Vegan Chinese Coconut Tarts

Coconut tarts were a delicious treat for me in HK, my favourite part was the kitsch glace cherry in the middle, which I used to save till last as a little coconut island with a cherry on top.

The tart should have a light-ish fluffy filling, with a slightly chewy outer, and crisp "short" pastry. Not a diet food, probably best for parties as you can share them out and don't end up eating them all!

I'm not sure how this freezes, I imagine probably quite well as it is quite dense and not liquid.

This is an ongoing experiment, I may end up substituting the ground almond with coconut flour, or perhaps more dessicated coconut. In the meantime, this is what I have come up with. :)

This makes 24-26 tarts

Ingredients:

Pastry: 300g plain flour
250g margarine (I prefer vitalite in the UK as it has a more buttery taste)

Filling:
115g ground almonds
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
3 tsp No-Egg egg replacer, or equivalent*
1/4 tsp salt

50ml oil
400ml coconut milk(1 regular can)
150g sugar
1 tsp vanilla
200g dessicated coconut

12 glace cherries, cut in half.

*I have seen coconut tart recipes that require custard powder, which mainly consists of corn starch. Egg replacer also consists of different starches, so perhaps a future experiment would be to replace the egg replacer with custard powder. 

Preheat the oven to 180C.

For the pastry - In a large mixing bowl mix the flour and margarine using a spatula - the less you handle the pastry the better. Break up the fat and press it into the flour against the side of the bowl until it starts to resemble large bread crumbs. Usually this is the point where you would add water/milk, but I've found that margarine has a large water content and that it usually will at this point form together into a large ball when pressed with your hands. Margarines differ however and if yours doesn't want to clump, then add cold water/soy milk a teaspoon at a time until it comes together. Cover and chill in the fridge for at least 30 minutes. In the meantime prepare the filling.

Mix the dry ingredients apart from sugar in a large mixing bowl. In a measuring jug measure out the oil, then add the sugar, vanilla. You can add half the coconut milk and mix until well combined. Pour into the mixing bowl, then add the remaining coconut milk. Mix well. Fold in the dessicated coconut.

Get the pastry out the fridge and divide into two. Roll out the pastry on a floured board until about 0.5cm thick. Using a pastry cutter that fits with your cupcake tin, cut out the shapes. I tended to roll the cut out round shape to make it larger and slightly thinner. The pastry should come up the sides of the tin, rising up about 2-3 cm high at the sides.

Fill your cases with the coconut mixture using a large spoon**. Place the glace cherries on top.

**I put the filling in raw pastry cases and baked together, which took ages (nearly 40-50 minutes), and had to cover the tops of the tarts with foil as the coconut browned before the pastry was fully cooked. Next time I may blind-bake the pastry before adding the coconut filling.

Bake until the coconut is browned - it is important to flip out a tart and  ensure the pastry is cooked through at the bottom. If you tap it it should make a crisp sound, or cut through and it should have no translucent uncooked looking pastry.

Tip: If the coconut has browned but the pastry isn't fully cooked, try covering tightly with foil so that it doesn't brown any further. I've also taken the tarts out, put the tarts on a rack, then back on a baking tray, then covered with foil, so that the pastry bottoms were exposed to the heat and the coconut was protected. All of this seems a bit of a hassle on reflection, so I would suggest blind baking the pastry cases first!!!

Wilted Chard Salad with Cooked Garlic Dressing 凉菜

Wilted Chard with Cooked Garlic Dressing

A "Cold Dish", or  凉菜 Liángcài

The raw vegetable is an anathema in traditional Chinese cuisine. Vegetables, even in salads or cold dishes, aka Liángcài, are at the very least blanched before serving. An exception is cucumber salad, where the cucumber is crushed with the flat of a knife, roughly chopped, then a similar dressing is poured over the pieces. 

Serves 2 as a side dish 

I used a mixture of chard and spinach for this dish as that was what I had, but you can experiment with substituting different blanched and cooled vegetables, e.g. mung bean sprouts, other sprouted beans, nettles, calalloo, etc. This is a basic recipe - you can add chilli, sesame oil, toasted sesame seeds to your taste.

Chingkiang vinegar, 镇江香醋, pinyin: Zhènjiāngxiāngcǜ, is quite commonly available, particularly in Chinese supermarkets; I got mine in the Asian section of a large supermarket. If you can't get it, you can substitute balsamic at a pinch, but reduce or omit the sugar in the dish.

