Fusion
Avo and fava bean quinotto with tofu steaks and…
We found ourselves in an apartment in Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Bolivia, with cooking facilities and a wild craving for a good vegan meal.
Lunch in a vegetarian cafe was good, but didn’t quite cut the mustard – too oily, not enough veggies, etc. Luckily, we happened to have a kitchen available, and of course, Bolivia’s fruit and veg markets are on another level.
This being travel food, the recipe is quite simple. Free to elaborate according to what you have lying around.
Avo and fava bean quinotto with tofu steaks and a tomato anatto reduction
Course: Main courseCuisine: Vegetarian, fusion4
servings20
minutes30
minutesIngredients
1 cup quinoa
1 ripe avo
1 cup peeled fava beans (or frozen green peas if not available)
A block of firm tofu, sliced into 1cm thick slices
Soya sauce
- Tomato reduction
3/4 kg ripe tomatoes
Handful of garlic cloves
Handful of oreganum
2 tbsp anatto seeds (use paprika if you can’t get anatto/achiote)
2 red chillies, deseeded
Salt, sugar/sweetner, oil
Directions
- Start with the tomato reduction. Blitz everything together in a food processor until a rough soup has formed, adding about 1tsp each of salt and sugar (or equivalent amount of sweetner).
Add to a pot or saucepan and boil uncovered until thick and delicious, about 30-45 mins. Taste and add more salt and sugar near the end. - Cook the quinoa however you normally would, as blanch your beans/peas for 3 mins. You can skip a step by cooking the green fava beans with the quinoa for a few minutes, but don’t overcook – you still want them fresh and crunchy/juicy.
- Mash the avo and mix in with the quinoa + beans, using it to get the whole lot to stick together. Add salt and lemon juice to taste.
- Fry to tofu steaks in a really good non-stick pan until golden and crispy on both sides, chucking a little soya sauce on halfway.
- Quinotto, tofu, top with tomato reduction. Cold white wine. Yum.
