Plastic Free Proteins: TVP From Dehydrated Okara

When I started making my own soy and nut milk last winter, I was at a loss for what to do with the soy pulp I ended up with. I searched the internet for ideas, and didn't really find anything inspiring. At that time I just switched to making almond milk instead of soy. At least almond pulp is still almonds and therefore delicious.

Soy milk and left over Okara

That was before I discovered 'Okara' the Japanese name for the left over pulp from making soy milk. The internet is definitely filled with many suggestions for what to do with okara.

 TVP From Dehydrated Okara

To get okara, first make some soy milk and don't throw away the pulp when you're done.

It turns out that one way to make TVP is to simply dehydrate okara. This can be done easily if you have a food dehydrator, but is also possible in an oven. Not having a food dehydrator I just used a conventional oven.

Okara

Menu

Okara

Parchment Paper

Baking Sheet

Set your oven to it's lowest setting. Mine went down to 170F, but I'm told it will work as high as 200F. Make sure this is a day you want to hang around the house because it will take about 4 hours to dehydrate the okara. Spread some parchment paper on a tray and evenly spread out the okara. Pop it in the oven, and stick a dish towel in the oven door to keep it cracked. This will allow moisture to escape and keep it from getting too hot in there.

Okara on Baking Sheet

Check on on the TVP every hour or so. Some of the granules will chunk together, I like to keep an eye on those. All and all it's pretty self tending, and about 4 hours later you should have a good home made batch of TVP!

TVP!

Plastic Free Local Shopping List:

People's Coop (Portland Oregon) or Skagit Valley Food Coop* (Mount. Vernon WA)

Bulk Soy Beans ~ $2/lb

*I often have to drive past Mount Vernon to get from the crew house to the boat that I'm working on now. Skagit Valley Food Coop happens to be right off of I5. They're so proud of it there are signs for the coop on the interstate exit. Because I cross this area frequently, I try and stock up on bulk goods there.  

Interlude: An Autumn in Washington

Whew.

I just spent the last 3 months hopping from coast to coast on one boat and then another. In this line of work you don't have much say in what you eat or how it gets to you. I'm sure I went through more plastic packaging in these last 3 months than I've used in the last 3 years. That's the nature of this side of seasonal work, I suppose. 

I'm currently working on a boat that's based out of Bainbridge Island, Washington. The boat is smaller than the last I was on, yet bigger than the boat before that.  I now find myself working for an organization that has a crew house where we can stay when we're off for a trip. One with room in the  pantry for personal preferences. So I figured it's about time to share some more tactics for avoiding plastic. 

Stand by for plastic free recipes brought to you from Bainbridge Island, Washington State.

-ems

Nut Milks and Their Pulp

I just can't stand the containers soy and almond milk come in. You can't recycle them, and even if you could I have a hard time buying into the recycle system. I cringe every time I throw something in the garbage, because it's a resource I don't know how to use.  It's really simple to make your own nut milks, though. The process is pretty similar for most of them. I'm going to walk you through an almond milk recipe, but I'll also share the variations you'll need to know if you want to make your own soy milk. If you're looking for more detail, here's a  plastic free soy milk recipe  from the wonderful folks who write Waste Watchers. These two are documenting every piece of plastic they use for an entire year, and sharing some plastic free tips along the way.

Almond Milk

Soaked Almonds, Ready to Blend

Menu:

Soy Milk Recipe

Soaked soy beans, water, sugar, other delicious spices

Almond Milk Recipe

Soaked almonds, water, sugar, other delicious spices

Making Nut Milks:

Almonds Soaking Overnight

The night before you want to make your nut milk, soak 2 cups of soy beans or almonds in a bowl. The next day they should have increased to 5  cups. Strain and rinse them. Add them to a bowl large enough to blend them in. You will end up adding 2 cups of water for every 1 cup of soaked bean or nut. Since we have 5  cups of almonds, we will end up adding 10 cups of water. You don't need that much to blend the almonds up, though. In fact, it's easier to blend if you start with less water. I usually add a little less than half while I'm blending. I recommend an immersion blender for this. If you don't have an immersion blender, you can use a regular blender. It's just a bit more to clean when you're done.

