilli, bolognaise sauce and Mexican taco filling. Other than that I just stick it in any ol' sauce to give it some bulk.
Do any of you have any other soya mince recipes? Is there any other way of cooking it or is it just for adding to sauces? (Please keep in mind that it's the dried stuff!)
Thanks!
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The short answer: once you reconstitute it, soya mince can be substituted in any recipe that calls for ground beef. You'll probably have to kick up the spicing a bit or add more oil, and as you've discovered it doesn't have the cohesive properties of beef. Sauces tend to cover nicely for flavor changes, so make good friends with sauce. ;) One thing to think about - too high a % of soy in the diet probably isn't a good idea due to phytoestrogens and other fun things. It's easy for vegetarians to eat a rather frightening amount of soy, just because it's so ubiquitous. Make sure you're substituting non-soy protein sources (eggs, dairy, other beans) when possible.
Apr 5, 2009. 1:36 PMNobodyInParticular
says:
I had not heard of soya mince before, so I looked up the nutrition facts for a couple different brands.
"Soya mince" does sound like one might pay more for it than the $1.89/lb (2.81 GBP/kg) that I pay for textured vegetable protein chunks. But as far as I can tell, unflavored soya mince is nutritionally identical to TVP.
It is not a wonderful source of nutrition in itself (unless you are a body-builder who needs a lot of protein) but if properly seasoned, it is a good way to feel full and satisfied, thus avoiding excess fat, calories, and junk food in general.
I would rehydrate it with a savory sauce and use it just like hamburger. (I mentioned some good savory foods over here.) Try looking up both hamburger recipes and TVP recipes; adjust the former using some tips mentioned in the latter.
"Soya mince" does sound like one might pay more for it than the $1.89/lb (2.81 GBP/kg) that I pay for textured vegetable protein chunks. But as far as I can tell, unflavored soya mince is nutritionally identical to TVP.
It is not a wonderful source of nutrition in itself (unless you are a body-builder who needs a lot of protein) but if properly seasoned, it is a good way to feel full and satisfied, thus avoiding excess fat, calories, and junk food in general.
I would rehydrate it with a savory sauce and use it just like hamburger. (I mentioned some good savory foods over here.) Try looking up both hamburger recipes and TVP recipes; adjust the former using some tips mentioned in the latter.
Apr 6, 2009. 7:03 AMCupcake_Weezie (author)
says:
The soya mince I bought here in the U.K. is cheaper than Quorn or other TVP's. That's why it appealed so much. I'd love to try doing burgers but I'd need something to bind it together. I thought egg might do the trick but I don't want it to end up tasting like an omelette. I guess I just need to experiment a bit more!
Apr 6, 2009. 12:03 PMNobodyInParticular
says:
If you just use the white of the egg or you spice it up a bit with onion, garlic, and red pepper, it shouldn't taste too eggy. Egg seems to be the usual solution for vegetarian TVP burgers. Using milk instead of water might help too. If your boyfriend were vegan, things would be a lot more complicated; wheat protein (gluten) seems to work, but it certainly does not have the texture of meat.
Quorn is probably more expensive than this soya mince because it is a fungus product, like yeast extract, with egg white added as a binder.
I'm curious- where you live, what is the unit price (cost divided by weight) of plain puffed soy (whatever it might be called)?
Quorn is probably more expensive than this soya mince because it is a fungus product, like yeast extract, with egg white added as a binder.
I'm curious- where you live, what is the unit price (cost divided by weight) of plain puffed soy (whatever it might be called)?
Apr 6, 2009. 3:57 PMCupcake_Weezie (author)
says:
Just the whites? I didn't think of that. I'll have to give it a go. Thanks! Oh crikey, I have no idea how much the soya mince cost me. I threw away the packaging when I put it in an air-tight jar. Next time I buy some I'll let you know. I remember it being a bargain though. You got plenty in the pack and because it's dried, it has a long shelf life.
Apr 6, 2009. 8:01 PMNobodyInParticular
says:
Thanks. Personally, I try to always look at the unit prices when I am shopping and ignore the price per package. (In my usual grocery stores, they are marked in tiny little numbers under the package price.) Occasionally one company or another will try to catch your attention by lowering the price of a package while surreptitiously raising the price per kilo (i.e. putting less product in the package).
Apr 7, 2009. 5:31 AMCupcake_Weezie (author)
says:
That's a great tip. I'll definitely keep that in mind from now on. Thanks!
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