Vegan dim sum - Recipe

GOING OUT FOR DIM SUM is at once a serene and clamorous affair. While you and your friends (doing dim sum necessitates a crowd) sit langourously sipping tea and nibbling on dumplings, the waitstaff rushes by in an intricate ballet. Pushing carts like street merchants, they offer their wares. After presenting the dish to the table and incrementing the growing bill, they drift away to the next table. Some-how, the juxtaposition of the serene and the frantic only enhances your feeling of calm, sitting in your little oasis with good company as the plates pile up.

At most restaurants that serve dim sum, it is especially important for vegetarians to bring along meat-eating friends--at least then someone will not go home hungry. Even dishes that seem like they might be veggie-friendly turn out not to be upon inspection. My last dim sum brunch at a restaurant was spent munching on serving after serving of steamed sesame greens while passing other dishes on to my omnivore compatriots.

Dim sum is based upon the Cantonese tradition of eating bite-sized morsels with tea. Families in China have long enjoyed holding yum cha, or tea lunches. The tea lunch is an opportunity for loved ones to share tea and conversation. The many Cantonese immigrants who settled in the San Francisco Bay Area in the late 19th century brought the custom to the US. Since that time, what was once a regional tradition has spread throughout both countries.

Variety is a hallmark of dim sum. Though disparity from location to location can be spectacular, generally dim sum revolves around items that can easily be served in bite-sized portions, and so conversation does not need to be interrupted. Dumplings, buns, and rolls play a big part. Items may be steamed, fried, baked, or boiled in soup.

Creating the stunning array of items that restaurants serve makes replication in the home seem impossible. Certainly making the nearly one hundred dishes listed in some restaurant menus is out of the question. However, working with a relatively small number of ingredients, it is possible to come up with a surprising array of dishes by shifting ingredients and cooking methods. Wontons boiled in soup can very easily become another dish when the filling ingredients are changed slightly and fried.

Some ingredients may be hard to come by. Fortunately, Asian markets have opened in most metropolitan areas in response to a growing Asian population. In some areas, these markets may be the only place to locate vegetarian oyster sauce, hoisin sauce, or eggless spring roll wrappers.

In working out these dishes, I did not try to be too authentically Chinese. Rather than try to faithfully replicate the dim sum as it is in China, I feel it is better to see dim sum as a global phenomenon and open to interpretation by every new cook who approaches it. This is especially true for vegetarians, who have not always found going out for dim sum very easy.

BAKED BARBECUE
"PORK" BUNS

(Makes 8-10 buns)

This is a basic pizza-like dough that
will make a sort of mini-calzone.
These buns are the linchpin to a
beautiful display.

1 Tablespoon ketchup
1 1/2 teaspoons vegan granulated sweetener
  (see page 8)
1 1/2 Tablespoons sherry or cider vinegar
3 Tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce
1/4 teaspoon ground doves
1 package seitan, cut into large chunks
2 Tablespoons peanut oil
2 cloves garlic, crushed or minced
1 red onion, finely chopped
1 Tablespoon low-sodium soy sauce

Dough for buns:
2 teaspoons dry yeast
2 Tablespoons vegan granulated sweetener
2/3 cup warm water
1/4 cup olive oil
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups flour

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Mix ketchup, 1 1/2 teaspoons
sweetener, sherry or vinegar, soy
sauce, and cloves together. Brush
over whole seitan pieces and then
roast for 20 minutes. While seitan
is roasting, make the dough for the
buns by mixing yeast with the 2
tablespoons sweetener and the
water, and allow the yeast to proof
(react) for 10 minutes. Add olive
oil, salt, and flour, and knead until
smooth. Put dough into an oiled
bowl and allow to rise until doubled
(about an hour or so).

When the seitan is done, put it
aside to cool. After the seitan has
cooled a bit, shred or cut the seitan
into fairly small chunks. Heat the
peanut oil in a wok or saute pan
and stir-fry the garlic and onion
until they soften a bit (3 minutes).
Add the seitan and cook 3 minutes.
Add the final soy sauce and cook for
1 minute more.

Reheat the oven to 400 degrees.
Roll out the dough and cut out circles
about 3 inches in diameter using
a wide-rimmed glass or cookie cutter.
Place 1 tablespoon of the filling
into each circle and seal the dough
around it. Lay buns, sealed-side
down, on a greased cookie sheet.
Brush the buns lightly with a little
water, and bake for 25 minutes or
until lightly browned.

