Modest Meals

RECIPES & IMAGES AMBER BREMNER

Budget friendly plant-based meals lean heavily on whole foods – vegetables, legumes, grains, nuts, seeds and spices.

In this edition I share my recipe for a vegan kedgeree of spiced basmati rice and lentils with tender chunks of marinated jackfruit (a budget and ocean friendly stand in for smoked fish) and baked kūmara with make ahead toppings – perfect to throw together with some salad greens for a quick, healthy meal. Canned legumes are convenient, but swapping them out for freshly cooked is a great money saver if you have time.

BAKED KŪMARA WITH CRUNCHY CHICKPEAS AND PARSLEY PESTO

Baked low and slow, crunchy chickpeas are one of my go-to components for fast one-bowl meals, salad toppers, snacks or packed lunches. It’s a great idea to double the batch to use across a few meals – once cool they store well in a jar for a week or so before they lose their crunch. Parsley and sunflower seed pesto is another favourite that’s especially budget friendly if you have parsley in the garden, and also keeps well for about a week. Use both as a topping for tender, baked kūmara to create a simple nutritious meal.

CRUNCHY CHICKPEAS

1 can chickpeas (400g), or approx. ¾ cup freshly cooked 1 tsp oil 2 tsp paprika salt

PARSLEY AND SUNFLOWER SEED PESTO

½ cup sunflower seeds large handful of parsley (about 50g) 1 clove garlic, peeled and roughly chopped ¼ cup olive oil (or a neutral flavoured cooking oil) 2 tbsp lemon juice 1 tbsp water ½ tsp salt ¼ tsp chilli flakes

KŪMARA

1–2 small kūmara per person, washed and halved lengthways cooking oil salt

TO SERVE

A handful of salad greens per person

Preheat oven to 175°C (or 160°C fan bake). Drain and rinse chickpeas before tipping them onto a clean tea towel to dry them off. Transfer the chickpeas to a baking dish, drizzle over the olive oil then use your hands to rub the oil over the chickpeas. Season with paprika and salt (or your choice of seasoning). Bake for 50–60 minutes, giving them a shake every 20 minutes or so, until golden and crunchy. The chickpeas will also crisp up a little more once cooled. Store in a jar. For the pesto, start by toasting the sunflower seeds in a dry frypan until golden brown. Tip onto a plate to cool, then blitz all pesto ingredients in a food processor to combine. Adjust the consistency with a little more water if needed, keeping in mind the pesto will thicken a bit on standing. Store in a jar in the fridge. For the kūmara, arrange halved kūmara on a baking tray and rub all over with a little cooking oil. Season with salt, then bake at 235°C (or 220°C fanbake) for 20–30 minutes, until tender, blistered and a bit charry around the edges. To serve, arrange baked kūmara on a bed of salad greens and top with dollops of parsley pesto and plenty of crunchy chickpeas. A squeeze of lemon doesn’t go amiss.

JACKFRUIT AND LENTIL KEDGEREE

Popular in many parts of Asia, unripe jackfruit has a fibrous texture that lends itself well to curry and even plant-based twists on ‘pulled pork’. Here I’ve used unripe, canned jackfruit, marinated and baked to create tender, moist, slightly oily chunks of jackfruit with a sharp, salty and pleasingly smoky flavour. Does it taste like fish? No. But its texture, flavour and even colour is a great stand in for smoked fish, and it also works well in salads. Look for young/unripe jackfruit in water or brine in the canned fruit section at the supermarket. I like to bump up the smoky flavour with a little liquid smoke, but if you don’t have it you can just use more smoked paprika. Use your choice of mild, medium or hot curry powder to suit your taste for spice.

MARINATED JACKFRUIT

1 can unripe jackfruit (565g), drained (available at Vetro and Herbal Dispensary) 2 tbsp olive oil 1 tbsp lemon juice 1 tsp brown sugar ½ tsp smoked paprika ¼ tsp liquid smoke - available at Vetro (optional – if omitting, use 1 tsp smoked paprika) ¼ tsp salt ¼ tsp ground pepper

KEDGEREE

1 cup basmati rice 1 tbsp cooking oil 1 onion, finely chopped 1 clove garlic, finely grated/chopped thumb-sized piece of fresh ginger, finely grated/chopped 1 tbsp curry powder ¼ tsp salt 2¼ cups boiling water 1 can brown or black lentils (400g), drained and rinsed, or about ¾ cup freshly cooked

TO SERVE

Assorted sliced vegetables: tomatoes, cucumber, carrot or celery Lemon wedges for squeezing Handful of chopped coriander or parsley

Chop each chunk of jackfruit into 3–4 smaller pieces and discard any seeds you come across. Combine marinade ingredients and pour over the jackfruit. Use your hands to rub it in and break up the jackfruit a little. Set aside to marinate for around 30 minutes if you can. While the jackfruit is marinating, rinse the rice and set aside to soak in plenty of cold water for 15–30 minutes.

Bake the jackfruit at 235°C (or 220°C fan bake) for 20–25 minutes, giving it a stir halfway through cooking, then remove from the oven. You're looking for it to have dried out a little, but still be juicy and with a little colour around the edges. To make the kedgeree, heat the oil in a saucepan that has a lid, over medium heat. Add the onion, garlic and ginger and cook for a few minutes, until softened and fragrant. Add the curry powder and salt, and cook for another minute or two.

Rinse and drain the rice, then add it to the saucepan with 2¼ cups of boiling water. Stir to combine, then cover with a lid. Turn the heat down to low and cook for 15 minutes, until the rice is cooked and the liquid has evaporated. Turn off the heat and let the rice sit, with the lid on, for another 5–10 minutes. Remove the lid and use a fork to gently fluff up the rice. Add the jackfruit and lentils to the rice and gently stir to combine. The heat of the rice will warm the jackfruit and lentils through. Assemble kedgeree on a big serving platter, or individual plates, by spreading out the spiced rice and topping it with coriander or parsley, lemon wedges, and sliced fresh vegetables to complete the meal.

Amber Bremner Quite Good Food www.quitegoodfood.co.nz

Amber Bremner is the author of popular plant based food blog Quite Good Food. A champion for cooking and eating food that makes you feel good, she believes small changes in the way we approach food have the power to make a difference.