Soaked Almonds Blended With Water

After the almonds are pureed, and the rest of the water, and blend them a little more. Next, set up a bowl with a strainer in it. Take your straining sack and open it in the strainer. Pour the pulpy contents through the sack and strainer so that they are collected in the bowl. I like to squeeze the last bit of milk out of the sack into the bowl.

Straining Sack, Strainer, and Bowl

 If you are making almond milk, add a little sugar or other sweetener to taste, and you're done! If you're making soy milk, you will need to bring the milk to a boil for 15 minutes before the milk is done. It's still recommended to add a sweetener.

The Fruits of Your Labor!

I enjoy adding fun spices to my nut milks. I've made a cardamom and a ginger soy milk in the past. It really depends on what you intend to do with your milk. 

The Pulp

Now that you have a home made nut milk, you also have all of this pulp sitting around, too! What next, is it destine to end up in the compost? With almond pulp I've often feathered it in with baked goods, pancakes, or pastas. I don't have great ideas for the soy pulp. Between having more options for the pulp and not having to boil it, I usually stick with almond milk.

Plastic Free Local Shopping List:

Almonds at New Seasons

People's Coop:

Bulk Soy Beans*

New Seasons/Fred Meyer:

Bulk Almonds 5.99/lb

Sugar 2.88/4 lb

* The People's Coop doesn't carry any GMO products, so you can rest assured bulk soy beans you buy from them are not GMO's. Here are their product guidelines for all of the items they sell. I remember their bulk soy beans being around 2.00/lb.  I bought mine so long ago I don't have a record of what I paid. They're quite a bit cheaper than almonds, so if you don't mind boiling them and going through all that pulp, go for it!

Plastic Free Proteins Series: Soy Curls, TVP and TSP

What are Soy Curls?

It is next to impossible to find a meat substitute that isn't packaged in plastic! That's why I was so excited to find out you can get soy curls in bulk here in Portland!

I first came across them at Los Gorditos in SE Portland. Their texture is similar to pulled chicken. The first time I ate there I almost sent my vegan burrito back, positive they had given me the wrong one. But no, there was no chicken, just soy curls.

Soy Curls are a delicious variation on TVP (textured vegetable protein) and TSP (textured soy protein) made by Butler Foods, a company based out of Grand Ronde, Oregon. The founders, after living many years in Africa, are now dedicated to alleviating starvation and famine by encouraging plant based diets. Their products are also strictly non-GMO. They're good people, and worth checking out. Here's an article the Oregonian ran on them a few years back.

Many stores in Portland sell soy curls packaged in plastic in their natural foods section.  However, you can buy soy curls in bulk from the People's Coop. Whole Foods used to sell soy curls in their bulk section, but had to take it off their shelves because not enough people were buying it. I suspect that's because not enough people know how amazing they are. Maybe as more folks find out what a great product this is, more stores will start carrying soy curls in bulk.

What do you do with Soy Curls?

2 cups Soy Curls

Enough water to cover Soy Curls

1 tablespoon Mustard

2-3 tablespoons Soy Sauce

hint of Liquid Smoke

Salt to taste

Lemon Juice to taste (optional)
Coconut Oil

Reconstituting Soy Curls

Soy curls are just as easy to cook as TVP and TSP. This recipe will work for any of those. When you buy soy curls they are dehydrated, and you'll have to reconstitute them before you can add them to any delicious dish. I usually put them in a sauce pan with a little bit of water and add a bit of flavoring. They don't have much flavor themselves. I usually add mustard, soy sauce, a shot of liquid smoke, and some salt. If you have lemon juice a hint of that can be nice, too. Like most alternative meats, it's important to add a fat to it. Since I know I'm going to be adding it to a stir fry, I want to use a high heat oil. In this case, I chose coconut oil but any high heat oil will do. Add a tablespoon or two to the mix. By the time the water boils off the soy curls should be soft and juicy and ready to add to any meal.

Veggies and Soy Curls Stir Fry:

Reconstituted Soy Curls
Purple Cabbage
Green Cabbage Leaves
Onions
High Heat Oil
Salt

Soy Curl Stir Fry

Chop onions how ever you chose and add to hot oil in a pan. After the onions have cooked a little bit, add your chopped cabbage. Allow to cook a few minutes, then add the soy curls and salt and pepper to taste. This delicious dish is great over rice, in a tortilla or even in a sandwich. Enjoy!

