Red Chile Rice with Black Beans and Dried Tofu
If you're a vegetarian looking for Thanksgiving meal ideas or a food blogger interested in improving your photography skills, check out the end of this post for some exciting happenings.
I don't have a lot to say about today's recipe other than that it's an adaptation of a Rick Bayless recipe from a book I checked out from the library and that I bought a jar of ancho chile powder just to make it. The original recipe included chicken, white rice, and 2 tablespoons of oil, but I managed to leave out all of those ingredients and come up with a recipe that is, I think, very faithful to the original. That's mostly because it's a very simply seasoned recipe; the aforementioned ancho chile powder is the predominant flavor in the dish. Fortunately, ancho is a mild chile, so this dish isn't rip-your-tongue-out hot. If there's a problem with the dish it's that it is sort of a one-note performance--I missed the complexity that a little cumin or oregano might have offered. Fortunately, adding salsa at the table really pulled the dish together. Don't omit the salsa!
We made a simple meal of this with a nice, big salad. The four servings that it makes are fairly large, but for more people or bigger appetites, add another vegetable or side dish.
Red Chile Rice with Black Beans and Dried Tofu
(printer-friendly version)
To replace the chicken in the original recipe, I used the kind of dried bean curd found in Asian markets, but you can use TVP, smoked tofu, or additional beans instead. Rehydrate TVP chunks the same way as dried tofu; skip the soaking for smoked tofu or beans and add them to the rice along with the black beans. Add additional chile powder to taste.
1 medium onion, chopped
1 cup long-grain brown rice
4 cloves garlic, chopped
1 1/2 teaspoons ancho chile powder (or other mild chile powder)
1 teaspoon smoked Spanish paprika
3 cups vegetable broth (I used No-Chicken)
1/2 teaspoon salt (or to taste)
2 ounces dried tofu or TVP
1 cup vegetable broth plus sufficient water to cover
1 teaspoon ancho chile powder
1 15-ounce can black beans (or 1 1/2 cups), rinsed and drained well
1/4 cup chopped green onions
2 cups baby spinach (optional)
about 1/2 cup salsa, to serve
Lightly spray the bottom of a heavy saucepan with canola or olive oil. Heat on medium-high and add the onion. Cook, stirring, until the onion becomes translucent. Add the rice and cook for another minute or two. Add the garlic, 1 1/2 teaspoons of chile powder, and smoked paprika and cook for 1 more minute.
Add the broth and salt (use less if the broth is salted) and stir well. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat to low, and cover the pot. Cook for 25 minutes.
While the rice is cooking, prepare the dried tofu or TVP if you're using it. Place the dried tofu in a microwaveable bowl and add the 1 cup vegetable broth. Add enough water to cover the tofu, and stir in 1 teaspoon of chile powder. Microwave on high power until broth boils. Stir and allow to stand until dried tofu is tender. (If you're using large chunks of TVP, additional cooking time may be necessary.) Alternately, bring to a boil on the stove for 1 minute and let stand until tender.
After the rice has cooked for 25 minutes, drain the dried tofu and add it and the black beans to the rice. Do not stir--just put them on top of the rice. Re-cover the pot and continue to cook until rice is tender and liquid is mostly absorbed, about 25 minutes. Add the green onions and spinach, re-cover, and cook for 5 more minutes. Stir well to combine and serve with salsa at the table.
Makes 4 servings. Each (excluding salsa) contains 379 Calories (kcal); 2g Total Fat; (4% calories from fat); 24g Protein; 69g Carbohydrate; 0mg Cholesterol; 729mg Sodium; 15g Fiber.
A couple of announcements:
If you're looking for resources for your vegan Thanksgiving meal, Nava Atlas has compiled a lot of her favorite recipes on Vegetarian Kitchen's Thanksgiving page; if you want even more delicious ideas, you can download her e-book called Nava's Thanksgiving Favorites for just $8.50. This 40-recipe e-book not only spares many a turkey, but Nava also donates a generous amount of the profits to an anti-hunger organization called Share Our Strength, which is especially dedicated to ending childhood hunger in the U.S. At a time of year when many of us bask in abundance, it's good to remember that many are not so lucky.
If you're a food blogger looking for tips on taking better photos, Nika's Culinaria is posting a series of posts called Food Photography 101 "to guide interested budding food photographers through the technical and creative barriers they may be experiencing." Nika will offer instruction and assign homework, and she's set up a newsletter, forum, and Flickr group to facilitate class feedback and discussion. It's sure to be a fun and informative series. Look for her posts tagged Food Photo 101.
I don't have a lot to say about today's recipe other than that it's an adaptation of a Rick Bayless recipe from a book I checked out from the library and that I bought a jar of ancho chile powder just to make it. The original recipe included chicken, white rice, and 2 tablespoons of oil, but I managed to leave out all of those ingredients and come up with a recipe that is, I think, very faithful to the original. That's mostly because it's a very simply seasoned recipe; the aforementioned ancho chile powder is the predominant flavor in the dish. Fortunately, ancho is a mild chile, so this dish isn't rip-your-tongue-out hot. If there's a problem with the dish it's that it is sort of a one-note performance--I missed the complexity that a little cumin or oregano might have offered. Fortunately, adding salsa at the table really pulled the dish together. Don't omit the salsa!
