Thursday, May 14, 2009

Vegan Fusion Wrap


Chapaathi is an Indian whole wheat flatbread similar to Tortilla. Hummus is a Mediterranean dish made of Chickpeas. The Herbs used in the Brown Rice were an Italian mix. The Green Bell Peppers (Capsicum) were stir fried with Onion, Garlic and crushed Black Pepper East Asian style. The wrap itself is layered like a Burrito, Mexican style. And finally the splash of Ketchup adds a dash of America ;)

Why the seemingly unnecessary details? Just to show that when someone says Fusion Food, this is the kind of stuff they're referring to :)

Anyone can create delicious Fusion Food. As long as the flavors and textures involved compliment each other well. Take a bunch of traditional dishes from any cuisine, feel free to add your own twists ( when it comes to fusion, no one's looking for authentic anyways), put all of them together... et voila! You have perfectly nom nom Fusion Food.



Here's what my wrap contains...

Chapathi

2 C whole wheat flour
1 C okara (the remaining bean paste after soymilk has been made)
3 t coconut oil
salt

Put everything in a large mixing bowl and mix well.
Add a little water if required and knead into a soft, elastic dough.
Make little balls.
Roll with a rolling pin as flat as you can (dip in a plate of flour a few times in between rolling to avoid the dough from sticking to the rolling pin of board).
Cook on a pan on both sides.

Hummus - with a few twists

1 C dry chickpeas and red kidney beans
2 dry red chillies
2 t sesame oil
2 t coriander powder
3 cloves garlic
salt
freshly squeezed juice of 1 lime

Wash and soak the beans using the quick soak method*.
Drain the water completely, wash and add some more water.
Pressure cook with a teeny pinch of salt for 7-8 whistles and drain again.
Lightly toast the dry red chillies.
Add everything (except lime) in a blender.
Blend well into a smooth paste using as much water as required (be careful not to make it liquidy).
Squeeze lime juice and blend once more.

Stir Fried Capsicum

2 capsicums sliced
1 large onion sliced
3-4 cloves garlic minced
2 T coconut oil
freshly crushed whole black pepper
salt

Heat oil, add garlic and fry for a few seconds. Add the onion and stir fry on a high flame till translucent. Toss in the green bell pepper (sprinkle a pinch of sugar) and continue stir frying for a few minutes till soft. Add salt, stir once and switch off the flame. Cover and let it sit for a few minutes. Crush pepper over everything with a pepper mill and mix well.

Herbed Brown Rice

1 C brown rice
2 t coconut oil
1 T Italian dried herb mix (parsley, rosemary, oregano, thyme, basil)
salt

Wash rice well, place in a large pot with 3 cups of water and the rest of the ingredients.
Cook according to instruction on package.

Mix in the Stir Fried Capsicum with the Herbed Brown Rice.

THE WRAP

Place one Chapaathi on a plate.
Spoon Hummus over it and spread lightly in the center of the Chapathi.
Scoop some of the Brown Rice Capsicum mixture onto the Hummus.
Add a small splash of Ketchup.
Wrap.
Enjoy! :)

(I also put in a few small pieces of my Pickled Orange Peels in some of the wraps for added tang).

If you try your own Vegan Fusion Wraps I'd love it if you left me a comment here on how they turn out. Feel free to share your recipes too :)

6 comments:

  1. I like your fusion idea- a lot of cultures use similar spices, so they'd probably taste good together!

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  2. YAY!! something to do with my okara that has been sitting in the freezer looking at me angrily for a week!! I never thought to put it in wraps!

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  3. Sal, what do you do with your okara?

    It really makes that chapathi dough soft! Even good for bread dough.

    I also use it in small scooops as a thickener for dals or sambar.

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  4. Karma, yeah fusion is so much fun to create! :)

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  5. Meghann, thanks :)
    Lemme know how it turns out if you try it.

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