Plastic Free Local Shopping List:

Bulk Soy Curls at the People's Coop

People's Coop:

Bulk Soy Curls* 6.66/lb

Bulk Soy Sauce 3.99/lb

Purple Cabbage 1.99/lb

New Seasons/Fred Meyers:

Liquid Smoke 2.39/ 3.5 oz

Salt 0.99/lb

Coconut Oil** 10/pint?

Mustard 3.99/ 9 oz
Safflower Oil 8.99/740 ml

Back Yard
Green Cabbage Leaves***

 Back Yard Cabbage

*Soy curls are a bit more expensive than TVP or TSP. They really are a better product, though. I find that if I buy about a pound of soy curls at the beginning of the month, they last me the whole way through. It turns out a pound of dried soy curls is quite a bit.

** It's been so long since I bought my coconut oil, I don't even have a record of how much it cost. I loosely remember it being around $10/pint.

*** I didn't plant a lot for our winter garden this year, but we do still have some cabbage that's trucking along.  So I continue to nibble off of them. 

Sundays With Ems: Growin' stuff

Oh man, it's mid February and time to get some garden starts going! This weekend I sowed some seeds outside, as well as got some started under a grow light and heat pads in the basement. I'm excited, because I was able to save some tomato, spinach and arugula seeds from last year. I can't wait to see how they do. I've also included a lazy Sunday breakfast recipe!

Sunday's to do list:

Make Breakfast/ Beans

February's Garden

It came from the compost!

Breakfast/ Prep Menu:

Roasted Roots

Sun chokes, potatoes, celery root, golden beets, salt, rosemary, oil

Savory Pancakes and Gravy

Beanie oat pancakes with beanie gravy

White Beans

White beans, water, pressure cooker

Savory Pancakes with a Bean Gravy and Roasted Roots

Roasted Roots

This is such an easy and delicious item this time of year. There are so many colorful and rich roots you can get locally, and roasting them with a bit of oil and salt is incredibly satisfying. 

Today I used sun chokes, potatoes, celery root, and golden beets. 

Preheat your oven to about 450. Chop all roots into bite size chunks. Add to pan with oil, salt, and finely chopped rosemary. Bake covered for 20-25 minutes. Once soft, uncover to crispen. Enjoy! 

Beanie Pancakes

I love savory pancakes. This time I tried something new. I added oats to them. I think they're better with just flour and not oats (1 cup of flour instead of any oats), but here's the recipe:

1/2 cup flour

1/2 cup oats

pinch of salt

1 tablespoon sugar

2 tablespoons oil

1 tablespoon baking powder

1/2+ cup blended white beans

1/2+ cup water

Dry Ingredients

Mix the beans with the water until smooth. Should have a milky consistency. Add the oil to the bean water mix. Add all dry ingredients together. Mix wets and dry's, and cook the cakes on a griddle. If you find you need more liquid, feather more white beans into it. It's a great way to sneak more protein into the cakes. You can use a white bean/water mix instead of milk in a lot of recipes.

White Bean/Water Mixture.

Beanie Gravy

1/2 onion

2-3 cloves garlic

1/3 to 1/2 cup oil

2/3 cup flour

1/2+ cup blended white beans

1 cup+ water

2 tablespoons+ Soy sauce

1 tablespoon lemon juice (optional)

1 tablespoon mustard (optional)

In a sauce pan on low, add oil, finely chopped onions and pressed garlic. Let the onions and garlic sit and absorb the oil on low for a while. This probably goes against everything you've ever been taught, but it's a good thing. This gravy is made out of plants and not animal products. For it to be satisfying it needs a good amount of fat in it. As the garlic and onions absorb the oil, they will be little delicious fatty pockets in the gravy later. 

Onions, Garlic, and Oil on low

Add the blended white beans, to the water and whisk until smooth. After about 15-20 minutes, add the flour to the pan. Slowly add the bean/water making a roux. Add in the rest of the ingredients to taste. Serve over savory pancakes. 

Beans and My Pressure Cooker

I'm still looking for that perfect ratio between water and beans so the water doesn't splatter everywhere when it's cooking. I know that 2 cups of dried beans with 5 cups of water will make a perfect pot of beans in 45 minutes. I also know that soaked beans only take 15 minutes to cook once pressure has been reached. Since that takes so much less time and gas, I am determined to find a perfect soaked bean to water ratio. 