Ingredients:

200g leafy vegetable, e.g. spinach or chard

1 clove of garlic, chopped finely

Dressing:

2 tbsp vegetable oil, e.g. canola/rapeseed/peanut

3/4 of a tablespoon of chinkiang vinegar

the juice of 1 tbsp grated ginger

1/2 tsp sugar

1/8 tsp salt

Wilt the spinach either by blanching for 30 seconds in boiling water, then rinsing immediately with cold water, or by wilting in a hot frying pan, turning the spinach until all the leaves are wilted, then rinsing with cold water to stop the cooking process. 

Squeeze out the excess water from the vegetable with your hands. 

    

Ball up the spinach and chop it roughly, then put it in your serving dish. 

Arrange the raw garlic in a small pile in the centre of the spinach.

Mix the dressing ingredients in a small bowl.

In a pan heat the oil on a high heat until it is shimmering and starting to smoke. Pour the hot oil directly onto the garlic, which will immediately sizzle. Try to cover all the garlic with hot oil. Mix the oil into the spinach using a fork or chopsticks, then add the rest of the dressing, mixing to coat well. 

Serve as a side dish.

Cold Udon Noodle Salad with Satay Sauce Dressing

Cold Udon Noodle Salad with Satay Sauce Dressing

冷沙爹烏冬面Lěng shā diē wū dōng miàn

serves 2 as a main

1 packet (around 450g) tofu cut into thin slices width ways, deep fried until golden brown, and then slice these slices into strips. See diagram.

½ a cucumber, cut into thin strips, approx. 5 x 1 cm

2 spring onions, cut into very thin strips, approx. 0.5cm x 5 cm

1 bell pepper (not green) sliced into thin strips lengthways.

1 small bunch coriander (cilantro), very roughly chopped, approx. two tbsp.

Udon noodles for two – approx. 200g, cooked according to packet directions and cooled by running under tap/cooled boiled/filtered water

Roasted salted peanuts, additional coriander for garnish (both optional)

Satay Sauce dressing:

¼ cup satay sauce  (look for one without shrimp paste, Yeo’s is usually ok)

1 tbsp lemon/lime juice

½ tbsp. sesame oil

1 tsp brown sugar

1 tbsp chilli sauce, e.g. sriracha

½ tsp soya sauce

In large bowl combine the dressing ingredients. Add noodles, vegetables, coriander and tofu, mix until all elements are well coated. Garnish with roasted peanuts and coriander.

You can adapt this, changing the vegetables to taste, substitute chives or wild garlic for the spring onions. You can also substitute wholewheat/buckwheat noodles for the udon.

Tip: Cut vegetables the same shape and size as other ingredients, e.g. if tofu is triangular in a recipe, cut the bell pepper into triangles. If pickles are sliced, slice the seitan/tofu in a similar shape and size if possible. It looks nicer and things cook more evenly.

Spicy Vegetables With Pickled Mustard Greens with Crispy Noodles

Spicy Vegetables With Pickled Mustard Greens with Crispy Noodles

This is a favourite recipe. The sauce is slightly sweet and spicy and contrasts nicely with the salty sourness of the crisp pickle. The noodles should be crisp and crunchy and then topped with the sauce and served immediately after. You can serve this with rice but noodles work very well.

pan fry your tofu triangles until golden

fried tofu triangles

sliced mustard greens and peppers

vegan noodles

serves 2 as a main

pickled mustard greens

2 tbsp rapeseed/canola oil

2 cloves garlic, finely chopped

2 spring onions (scallions), chopped into 3 cm pieces

1 tbsp grated ginger

Approx 2 cups deep fried sliced tofu/sliced seitan or mock duck/pre-soaked soya chunks

100g (approx.) sliced pickled mustard greens

100-200g variety of crisp (non-watery) vegetables e.g. bell peppers of various colours, sugar snap peas, mangetout, celery, thinly sliced carrot.

125g/150g thin yellow egg free noodles (sometimes labelled as vegetarian noodles), cooked according to packet directions.

Sauce:

2 tsp sugar

2 tbsp soya sauce

½ cup water

2 tsp corn starch

1 tbsp chilli sauce, e.g. sriracha

1 ½ tsp sesame oil

Heat 1 tbsp oil in large cast iron skillet/non stick pan on medium high heat. Fry cooked noodles for a few minutes each side, flipping over when one side is golden brown and crisp. Transfer to baking sheet and keep warm in low oven while you cook the sauce.