Total calories per bun:  295 Fat: 11 grams
Carbohydrates: 35 grams  Protein: 13 grams
Sodium: 591 milligrams   Fiber: 1 gram
SPINACH EGGLESS
EGG ROLLS

(Makes 8-10 egg rolls)

You should be able to find egg-free rolls
in your local Asian foods store.

1 dove garlic, minced
3 green onions, minced
1 Tablespoon peanut oil
4 cups chopped spinach
1/4 cup textured vegetable protein (TVP),
  reconstituted in water, and drained
1 1/2 Tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce
1 1/2 teaspoons vegetarian oyster sauce
1/4 teaspoon white pepper
8-10 eggless eggroll wrappers
Oil for frying
Duck sauce (optional)

Stir-fry garlic and green onions in
peanut oil for 2 to 3 minutes. Add
spinach and reconstituted TVP.
Cook until spinach is wilted, 3 or 4
minutes. Combine soy sauce, vegetarian
oyster sauce, and white pepper
in a small bowl. Add to spinach and
mix through.

Make eggrolls by putting about
2 tablespoons of the filling a third of
the way from one end, folding in
the sides, and rolling the wrapper
up. Seal roll with a little bit of
water. Deep-fry rolls in 350 degree
oil for about 5 minutes on each
side. Serve with commercial duck
sauce, if desired.

Total calories per roll: 73   Fat: 2 grams
Carbohydrates: 11 grams       Protein: 2 grams
Sodium: 144 milligrams        Fiber: 1 gram
SAUTEED SESAME GREENS

(Makes 4 appetizer servings)

For this, any Chinese greens or
spinach will do.

3 doves garlic, chopped
2 teaspoons neutral-flavored cooking oil
4 cups well-washed greens
2 teaspoons low-sodium soy sauce or tamari
1 Tablespoon toasted sesame oil

Make sure that the greens have been
washed thoroughly or soaked in several
changes of water. Stir-fry garlic
in oil for 2 minutes. Add greens to
pan with water still clinging to them,
and stir-fry until wilted, 3 to 4 minutes.
Turn off the heat and toss with
sesame oil and soy sauce.

Total calories per serving: 64   Fat: 6 grams
Carbohydrates: 3 grams           Protein: 1 gram
Sodium: 134 milligrams           Fiber: 1 gram
SWEET POTATO
AND GINGER POTSTICKERS

(Makes 20 potstickers)

These potstickers, featured on page 11,
are quite spicy. To reduce the amount
of heat, lessen or leave out the chili
garlic paste.

5 dried Chinese black mushrooms
1 dove garlic, minced
3 green onions, minced
2 Tablespoons grated ginger
1-2 Tablespoons oil for frying
3 cups peeled and grated sweet potatoes
2 Tablespoons low-sodium say sauce
1 Tablespoon vegetarian oyster sauce
1 Tablespoon rice wine vinegar
2 teaspoons hoisin sauce
1/2 teaspoon chili garlic paste (optional) **
1/4 teaspoon white pepper
1 Tablespoon cornstarch
1 Tablespoon water
Eggless gyuza wrappers
2 Tablespoons peanut or vegetable oil
1/2 cup water or vegetable broth

Reconstitute black mushrooms by
submerging them in boiling water
and soaking for about 15 minutes.
Remove, let cool, and finely chop
mushrooms. Stir-fry garlic, green
onions, ginger, and mushrooms in
oil for 2 minutes. Add sweet potatoes
and lower temperature to medium,
cooking until potatoes begin to
get tender, about 10 minutes.
Meanwhile, combine soy sauce, oyster
sauce, rice wine vinegar, hoisin
sauce, chili garlic paste (if desired),
and white pepper in a bowl. Mix
cornstarch and water in a separate
bowl. Add soy sauce mixture to vegetables
and cook to boiling. Take the
pan off the heat and mix in cornstarch
and water mixture.

Wrap potstickers by placing
about 1-2 teaspoons of the filling
in the center of a wrapper, wetting
one half of the edge, closing the
wrapper, and then adding 3 or 4
pleats to the edge. Keep completed
potstickers on a lightly-floured
plate while you work to keep them
from sticking to each other.

Heat oil in skillet and place
potstickers close to each other, covering
the entire bottom of the pan.
Brown for 3 to 4 minutes. Pour
water or broth over potstickers and
allow them to steam as the water or
broth boils away (about 5 more
minutes).