Today I tried 3 cups of died beans- which turned into 6 cups of soaked beans, to 4 cups of water. This is still too much water, and I again made a bit of a mess. 

February's Garden

According to the Portland Nursery's planting calendar, I'm a little early for some of this. I've had friends that have started much of this stuff this early before. I'm always impressed in April when their gardens look like untamed forests, and mine still has cover crops on it. This year, I'm planting things early, too. I'll keep you posted on how it goes.

Spinach Seeds from last years garden

Back Yard Plan:

Spinach

Collards

Arugula

Red Kale

Lacinato Kale

Broccoli Raab

Cabbage

Golden Beets

Snow Peas

Basement Seed Setup

The Basement Heat-Pad Plan:

Tomatoes

Eggplant

Bell Peppers

Prepping my backyard for a spring garden

It Came From the Compost!

Since this fall, there's this plant that's been trying to grow in my compost. I wasn't sure what it was, but it seemed likely it was something I either ate already, or pulled so the plants next to it would get big.  Anyways, every time I would add to my worm bucket, it would be trying to reach for the light with it's pale yellow leaves. Feeling a little guilty and wishing it would go away, I would always bury it back down only to find it reaching up with new yellow leaves the next time I opened the bucket. 

Finally a few weeks ago, I decided to give this tenacious plant a chance. I pulled it out and planted it in a pot. It turns out, it was a golden beet, and it's really started to take off. 

Golden Beet Plant from My Compost

Since then, I've noticed other tips of golden beets growing in my compost. It turns out that when I buy golden beets from the coop, they have just loosely cut the greens off them. Most of those greens are still alive. Now every time I go and buy beets, I intentionally get the ones that have the liveliest buzzed greens still attached to them. Right now I have 5 beets that I've already eaten once, growing in little pots. They'll be strong little plants by the time I plant them outside, and in the mean time, I'm going to nibble off their greens!

Planting the Green Tops of Golden Beets

What a score! Beets you can eat and then eat again!

This Week's Plastic Free Local Shopping List:

Golden Beets with live green tops, and Celery Root

People's Coop:

Seeds!* (about) 3.50/packet

Sun Chokes 2/lb

Potatoes 1.49/lb

Golden Beets 2.49/lb
Celery Root 1.49/lb

Bulk Oats 2.69/lb

Bulk Soy Sauce 3.99/lb

Onion 0.99/lb

Bulk White Beans 2.59/lb

New Seasons/Fred Meyers:

Flour** 5.49/10 lb

Sugar*** 2.88/4 lb

Salt 0.99/lb

Safflower Oil 8.99/740 ml

Lemon Juice 3.99/12.5 oz

Mustard 3.99/ 9 oz

Grow it at Home:

Rosemary

Spinach Seeds

Tomato Seeds

Arugula Seeds

Winter Pantry/ Not found Local Right Now:

Garlic

*On Seeds.

I like to buy seeds from the Territorial Seed Company, based out of Cottage Grove Oregon, or Uprising Seeds based in Bellingham Washington. Locally you can pick them up at The People's Coop, or The Portland Nursery. 

** On Flour. 

I bought this flour a long time ago, and it's just lasted a while. The next time I buy flour I intend to go to Bob's Red Mill in Milwaukie and buy a 50 pound bag in bulk. 

***On Sugar.

Sugar is not the best ingredient for a lot of reasons. It has a nasty history, and it's not a great industry today. It's something I use pretty sparingly, although I know I could probably get my sugar from better sources. This Fred Meyer bag of sugar came in a paper bag. I bought it a long time ago and still have some. I don't know where I'll get more when I run out, but I hope I think about it well before I do. 

Beans and Greens: a Breakfast Variation

I love having grains ready to go in the fridge. 

This morning I just happened to have mashed white beans  and left over quinoa in my fridge. Having cooked grains on hand makes it so much easier to put together a hearty breakfast before you have to rush off to work. 

Breakfast Menu:

Beans and Greens on Toast

White beans, quinoa, alfalfa sprouts, mustard sprouts, sourdough bread, butter, salt

Tea

Bulk Earl Grey, water

White Beans, Quinoa, and Sprouts on Toast

Beans and Greens on Toast (5 minutes)

Slice, toast, and butter bread. Spread white beans on toast. Mine were mashed from the day before, but it really doesn't matter. Spread quinoa on the white beans. Generously add salt, mustard and alfalfa sprouts. Enjoy!