Heat 1 tbsp oil in wok/large cast iron pan on high heat. Fry garlic, spring onion (scallions), ginger for 1 minute, until fragrant. Add vegetables, pickled mustard greens  and cook for 2 – 3 minutes, until vegetables are nearly cooked. Add tofu and sauce and cook for another 2 minutes until tofu is heated through and sauce is thickened and bubbly. Take noodles out of the oven and transfer to a serving dish. Pour vegetables and sauce on to the noodles and serve immediately.

Stir fried Potato Strands Tǔdòu sī 土豆丝

Tǔdòu sī  土豆丝  Stir fried Potato Strands

Areas around China are known for their potato crops (like Idaho), e.g. Dingxi in Gansu Province and in banquets you can sometimes be served whole steamed potatoes to be eaten as they are and savoured. The Chinese also have a novel method of cooking finely shredded potato (“Si” in this case means finely cut strands) and then serving them slightly undercooked, still with a crunchy texture,  either hot or cold dishes, which seems strange to Western tastes but is delicious. Tǔdòu sī is potato, finely shredded, then quickly stir fried with spices and black vinegar. It should taste spicy and tangy with the potatoes still retaining a bite.

I've tweaked this recipe a little as I've found that having green chilli slices rather than dried chillies improves the flavour, however do adapt this to your taste. 

Serves 2 as a side    

1 tbsp vegetable oil

2 medium sized potatoes, very finely cut

1 tsp Sichuan peppercorns

1 or 2 medium sized green chillies (e.g. depending on how hot they are), deseeded and sliced into long thin strips

2 tbsp chinkiang black rice vinegar (add 1 tbsp first, then gradually add more to taste if needed)

¼ tsp sugar

½ tsp salt

1 clove garlic, roughly chopped

Slice the potatoes by hand or using a mandolin. 

Rinsing the potato strips and then adding them to the wok means they steam slightly and don't stick together as the starch has been rinsed away. The green chilli adds a nice flavour as well as heat.

Heat a wok/large cast iron skillet on high heat. Add 1 tbsp oil to pan, fry the peppercorns and chillies for about 1 minute, until the peppercorns are fragrant, stirring rapidly to prevent burning. Add the potatoes, vinegar, sugar and salt, tossing with metal spatula/utensil to keep the potatoes moving in the pan. Cook for 5 - 7 minutes, if the potatoes start sticking, add a little water. Add the garlic and toss for another minute, until the garlic is fragrant. Test one piece of potato. It should retain a bite to it.

Má Pó Dòufu 麻婆豆腐 Spicy Silken Tofu

Má Pó Dòufu麻婆豆腐

Known appetisingly as “Pockmarked Old Woman’s Tofu”, this dish from Sichuan is usually extremely spicy with lashings of chilli oil, Szechuan peppercorns and minced meat. This is my mum’s vegetarian version, which has very little oil and is moderately spicy. It also has the addition of peas, which add a nice colour contrast and more vitamins. Easy comfort food. Serve with rice.

Serves 2 as a main, 4 as a side

Ingredients: 

½ cup dried soya mince, soaked in ½ cup water for 20 minutes – soak whilst preparing other ingredients.

1 medium onion, finely chopped – can substitute with 4 or 5 spring onions.

2 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1 tbsp grated ginger

5 tsp chilli bean sauce

Cornflour mixture: Combine following in small bowl -  ¾ cup of water, 2 tsp cornflour, 1 ½ tsp sugar, 1 tsp yellow bean sauce/light miso plus pinch sugar/kecap manis (sweet soy sauce);  1 tsp sesame oil

1 packet extra firm silken tofu, about 350g e.g.

Mori Nu, cut into approx. 1 inch cubes

½ cup frozen peas

Heat wok/large cast iron skillet on highest setting. Fry onions, garlic and ginger for 1 minute. Add chilli bean sauce, fry for 30 seconds. Add soya mince and cornflour mixture. Taste and add salt/light soy sauce if needed. Turn down heat to medium and add sesame oil and frozen peas and allow sauce to simmer for 2 – 3 minutes until frozen peas are just cooked. Finally add the tofu, fold carefully into sauce to avoid breaking it up. Allow to cook until fully heated through – about 5 minutes.

If you want to crank up the heat for a more authentic version, add 1 tbsp chilli oil and 1 tsp whole Sichuan peppercorns with the chilli bean sauce. Get the tissues out!

Home Style Tofu Jiā cháng dòufu家常豆腐

Jiā cháng dòufu家常豆腐– Home Style Tofu

This delicious Sichuanese dish hits all the buttons:  chewy tofu, crunchy peppers and a rich sauce with ginger, garlic, chilli, slightly sweet, savoury, spicy.