We made a simple meal of this with a nice, big salad. The four servings that it makes are fairly large, but for more people or bigger appetites, add another vegetable or side dish.
Red Chile Rice with Black Beans and Dried Tofu
(printer-friendly version)
To replace the chicken in the original recipe, I used the kind of dried bean curd found in Asian markets, but you can use TVP, smoked tofu, or additional beans instead. Rehydrate TVP chunks the same way as dried tofu; skip the soaking for smoked tofu or beans and add them to the rice along with the black beans. Add additional chile powder to taste.
1 medium onion, chopped
1 cup long-grain brown rice
4 cloves garlic, chopped
1 1/2 teaspoons ancho chile powder (or other mild chile powder)
1 teaspoon smoked Spanish paprika
3 cups vegetable broth (I used No-Chicken)
1/2 teaspoon salt (or to taste)
2 ounces dried tofu or TVP
1 cup vegetable broth plus sufficient water to cover
1 teaspoon ancho chile powder
1 15-ounce can black beans (or 1 1/2 cups), rinsed and drained well
1/4 cup chopped green onions
2 cups baby spinach (optional)
about 1/2 cup salsa, to serve
Lightly spray the bottom of a heavy saucepan with canola or olive oil. Heat on medium-high and add the onion. Cook, stirring, until the onion becomes translucent. Add the rice and cook for another minute or two. Add the garlic, 1 1/2 teaspoons of chile powder, and smoked paprika and cook for 1 more minute.
Add the broth and salt (use less if the broth is salted) and stir well. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat to low, and cover the pot. Cook for 25 minutes.
While the rice is cooking, prepare the dried tofu or TVP if you're using it. Place the dried tofu in a microwaveable bowl and add the 1 cup vegetable broth. Add enough water to cover the tofu, and stir in 1 teaspoon of chile powder. Microwave on high power until broth boils. Stir and allow to stand until dried tofu is tender. (If you're using large chunks of TVP, additional cooking time may be necessary.) Alternately, bring to a boil on the stove for 1 minute and let stand until tender.
After the rice has cooked for 25 minutes, drain the dried tofu and add it and the black beans to the rice. Do not stir--just put them on top of the rice. Re-cover the pot and continue to cook until rice is tender and liquid is mostly absorbed, about 25 minutes. Add the green onions and spinach, re-cover, and cook for 5 more minutes. Stir well to combine and serve with salsa at the table.
Makes 4 servings. Each (excluding salsa) contains 379 Calories (kcal); 2g Total Fat; (4% calories from fat); 24g Protein; 69g Carbohydrate; 0mg Cholesterol; 729mg Sodium; 15g Fiber.
A couple of announcements:
If you're looking for resources for your vegan Thanksgiving meal, Nava Atlas has compiled a lot of her favorite recipes on Vegetarian Kitchen's Thanksgiving page; if you want even more delicious ideas, you can download her e-book called Nava's Thanksgiving Favorites for just $8.50. This 40-recipe e-book not only spares many a turkey, but Nava also donates a generous amount of the profits to an anti-hunger organization called Share Our Strength, which is especially dedicated to ending childhood hunger in the U.S. At a time of year when many of us bask in abundance, it's good to remember that many are not so lucky.
If you're a food blogger looking for tips on taking better photos, Nika's Culinaria is posting a series of posts called Food Photography 101 "to guide interested budding food photographers through the technical and creative barriers they may be experiencing." Nika will offer instruction and assign homework, and she's set up a newsletter, forum, and Flickr group to facilitate class feedback and discussion. It's sure to be a fun and informative series. Look for her posts tagged Food Photo 101.
Tags: vegan recipes vegetarian cooking food fat-free
Labels: gluten-free, soy
posted by SusanV at 11:59 AM
10 Comments:
This just looks AMAZING!
Mmmm, this sounds so good! I have never heard of dried tofu, I will have to look for it now.
Let me say again, your pictures are always lovely, and this recipe sounds great. DH is my resident photographer (www.crossmarkdesign.com/photography); now if I could just get my food to look good we'd all be happy. :)
This looks wonderful! I think I'll try an all-bean version.
I've never used dried tofu before - I've used TSP and/or TVP, but that looks cool.
hmm, I've never had dried tofu before... sounds intriguing! This Red Chile Rice with Black Beans & Dried Tofu dish sounds terrific!!
And thank you so much for linking to Nava Atlas's Thanksgiving meal ideas/recipes!!
I love your blog Susan! very well-written, and the extra care yout ake in presenting your recipes, with the nutrition info shows how much you care for what you do!:)
I'll surely check out Nika's Culinaria..I need some photo tips:) thanks for sharing!
That sounds really, really good. And I'm happy it's not 'burn-your-tongue-off' spicey 'cause I wouldn't be able to handle it!
Thanks for posting the info about the photography blog. I could definitely use the help!
This sounds delicious...sometimes I forget how much I like rice and beans. It's so simple, that it tends to slip under the radar...thanks for another great recipe.
It may interest you to know (or perhaps not) that a better translation of the "dried tofu" you are using is "vegetarian meat" - in Vietnamese, it's Thit (meat) chay (vegetarian), and in Chinese at the top it says "素肉 (su rou)", literally vegetable meat. They make a wide variety of the stuff in Asia, often with quite interesting textures.
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