Portuguese Veggie Hash
Hey everyone! This is Rita here. As always, we're pretty excited to be sharing a new recipe in the blog. Back in October, we posted a Portuguese Pea Stew recipe and it was such a hit among our national and international readers that we realized we should definitely make veganized versions of portuguese classics a priority in our kitchen brainstorms. This veggie hash was inspired by a typical dish of ours that is traditionally made with dried salted codfish and whole eggs. It is a regular among every portuguese household which goes by the name of Bacalhau à Brás and our fellow countrymen and women will surely realize what this is just by the looks of it. It is popular to the point that there are even a few vegetarian versions already, in some restaurants and cafeterias. But never had we seen a full vegan version; that is until we tried making it ourselves. It turned out delicious, and the texture comes so close to the real deal that even our picky-eater-nephews couldn't resist going for seconds and thirds during the family taste test.
There are only a handful of dishes that make us lose control of our ability to stick to appropriatly sized portions and this one might just be our biggest frailty. That's why we are unsure as to how many servings are in this recipe: 6 if you've got a normal appetite; 4 if you're anything like us and tend to devoure your favourite foods. Good thing is, this is made entirely from vegetables and legumes! Sure, there's the whole fried straw potatoes situation in the mix... But still, just potatoes! Pair this hash with a big bunch of leafy greens and you've got yourself a pretty healthy vegan meal. Although we never tried freezing it, our bet is that it doesn't freeze well. But that's fine by us, because we never mind eating this for 2-3 meals in a row.
We're curious to see what you guys will feel about this recipe, so make sure to let us know how it worked out!
Portuguese Veggie Hash
30 minutes | serves 4-6
INGREDIENTS
1 tbsp cold-pressed olive oil
2 dried bay leaves
1 onion
2 leeks (white parts only)
2 carrots
1/4 red cabbage
1/4 green cabbage
2 garlic cloves
4 cups | 175 gr. pre-made or store bought shoestring fries
3/4 cup | 100 gr. chickpea flour
3/4 cup | 185 ml. water
1/2 tsp freshly cracked black pepper
1 tsp turmeric
1 1/2 tsp sea salt
1 handful black olives
chopped parsley, to taste
STEP BY STEP
Start by gathering, preparing and measuring all of the ingredients. This will improve your dynamic in the kitchen.
Start by combining the chickpea flour, black pepper, salt and turmeric in a small mixing bowl.
Add the water, little by little, and mix thoroughly with a fork to make sure there are no lumps of flour in the batter. Set aside.
Peel the onion, carrots and cloves and wash the leeks and cabbages.
Slice the garlic cloves lengthwise, remove and discard the center germs and mash the cloves with a garlic press.
Shred the carrots and slice the onion, leeks and cabbages as thinly as possible, preferably in a food processor.
Heat the olive oil in a wide non-stick pan on medium heat.
Add the bay leaves, the pressed garlic and all the shredded/sliced vegetables.
Sauté for 4-5 minutes or until the vegetables become tender.
Add the straw potatoes, one cup at a time.
Pour in the chickpea mixture and stir gently, only enough to make sure the vegetables are evenly coated with the batter.
Spread the mixture in the pan and allow to fry until it appears to have dried, stirring every minute (the hash will caramelize on the bottom, depending on how long you'll leave it alone for).
When it is done, scatter the black olives and the chopped parsley on top and serve immediately.
WE HOPE YOU ENJOY!
We'd love to hear how your creations turn out. Let us know if you give any of our recipes a go and tag your photos with #cocooncooksblog on Instagram so we can see them! xo