Chef Christina Soteriou. Photo: Joe Woodhouse
Vegan author and chef Christina Soteriou stopped eating meat at the age of 10 when she made the connection between a live chicken and the meal on her plate: “I didn’t eat meat again after that day, mostly because I loved animals so much”.
She decided that the best way to convince others to change what they ate was to cook for them: “I got better and better at cooking so that more people would enjoy my vegan food and see that eating this way could be great.” Having started out working in fashion before switching to food, she has gone on to work with innovative vegetarian chefs such as Helen Graham at Bubala and in Ottolenghi’s test kitchen. Her own cooking is inspired by her Greek Cypriot roots and “shaped by the bold sun-soaked flavours of the Mediterranean and the Middle East”.
In her debut cookbook, Big Veg Energy, she welcomes eaters of all types, from longtime vegans to flexitarians, omnivores and the next generation – “alert and ready to take on the world, one chickpea at a time”. Here she shares a recipe for spiced, charred, marinated mushrooms on skewers, which she says is “easy to love” and should impress guests.
Words by Jane Ferguson
Christina’s spicy mushroom skewers with peanut lime sauce
You will need skewers for this recipe; if you are using wooden ones, soak them in water for at least 5 mins before you begin. Alternatively, you can stir-fry the mushrooms instead of skewering, if you prefer.
Serves two as a main course, four as a spread
Ingredients
400g mixed mushrooms (king oyster, oyster, shiitake or portobello work well)
1 red chilli (optional)
3 spring onions
1 tbsp olive oil
20g roasted peanuts (optional)
For the marinade
20g fresh root ginger
2 garlic cloves
1-2 red chillies
85ml light soy sauce (or tamari if gluten-free)
50ml maple syrup or agave
2 tbsp toasted sesame oil
For the peanut lime sauce
1 small garlic clove
1 tbsp light soy sauce (or tamari if gluten-free)
3 tbsp crunchy peanut butter
1 tbsp maple syrup
Juice of 1 lime
1 tbsp sesame oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
For the rice
170g jasmine rice
80g shelled edamame beans, fresh or frozen (defrosted if frozen)
Method
Slice the king oyster mushrooms lengthways into 5mm strips. Pull the oyster mushrooms into large strips and chop any other mushrooms into bite-sized pieces.
To make the marinade, grate the ginger and mince the garlic and chillies (discarding the seeds). Mix these with the rest of the marinade ingredients in a mixing bowl. Alternatively, throw all the marinade ingredients into a blender and blend until smooth.
Combine the mushrooms with the marinade in a shallow bowl or container. Toss a few times to make sure the mushrooms are evenly coated. Set aside to marinate while you prepare the rest of the dish (if you like, you can do this the day before and leave them to marinate overnight).
To make the peanut lime sauce, grate the garlic into a small bowl, then add all the other ingredients, along with ½ tbsp water. Mix well to combine, adding a little more water if needed. Taste and adjust the seasonings to your liking.
Rinse the rice thoroughly under cold running water, then tip into a saucepan. Add 340ml of water to the pan, then cover with a lid and bring to the boil over a high heat. As soon as it’s boiling, reduce the heat to medium and cook for 5 mins, then reduce the heat to low and gently simmer for another 5 mins. Remove from the heat and leave to stand, with the lid on, for 5 mins more. Now remove the lid and fluff up the rice with a fork. It should be perfectly cooked.
Add the edamame beans to the rice and stir through.
Next, prepare the mushrooms for cooking. Divide the mushrooms between four skewers, folding any mushroom strips. Slice the chilli, if using. Chop two of the spring onions into four pieces each and add a spring onion piece to each skewer tip, along with an optional slice of chilli.
Heat a griddle pan or non-stick frying pan over a medium heat. Brush the mushroom skewers with the olive oil, then sear for 2-3 mins on each side until charred and cooked through.
Finely slice the remaining spring onion and chop the peanuts, if using.
Tip the rice on to a large platter. Top with the mushroom skewers, then scatter over the finely sliced spring onions, remaining chilli and peanuts, if using. Serve with the sauce drizzled over or on the side.
Photography by Joe Woodhouse
Big Veg Energy is published by Ebury Press (RRP £26; buy it at a discount at the Nerve Bookshop)