hey everyone, time for a recipe guest post! this one comes to us from the very talented janice whaley who lives in san jose and has achieved the massive undertaking of recording every single smiths songs using only her voice—no instruments. it’s pretty epic, so check out the smiths project when you have a chance, and pre-order the box set. but FIRST, she’s gonna teach us how to make a vegan bibimbop! here goes…

The other day I turned to my boyfriend and said, “ohhhh…. remember bibimbop?” I made it occasionally back in our carnivorous days. We used to frequent a place in San Francisco that made an amazing bibimbop and my version was basically an attempt to re-create what we ate at that restaurant. And now that we’re veg, I had to re-created it the dish again. Because life is no fun without bibimbop.

The fake meat in this dish is a dried soy product similar to TVP called “thit chay” and comes in many shapes and sizes. I go with the one that resembles slices of beef. You can also substitute wheat gluten sausages found in most Asian market in the tofu isle. They are the weird spongy grey-ish brown logs next to the fresh tofu, bamboo, etc (that I avoided for years because, what IS that stuff?!?!?) .

This recipe looks insane, but it’s really not so bad considering most all of this can be made in advance and then reheated when ready to plate. It’s impressive to look at and even more impressive to eat. Each of the side dishes work together to create an amazing flavor combination that is beyond description.

Bibimbop Side Dishes (can all be done ahead of time)

Pickled veggies:
1 seedless cucumber (or two baby cucumbers)
2 medium carrots grated
1 c rice wine vinegar
¼ tsp chili flakes

Combine all ingredients and put in the fridge to pickle while you make the rest of the sides.

BBQ “beef”:
Dried soy beef slices “Thit Chay” from an Asian market (or 4 plain wheat gluten sausages, sliced thin)
2 squares of vegan beef bullion
1 tsp of liquid smoke
2 tbs black mushroom soy sauce (black soy adds the dark color of beef)
1 stp garlic powder (or fresh)
Red pepper flakes to taste
1/4 brown sugar
2 c water

Put everything but the fake meat in a large sauce pot and bring to boil, reduce heat, add the “meat” and simmer on medium until the broth is evaporated and the “meat” begins to stick and burn to the bottom. Fight the urge to rescue it! The little bit of burnt will add give it a realistic bbq flavor. Then pour in a half cup of water and let the burnt edges loosen from the sauce pan. Drain and squeeze the meat, return to pot and set aside.

Sautéed veggies:
1 tbs sesame oil
2 zucchini cut into small strips, rounds, cubes, etc
1 package of mushrooms
1 tbs grated ginger
1 tsp soy sauce

Sauté mushrooms in sesame oil til browned. Add the chopped zucchini, ginger, and soy sauce. Sauté til zucchini is tender. Set the sautéed veggies aside on 1/3 of a large plate. (You’ll be adding other side dishes to the plate and re-heating when ready to plate the dishes)

Steamed Garlic Spinach and spicy sprouts:
1 box frozen spinach, thawed and drained
2 tbs chopped garlic
soy sauce to taste
bean sprouts
salt to taste
sambal oelek or sriracha to taste

In a large microwave-safe bowl, combine spinach, garlic, soy sauce. Top with 1-2 cups of bean sprouts. Cove and microwave for 2 minutes to soften the bean sprouts. Put the bean sprouts in an area of the large plate, add some sriracha and salt to taste and toss gently. Add the spinach in another quadrant of the large plate.

Bamboo shoots:
14 oz. can bamboo shoots cut into strips, drained
salt to taste
finely ground pepper to taste
1 tsp sesame oil

Combine bamboo strips, salt and lots of finely ground pepper, stir in sesame oil and set aside. (To save on dishes, I just rinse and reuse the spinach bowl.)

To prepare the Bibimbop dish:

Fried “Egg”:
1 small box of firm silken tofu, cut into 1/4 inch slices
4 tbs nutritional yeast
1/3 c water
1 tsp corn starch

Additional garnishes:
green onions, thinly sliced
Sesame oil
Juice from peperoncini pepper jar

Steam a big pot of short grain rice.

All side dishes should be prepared and ready to re-heat.

Use a medium sized frying pan to fry the ‘beef” in 2-3 tsp of sesame oil for a couple minutes, put it back in the original pot so that you can use the same frying pan to fry the slices of firm silken tofu until toasty on both sides. In a bowl, microwave nutritional yeast, water and cornstarch for 30 seconds, stir, and microwave again for 30 seconds. It should be the consistency of a slightly runny egg yolk but you may need to adjust the water and/or cooking time to get it the consistency you like.

To assemble:

Microwave the large plate of side dishes for a minute or two until hot. Put steamed rice in the center of each dinner plate. Arrange the pickled veggies, sautéed zucchini/mushrooms, spinach, bean sprouts and bamboo shoots in little piles around the rice. Put the “beef” in the center, top with fried tofu, put 1 tbs of nutritional yeast “egg yolk” and a teaspoon or more of sambal chili paste. Sprinkle with a dash of sesame oil, 1-2 tsp pepperoncini juice, and sliced green onions.

Serves 4 happy people