Earl Grey Tea (5 minutes)

All of my tea is bulk and loose. This batch is from Tao of Tea. Add tea to tea ball, and tea ball to hot water. Enjoy.

Bulk Earl Grey from Tao of Tea

Today's Plastic Free Local Shopping List:

Quinoa Grown in  Colorado

People's Coop:

Bulk White Beans 2.59/lb

Bulk Colorado Quinoa 5.89/lb

New Seasons/Fred Meyers

Sour Dough Bread 2.99/loaf

Bulk Earl Grey Tea 9.99/tin

Earth Balance 5.79/lb

Home Grown

Mustard Sprouts n/a

Alfalfa Sprouts n/a

Sundays With Ems

Beans, Greens, and In-Betweens 

I've been craving white beans lately. I just love how versatile they are. You can make them into a hummus, thicken a creamy sauce with them, add them to a creamy soup base or gravy, they're even delicious in a sandwich. Today I'm going to prep a batch. It looks as though both my kale and cabbage have survived the frost, so I'm going to harvest some of them, as well as a few other projects that will set me up well for a busy week. All the while, catching up on some weekend radio shows while my hands are busy.

Soaked White Beans

Sunday's Menu:

White Beans ala Pressure Cooker

White beans, water

Roasted Kabocha

Kabocha squash, salt, oil

Harvesting Garden Greens

Kale, cabbage, water

Sprout Starts

Alfalfa seeds, water
Soaked Almonds
Almonds, water

White Beans (30 minutes)

Pressure Cooker in Action

Add water and soaked beans to pressure cooker-do not add salt! Cook for 15 minutes once the cooker has reached high pressure.

I've been trying to figure out the right water to soaked bean ratio for my pressure cooker. I know that if I put 2 cups of dried beans in, 5 cups of water will make perfect beans. However, if I take 2 cups of dried beans and soak them, they become 5 cups of soaked beans. Today I learned that 4 cups of water is way too much to cook 5 cups of soaked beans.

It's tricky because it's chaotic if you have too much water in your pressure cooker, but dangerous in a different way if you don't have enough water. I think next time I'm going to try 2.5 cups of water to 5 cups of soaked beans. My suspicion is 2 cups is the perfect amount, but I want to be conservative when experimenting.

Roasted Kabocha (30-40 minutes)

Chopped Kabocha with Peel

Mmmmmm.... The final half of my kabocha squash. I once again preheated my oven to 400 degrees, chopped the squash into 1-2 inch pieces keeping the peel on, placed them in a pan with salt and a high heat oil, and cooked them covered for about 20 min until they were soft. Then let them crisp uncovered for the last 10 minutes. Now they're ready to add to my stir-fries and pasta for the rest of the week!

Garden Greens (10 minutes)

January Garden Kale

It's always dark when I get home from work this time of year, and I have no motivation to put on a headlamp and pick greens from the back yard. That's why I picked some leaves during the early afternoon sun today, so that I'll have washed, fresh kale in my fridge the rest of the week. To be efficient, I always use a large bowl with a little bit of water to rinse them.

Kale Washed in Bowl

Sprout Starts (5 minutes)

Alfalfa Seeds Soaking

I'm having good luck starting a round of alfalfa sprouts about every week. That's about how long they take to get delicious. My mustard sprouts are coming along, too. They will both be great on sandwiches and toast this week. (I love it when the seeds get stuck to the bubbles.)

Soaked Almonds (5 minutes)

Almonds Soaking

I began soaking some almonds to turn into almond milk later this week. If I wanted to pulp them tomorrow, they'd be ready. I think tomorrow will be hectic though, so more likely I'll change the water out and wait a few days to finish making the milk. That also allows the almonds to sprout.

Today's Plastic Free Local Shopping List:

Sunflower Sprouts at the Peoples Coop

People's Coop:
Bulk White Beans 2.59/lb
Kabocha Squash 1.49/lb
Bulk Alfalfa Seeds (?)

New Seasons/Fred Meyers:
Bulk Almonds 5.99/lb

Back Yard:
Kale Leaves n/a
Cabbage Leaves n/a