Bristol-born online marketplace, All About the Cooks, is continuing to help people all across the city eat real food made by real people in the comfort of their own homes. This month, they’re putting an even healthier spin on some of their much-loved recipes to help kick off the year. Let Veganuary commence…
Nick-named “Etsy for food”, All About The Cooks is an online marketplace founded in Bristol, which makes it deliciously easy for the people across the city to eat real food made by local people, all in the comfort of their own homes.
This month, the platform’s talented home cooks have created vegan feasts, inspired by the national campaign Veganuary, with meat and dairy-free twists on their globally-inspired menus.
At its core, All About The Cooks enables home cooking enthusiasts hungry to share their love for home-cooked food with even hungrier residents, with menus and dishes from across the world, all prepared right here in Bristol and available to order online. With collection or delivery arranged directly from the cook, the days of junk food and faceless deliveries are over. Similarly, you’ll be supporting your neighbours – with over £40,000 already paid to local cooks since the marketplace’s launch.
Inspired by her native South America, Mireya, who lives in Henbury, usually cooks up Brazilian and Chilean delights, including empanadas Chilenas and pao de queijo (Brazilian cheese balls). For Veganuary however, Mireya has veganised the traditional Brazilian Feijoada, typically made with pork, with vegan smoked sausages and bacon exclusively for Bristol residents to order via: allaboutthecooks.co.uk.
Tomer, who lives in Bishopston, will be offering Middle-Eastern vegan feasts with a menu that changes weekly. Stella in Redfield will be baking stunning vegan celebration cakes, and as a baker at Bristol’s ever popular Hart’s Bakery, her sweet treats are not to be missed. Those looking for Spanish dishes will be delighted to try Horfield-based Rosa’s menu, including vegan tapas plates such as meat-free chorizo cooked in cider. Those in Easton will be delighted to tuck into Indira’s Cuban delicacies including Frijoles negros; a delicious and rich black bean stew flavoured with bay leaf and garlic and served alongside rice, cassava with a mojito sauce and plantains.
Those yet to try out the food of Bristol’s best home cooks can get £10 off their first order by signing up for the newsletter on the website: allaboutthecooks.co.uk/newsletter-sign-up. To join in the fun and become one of Bristol’s most well-loved cooks from the comfort of your own home, local cooks can apply via the website: allaboutthecooks.co.uk/become-a-cook
Mireya’s vegan Brazilian feijoada
Serves: 6
Ingredients
Feijoada:
- 3 tbsp vegetable oil
- 2 large onions, chopped
- 6 cloves garlic, minced
- 500g black turtle beans (soaked overnight if you don’t have a pressure cooker)
- 100g vegan bacon lardons
- 260g vegan smoked sausage cut around 3 cm slices
- 2 bay leaves
- 500 ml boiling water (or just enough to cover the beans)
Farofa:
- 1 tbsp vegetable oil
- 1 handful vegan bacon lardons
- 1 small onion, chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tbsp vegan butter
- 250g manioc flour (found in Brazilian shops or world food section of most supermarkets)
- Salt to taste
- Handful parsley, chopped
Rice:
- 2 cups long-grain rice (don’t use easy cook, it won’t taste the same), washed and rinsed
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1 tsp salt
- 3 cups boiling water
Couve (Greens):
- 2 tbsp vegetable oil
- 1 pack greens, finely cut into strips
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- Salt to taste
Plantain:
- 4-5 plantain cut in half, then half again horizontally
Method
- First, start the feijoada. In a pressure cooker, pan fry one of the onions and three cloves of garlic. Add the vegan bacon and stir until lightly cooked. Add the vegan sausage and let it cook for about 2 minutes, then add the rinsed black beans.
- Add the salt and the bay leaf, mix well then add boiling water – enough to cover the beans. Put the lid on, ensure it is well locked and that the steam will release properly. Leave to cook for 25 to 30 minutes or when it starts to noisily steam.
- While the feijoada cooks, prepare the farofa. In a small pan on a medium heat, add one tbsp of vegetable oil and fry the vegan bacon until crispy, add the garlic and the onions and let it simmer until transparent. Add one tbsp of vegan butter then the manioc flour. It’s important to keep mixing once you put the manioc flour in because it tends to brown quite quickly. Add the salt and mix more. Remove from the heat when it’s brownish but not too much. Add the chopped parsley and it’s ready!
- Make the rice: In a medium pan, add the vegetable oil and fry the garlic until light brown. Add the rice and mix it with the garlic, add the salt and boiling water. Mix it well together and put the lid on. Lower the heat to number 2 and let it cook for around 20 minutes, do not remove the lid otherwise the steam used to cook the rice will escape and it might burn before it’s properly cooked.
- Once the beans of the feijoada are ready, add one tbsp of vegetable oil into a large pan, fry the remaining chopped onion, and three minced garlic cloves. When transparent, add the beans in and adjust the salt. Let it boil for 10 more minutes, and add water if it gets dry; feijoada has to have caldo (sauce). Simmer occasionally.
- To prepare the couve (greens), wash the leaves and place them all on top of each other, make a roll and finely chop it. Now, in a medium pan at medium heat, add the oil and fry the garlic slightly, before it gets brown, add the finely chopped greens, add the salt and mix all well together. Let it sweat on a low heat with the lid on for one minute. Remove from the heat, let it sweat a bit more with the lid on until serving. I like to do it at the last minute so it’s still green and fresh.
- To make the fried plantains, in a frying pan, add 3 tbsp of vegetable oil. Once the oil is hot, add the cut plantains and fry until golden brown then turn to brown the other side. Remove and let drain on kitchen towel.
- To serve, on a plate or dish, add two generous spoons of rice, then a spoon of the feijoada on top or on the side, like I do, and complete on the sides with some farofa to absorb the sauce of the beans, couve (greens), and plantains to finish. Eat and enjoy!
Published and written by Mireya González