Serves 2 as a main, 4 as a side

400g tofu, cut into thin triangles

1 tbsp oil

1 ½ tsp ginger, grated

4 spring onions (scallions)

2 – 4 cloves garlic (depending on how much you like garlic)

2 tbsp chilli bean sauce

1 bell pepper – any colour, sliced into triangles to match the tofu

Cornstarch mixture – mix in a small bowl:

1 tsp sugar

1 tsp cornflour

½ cup water

1 tsp soya sauce

1 tbsp dry sherry

Deep fry tofu until golden, drain on kitchen paper. Alternatively, pan fry tofu until golden and crispy.

Heat 1 tbsp oil in wok on high  heat. Fry ginger, spring onions, garlic for 30 seconds - 1 minute, until fragrant. Add the chilli bean sauce and fry for 30 seconds. Add the tofu and bell peppers, toss in the pan until tofu is coated and red. Make a space in the centre of the pan, then add corn starch mixture and allow to thicken and bubble. Toss the ingredients so all are well coated in sauce and cook for 3 – 4 minutes.

Hóngshāo Shūcài Red Braised Vegetable Stew

红烧蔬菜 Hóngshāo Shūcài     Red Braised Stew

Red braising is long cooking of ingredients in a soy sauce based sauce flavoured with star anise, cassia bark and fennel seeds. It’s a great winter stew because it consists mainly of root vegetables. It is a very flexible recipe: choose root vegetables of your choice - taro works well as would other very dense, starchy vegetables. Carrot, swede (rutabaga) and chestnuts lend a nice sweetness to the stew.  Serve with rice.

Serves 4

1 tbsp vegetable oil, e.g. rapeseed/canola

1 large onion, cut into approx. 3cm chunks

6 cloves garlic, peeled and kept whole

2 large chillies, whole

Assorted root vegetables – carrots, potatoes, swede, etc., as much as is required for the number of guests. 1kg will generously feed four. Chop into approx. 3cm chunks, but chop some of the potatoes/other starchy vegetables smaller so they break down to thicken sauce.

Approx. 100g whole, peeled chestnuts, or if not available, 1 x 400g tin chickpeas works well.

250 – 500ml water, depending on amount of vegetables.

2 tbsp soya sauce

1 tbsp molasses

1tsp sugar

Spices: 1 large piece (20cm x 3cm)of cassia bark – available in Asian/chinese grocer

You can use cinnamon but use half a stick as it is much stronger.

4 whole star anises

1 tsp fennel seeds

Heat wok/large saucepan on high heat until very hot. Add vegetable oil and fry onions and garlic for 3 minutes, using metal (“wok chan”) scraper/ large spoon or suitable long handled tool. Allow the onions and garlic to caramelise for flavour, try not to burn, a little black is ok, but mainly looking for deep brown bits on the onions. Add vegetables and allow them to caramelise as well for a few minutes. Add enough water to cover the vegetables, add spices and lower the heat. Simmer for 45 minutes – 1 hour, until vegetables are very soft and stew is thick – if using chickpeas add halfway through this time. If using chestnuts, add them about after about 35 minutes, cook until they are soft.

Tip: If stew isn’t thickening enough, add 2 tsp corn starch dissolved in 2 tbsp water. 

Red Braised Potato Hong Shao Tu Dou 红烧土豆

红烧土豆Red Braised Potato

My partner’s favourite dish. It really reminds me of a Chinese version of chips and gravy, real comfort food! The potatoes are deep fried, then tossed in a soya sauce based sauce with spring onions, ginger and yellow bean sauce.

Serves 2 as a main, 4 as a side

cut the potato into 3cm chunks

450g potatoes, cut into small chunks, approx. 3 cm cubes, deep fried until golden and cooked

1 tbsp oil

4 spring onions/scallions cut into 3cm pieces

1 tbsp + 1 tsp grated ginger

1 clove of garlic, chopped

1 tbsp yellow bean sauce/miso plus ½ tsp sugar

Cornstarch mixture – combine in small bowl:

½ tsp sugar

1 tsp cornstarch

½ cup water

1 tsp soya sauce

In a wok/large cast iron skillet heat 1 tbsp oil on high heat. Add the spring onions, ginger and garlic, fry for 30 seconds until fragrant.  Add yellow bean sauce, fry for 10 seconds, then add the cornstarch mixture. When the sauce has bubbled and thickened add the potato. Cook for 2 minutes until the potato is warmed through.