My (ugly) Vegan Ki Si Minh Recipe

For those of you unfamiliar with Ki Si Minh, it's like a soupy Asian cabbage curry stew... that's the best way I can describe it.

There are many different recipes around for Ki Si Minh, & traditionally they feature beef mince as a main ingredient, so that puts it off the menu for vegans & vegetarians. Not so anymore! I have devised a recipe, it's not beautiful, but it tastes pretty darn good. I've been pleasantly surprised at how well this recipe has worked, I haven't eaten Ki Si Minh in a number of years, but it tastes similar to how I remember it, & certainly it's just as delicious. :D

So what to use in place of beef mice? TOFU! Yep, beautiful, reliable tofu. I realised recently that when roughly crumbled tofu has a similar texture to minced meat, so it's a perfect replacement in meals like Spaghetti Bolognese, Tacos, etc. Remember that tofu is quite bland on it's own, like a sponge, you can add flavor using many different things, this recipe uses margarine, curry powder, Vegan 'Beef' stock, & pepper. Moving right along though, here's the recipe -


*Vegan Ki Si Minh*


Ingredients:
- 250g of organic Tofu - Rinsed, dried & roughly crumbled into chunks
- 1 Wombok cabbage - Cut in half lengthways & finely sliced into strips - Any cabbage will do.
- 2 medium Carrots - Grated
- 1/2 a Capsicum - Finely diced
- 6 Mushrooms - Finely diced
- 1 medium Onion - Finely diced
- 1 cup of Frozen peas & corn mix (alternatively you can use fresh Beans or Snow peas)
- 1/4 cup of White rice - (I like Medium grain)
- 3/4 of a 'Beef' stock cube (I used Massel stock)
- 1/2 a 'Chicken' stock cube (Massels)
- 2.5 tbs Mild Curry power
- 4 tbs of Mirin
- 1/4 cup GF Soy sauce or Tamari
- 2.5 tbs of Nuttelex (or any margarine of your choice)
- Pinch of Pepper
- Oil for cooking
- Boiling water for cooking


Method:
1. Prepare all ingredients.
2. In a large pot add a small amount of oil, the crumbled Tofu & a pinch of pepper & stir over a low-medium heat. Once the tofu has heated thru add 1.5 tbs of Nuttelex, 1/2 a beef stock cube, 1/2 tbs of Curry powder, & half the Mirin & saute until tofu is cooked & slightly golden.
3. Add 1 cup of water to the pot & stir well. Add all remaining ingredients except the rice, cabbage & frozen peas & corn.
4. Tip in water until it comes up to the vegetables, but does not cover them. Place a lid on the pot & allow the liquid to begin simmering, then stir in the rice & place the cabbage on top & replace the lid to allow the cabbage to steam.
5. Once the cabbage has softened a bit you can stir it through the rest of the mix. Cover & allow to simmer for 15 minutes. At this stage you should taste the liquid & adjust seasonings accordingly, more soy sauce for saltiness, Nuttelex for richness, curry powder for heat etc... 
6. Once the rice & vegetables have cooked & the flavour is right remove the lid & stir through the peas & corn. Once the liquid begins to simmer again it's ready!


Serves 4
Great with a slice of warm toast.

Crumbled tofu, ready to cook. 

This is the mix with the cabbage sitting on top. It's fine
like this, it will reduce in size & soften as it steams
with the lid on.

The Ki Si Min cooking once the cabbage is mixed
through.

As I said, it's not beautiful, but it is really tasty, well worth a try.

While this recipe has quite a few ingredients it's simple to prep & cook, once you get the hang of it it's quite a quick meal to make.

Enjoy~