Choy Love Club: Split pea salad with kimchi, potato and carrot
And one more week until Tenderheart lands in the USA and the world
Choy Love Club is the paid subscriber area of To Vegetables, With Love…Everyone (free and paid) will see a preview of this newsletter but only paid subscribers will see the recipes. As always, thank you for being here. Onto my split pea ruminations….
I bought a packet of green split peas on a whim the other day, without any idea of what I’d do with them. I don’t cook with them often and the only thing I’ve really used them for is soup. But I know in my heart that split peas have more to offer. When my kids were little, an afternoon activity involved barreling down Crown Street (in my old neighborhood of Surry Hills, Sydney) to the long-gone Maltese Cafe for a curried split pea pastizzi. From these pastizzi, I know there is huge flavour potential in split peas - earthiness, creaminess, sweetness. In a surprise to nobody, I decided to try them in a salad. And I really loved the results - when cooked in a controlled way, they become nutty and creamy. I’m excited to have another legume which can be used in salads and veggie main meals. Read on for the recipe.
TENDERHEART IS HERE IN 1 WEEK. A FEW REMINDERS.
TENDERHEART launches in the USA and beyond in just over 1 week! It is surreal to say this. The road to this launch has been long, but early feedback from those who have an advance copy has been overwhelmingly positive. If you haven’t already, now is the time to preorder! It makes such a huge difference and all preorders are counted in our first week sales. Help me make an impact.
Pre-order from Bookshop or from the following Indies: Now Serving LA (with signed bookplate), Book Larder, Books are Magic, Omnivore Books (SF), Bold Fork Books and more. Otherwise, pre-order here.
For Canadian friends, click this link, and for UK, here. For those in other parts of the world where stockists are less clear, Amazon USA should send to everywhere, except Australia and NZ, of course.
I’m going on tour! I’ll be visiting Boston, DC, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Seattle, Portland and Connecticut, and along the way, I’ll be talking to some dream-come-true moderators. There will also be two Tenderheart inspired dinners - one in LA with the incredible Woon Kitchen and another in Portland with Surong PDX cooked by the incomparable Hannah Che. Please come and join me for my first US book tour since 2019! All the details to register, buy tickets etcetera are on my website here.
Did you catch the launch of my PLANT POWERED II newsletter with The Washington Post last week? We launched with two incredible 5 ingredient recipes which will see you through Spring (and beyond). The best way to get the recipes is by signing up to the newsletter here and that way you will get all 10 newsletters sent straight to your inbox. The newsletters include lots of tips and cooking advice, and also headnotes that you’ll find useful.
Week 2 is SALAD SANDWICHES!! Inspired by the Aussie classic, but much more “advanced” (a term my son uses to describe food that is fancier than the usual).
THREE THINGS TO COOK THIS WEEK
1. Tofu ‘Shakshuka’
This recipe is a vegan take on shakshuka and is one of the recipes from Week 1 of my Washington Post Plant Powered II newsletter. It’s 5 ingredients and packed with flavor and protein. The most important thing about 5 ingredient cooking is using high quality products and condiments that are packed with flavour. This rich tomato sauce is powered by harissa paste which adds deep umami, sweetness, with a hint of spice (contrary to what people think, heat is not the main flavour note in harissa). If you’re in the US, don’t bother with trying to find the best tasting brand - I’ve done that research for you and your answer is New York Shuk.
2. Red lentil dal with beetroot raita and carrot salad recipe
No matter the season, an Indian dal is always a great idea. This is a recipe I wrote many years ago for The Guardian. It’s a gussied up dal, with beetroot raita and a carrot salad. But serve however you like. Sliced avocado, with some lightly dressed green leaves and pumpkin seeds, or a jammy 7-minute egg works well too.
3. Soy-Braised Tofu with Bok Choy
I’ve been enamored with braised tofu lately (and I have a new tofu braise coming to this newsletter soon). It’s such a simple, flavorful weeknight meal, comes together with minimal time and ingredients. This recipe is from New York Times (gift link, no paywall!) - I hope this provides an easy answer to your ‘what should I cook for dinner tonight?’ question this week.