Note: Hoisin sauce can be found at
most Asian food markets. It is a
sweet, dark brown sauce, and a little
goes a long way in flavor.

Total calories per potsticker: 87   Fat: 3 grams
Carbohydrates: 94 grams             Protein: 1 gram
Sodium: 187 milligrams              Fiber: 2 grams
PAN-FRIED TOFU
WITH SPICY
PEANUT SAUCE

(Serves 6)

The spicy peanut sauce from this
recipe also works well poured over a
combination of Chinese noodles and
green onions.

1 package firm regular (not silken) tofu
3 Tablespoons sherry or Chinese cooking
  wine (mirin) or alder vinegar
6 Tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce,
  divided
2 Tablespoons vegetarian Worcestershire
  sauce (found in natural foods stores)
1/2 cup cornstarch
Oil for frying
1/3 to 1/2 cup vegetable broth
2 Tablespoons sesame oil
2 Tablespoons chunky peanut butter
1 Tablespoon rice wine or red wine vinegar
1 Tablespoon hoisin sauce
1 teaspoon chili garlic paste **

Press tofu (cut tofu into six pieces
and place under a weight) for 45
minutes to an hour. Discard excess
water. Stir together sherry, half the
soy sauce, and vegetarian Worcestershire
sauce and pour over tofu.
Marinate for at least 20 minutes,
and drain. Lightly coat tofu with
cornstarch, being sure to shake off
excess. Pan-fry in a half-inch of oil.
Turn when bottom has turned
brown, 4 to 5 minutes. Drain on
racks over paper towels. While the
tofu cools, stir together broth, rest
of soy sauce, sesame oil, peanut
butter, rice wine, Hoisin sauce, and
chili garlic paste in a saucepan over
low heat until all ingredients are
incorporated. Serve tofu with sauce.

Total calories per serving: 233   Fat: 14 grams
Carbohydrates: 18 grams           Protein: 11 grams
Sodium: 795 milligrams            Fiber: 2 grams

** This paste is extremely potent. If you dislike spicy food, leave this ingredient out altogether. Use no more than called for until you've tried it!!

WONTON SOUP

(Serves 4)

Wontons:
2 cups shredded Nape cabbage
Salt or salt substitute to taste
Oil spray for stir-frying
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 Tablespoons minced ginger
2 leeks, white parts only, cut in half
  lengthwise, rinsed, and sliced into thin
  half moons
1 green onion, minced
5 dried black Chinese mushrooms,
  reconstituted in boiling water and minced
1/2 cup finely chopped fresh mushrooms
2 Tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce
1 Tablespoon vegetarian oyster sauce
2 teaspoons hoisin sauce
1 1/2 teaspoons rice wine vinegar
1/4 teaspoon white pepper
20 eggless wonton or gyuza wrappers
1 quart vegetable stock
1 Tablespoon cooking wine or cider vinegar
2 Tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce
1 carrot
1 Tablespoon sesame oil
1 green onion, chopped

Put shredded cabbage in a colander
with a sprinkling of salt and allow to
drain for half an hour. Rinse cabbage.
Stir-fry garlic, ginger, leeks, and green
onion together in oil for 5 minutes.
Add all the mushrooms and cabbage
and stir-fry another 4 to 5 minutes.
Meanwhile, combine soy sauce, oyster
sauce, hoisin sauce, rice wine vinegar,
and white pepper in a bowl. Stir
contents of bowl into the other ingredients
and continue to stir-fry for
another minute or two.

To make wontons, place 1 1/2
teaspoons filling in the center of a
wrapper. Add a little water to one
edge and then fold wrapper, pinching
the edges together. Pull the two
corners along the fold together, then
wet and secure them to each other.

Simmer stock, wine or vinegar,
and soy sauce in a soup pan. Using
a vegetable peeler, add ribbons of
carrot to the soup. Add wontons to
the soup and simmer, 7 to 9 minutes
each. Garnish with sesame oil
and green onion.

Total calories per serving: 295   Fat: 7 grams
Carbohydrates: 50 grams           Protein: 6 grams
Sodium: 1316 milligrams           Fiber: 8 grams

Michael Craven lives and cooks with his wife and daughter in Baltimore, MD.

COPYRIGHT 2002 Vegetarian Resource Group
COPYRIGHT 2002 Gale Group