This dish is inspired by a recipe from Vegan Express by Nava Atlas. I’ve had a photocopy of this recipe for years and I put my own twist on it. As Atlas says in her book, “It’s unusual to give a bean dish an Asian spin.” I love the flavors and colors of this dish. It’s easy to make and very forgiving, so if you don’t have an ingredient or two, don’t worry.
My recipe makes 2 servings
Ingredients
glug of oil (I prefer avocado oil for this dish, but olive oil works too)
1/2 medium yellow onion, diced
2-3 garlic cloves, smashed
a thumb length piece of fresh ginger, peeled and grated or chopped fine
1-2 stalks of broccoli (suggested preparation below)
1/3 red pepper, diced
1 ripe tomato, diced
1/2 can pinto beans, rinsed and drained
For the Sauce
1-2 teaspoons sesame oil
1 tablespoon miso paste
1 tablespoon rice flour, tapioca, arrowroot, or cornstarch (optional thickener)
1 tablespoon vegetable stock (optional flavor booster)
Serve with Grains
brown or white rice are my preferences for this dish
quinoa also works well
Instructions - Get Everything Ready Before You Cook
To start, chop up all your veggies so that when you start to cook, everything you need is ready. If you want to add other veggies, go for it.
Cut broccoli florets into bite size pieces. Cut a few inches off the hardest part of the stem, then cut up the top portion of the stem. That part of the broccoli is good to eat, so you don’t need to throw it away. I cut the stem into rounds, cut the rounds in half, and then make a few more slices across, until the pieces are diced the size of the onions.
Make your sauce by whisking the miso paste in the sesame oil and adding your thickener. I have tried this recipe with both brown rice flour and cornstarch, because that’s what I had on hand. I don’t like to use much cornstarch in my cooking, but it does work well here. You can also omit it entirely if you prefer. It’s job is to thicken the sauce akin to what you would get in a restaurant. The flavor will be just as good without it. If you have some homemade veggie stock on hand, you can add 1 tablespoon to this mix for added flavor. Heating it in a microwave for a few seconds will help the miso paste dissolve. It likes to clump together.
I used organic pinto beans for this recipe and prefer this type of bean with the ginger and miso sauce. The small jar is homemade pickled ginger that I used once in a pinch when I was out of fresh ginger. It was not as good as fresh because the pickled ginger tastes strongly of vinegar, but it works if needed.
Start Cooking
Heat your pan over medium-high heat for a few minutes, then add a glug of oil.
Add onions, stirring frequently for 2 minutes.
Add ginger and broccoli pieces and florets, stir occasionally for 2-4 minutes.
Add diced red pepper, sliced tomatoes, and rinsed beans. Stir to combine.
Add the miso sauce you made earlier. Add your grain (rice or quinoa). Stir to combine and cook another 2-4 minutes.
Lower the heat to 1 and let the mix sit and simmer another 2 minutes until the broccoli florets are tender.
Serve and enjoy. The flavors of this dish are unique so taste it before adding anything like hot sauce or sriracha, or other toppings.