Saturday 04 / May / 2024
Talk of fillings; be it in a sandwich or tacos, there is always a predominance of meat or all that is non vegetarian. But what happens if you are a vegetarian or suddenly have a vegetarian guest at home and you need to make some quick sandwiches in the evenings? The good news is that there are plenty of vegetarian options too. So let’s go meatless this week.
Jackfruit
This vegetable when cooked with the right sauces and other ingredients has a taste that is quite similar to chicken. Hence this makes a great filling and ideal as a substitute for chicken and meat.
For a simple jackfruit filling drain and clean jackfruit, toss with BBQ spices and sauté in oil for a while. Add BBQ sauce and simmer and spread into on your bread.
Alternatively you can take jackfruit cubes, add smoked paprika, garlic powder, chilli powder, salt, and stir until well combined. Heat 2 tablespoon of oil over medium heat in a large skillet and fry the jackfruit for 3 minutes. Add a cup of barbecue sauce and cover and simmer it for about 30 minutes adding 1/4 cup of water to thin the sauce. Stir occasionally. Once the jackfruit has softened, remove it from the heat and with two forks tear it apart. Serve it on a bun with your favourite toppings.
Tofu
Tofu is very popular amongst vegetarians as it is an all purpose ingredient. You can sauté chunks of tofu in olive oil, along with chopped red and green peppers, onions, and other seasonings. Curried tofu is another version of sandwich filling. Place the tofu in a bowl and crumble it well with a fork or with your hands. In a separate bowl, stir together 2 tablespoon of mayonnaise, 1 teaspoon curry powder, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper to taste. Add this to the tofu mixture and stir. Also add 1 tablespoon chopped onions, and few chopped parsley leaves. Mix well. Taste and adjust seasonings if desired. Serve as a sandwich spread. This can be stored in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to three days. For more flavours you can also add toasted sesame seeds and a handful of raisins in the tofu mixture. Tofu can also be grilled after marinating chunks of tofu in barbecue sauce, honey, soy sauce, and honey mustard sauce and used as a filling.
Fruits
If you had enough of vegetable sandwiches but yet want to stay meatless, why not let your sandwich go fruity? Fruits make a great sandwich filling. In Japan fruit sandwiches are very common and easily available too. Called Fruit Sando, they are easy to make and visually appealing too. A combination of strawberries, kiwis, and bananas mixed with lightly sweetened whipped cream make great sandwich filling. Have you ever thought of having a fresh mango sandwich? Slice mango into flat rounds and discard stone. Chill the slices and separately make crisp toasts of bread.
Apply butter and place the mango slices and then cut into triangles with a very sharp knife. Serve immediately. Avocados and the rich creamy flavours make them the perfect breakfast sandwich. Team it up with feta, apple, and juicy cucumber. Take a ripe avocado and slice them and place it on the bread. In a separate bowl combine lime juice, oil, and mint. Top each with apple, cucumber, and feta cheese.
Sweet Potatoes
If you have leftover sweet potato why not make it into sandwich spread. It lends a sweet taste to your sandwich. All you need is a cup of baked sweet potato if you do not have any leftover,
1/2 cup chickpeas, 1 teaspoon of olive oil, a dash of lemon juice, salt, pepper, and oil. Blend all the ingredients well and spread it on your bread slice. For those who like to have a spicier version of the same you can add some chilli flakes to the mixture.
Chickpeas
Drain and rinse chickpeas. Pour chickpeas into a medium size mixing bowl and mash with a fork. Mix in celery, onion, mayonnaise (to taste), lemon juice, dill, salt and pepper to taste. You can also add some diced carrots, a cup of hummus, a pinch of garlic powder. Roughly mash the chickpeas with a fork, or a potato masher. Add the remaining ingredients and combine. Add more hummus if you prefer a creamier version. –[email protected]
