When some people think of vegetarian diets, the first thing that might come to mind is a salad or piles of steamed vegetables. Sound boring? It doesn’t have to be. Cooking your greens is actually a creative process, and the results can be just as tasty as their meaty counterparts.

Here are some of my favorite recipes from my aunt, a legit vegetarian for so many years. Trust me: you won’t miss meat after you’ve tried these.

5 Vegetarian Recipes You’ll Love

5. Cheesy Dynamite Rolls

Ingredients

• 12 pieces of green chili
• 12 pieces of lumpia wrapper
• 12 pieces of cheese (you can use any cheese you want. For this, we used a mix of mozzarella and Eden cheese)
• Coconut oil for frying

Procedure

1. Using a knife, cut a slit in the center of each chili. Use a small spoon to remove the seeds. If you want your Dynamite Lumpia to be spicy, you can leave some in; if not, make sure that each one of them is really clean.
2. Cut your cheese into sticks or grate your cheeses and mix them together if you’re using more than one kind. Stuff your cheese/s in all of the peppers.
3. Place the stuffed chili in the center of your lumpia wrapper and fold it into a neat roll. Make sure to leave the stem out. Seal it shut with a swipe of water and repeat for the rest.
4. Get a pot of oil going on medium to high heat. Carefully drop each roll inside and make sure not to overcrowd them.
5. Fry for about 4 minutes or until the skin is golden brown and crunchy. Remove from heat, place on a strainer, and let the excess oil drip.
6. Enjoy them as is or with your choice of dip (I recommend a creamy garlic sauce).

4. Healthy Vegetarian Pasta

Ingredients

• 1/2 pound of angel hair pasta
• 1/2 cup of cherry tomatoes
• 1/4 cup of olives
• 1/2 pound of fresh spinach
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 3 tbsp of extra virgin olive oil
• Salt and pepper to taste
• As much parmesan cheese as you want

Procedure

1. Boil water in a pot, and add some salt and oil in it.
2. Bring to a rolling boil, then add your pasta. Stir occasionally so your noodles don’t clump together.
3. Let the pasta cook for about 4 minutes for an al dente texture or until you get your desired softness. Strain the noodles and set aside. Make sure to save 2 tbsp of the pasta water for later.
4. In a pan over medium heat, add in your cooking oil. Saute your garlic until fragrant, and then add your spinach.
5. Season with salt and pepper. Cook the spinach until it begins to wilt, and then add your cherry tomatoes.
6. Once the tomatoes are slightly soft, add your cooked pasta. Spoon in some pasta water to help everything stick together. Toss until everything is well-combined and remove from the heat.
7. Top with parmesan cheese and serve.

3. Mushroom Barbecue Skewers

Ingredients

• Monkey Head Mushrooms, sliced into large chunks (alternatively, you can use tokwa or veggie meat for this)
• Pineapple chunks
• Bell Peppers, sliced

Marinade

• Soy sauce
• Spiced vinegar (we use a garlic and chili-infused one, but regular vinegar is fine)
• Ground pepper to taste

Glaze:

• 2 tsp of brown sugar
• 1/4 cup of water
• Juice from 10 pieces of calamansi
• 1 tbsp of Worcestershire sauce
• 3/4 cup of Mama Sita BBQ sauce
• 2 tbsp of olive oil
• 2 tbsp of vegetable oil

Procedure

1. In a bowl, mix your soy sauce, vinegar, and pepper together. The proportions depend on how you like the taste. If you want it to be more sour, add more vinegar. If you want a more umami taste, add more soy sauce. Otherwise, keep the ratio as 2:1 for the soy sauce and vinegar.
2. Add your monkey head mushrooms, tokwa, or veggie meat in the marinade. Leave in the mixture for an hour or more.
3. Skewer them on a stick along with your sliced peppers and pineapples. You can even add onions or your choice of fruits and veggies.
4. In another bowl, combine your brown sugar, water, calamansi juice, Worcestershire sauce, BBQ sauce, olive oil, and vegetable oil. Brush the glaze on the barbecue, even on the peppers and pineapples.
5. Grill until the mushrooms have a slightly brownish char, then serve immediately.

2. Fresh Lumpia

Ingredients

Filling

• 2 kilos of carrots
• 3/4 kilos of Baguio ceans
• 1.5 kilos of cabbage
• 1.5 kilos of turnips (singkamas)
• 10 pieces of tokwa
• 1/2 kilos of lettuce
• 100 grams of coriander or wansui (optional)
• 1/2 kilos of shallots
• 4 cans of button mushrooms
• Sliced heart of palm or ubod, cut into matchsticks (optional)
• Rock sugar
• 2 tsp of mushroom seasoning
• 3 tbsp of vegetable oil

Sugary Peanuts

• Raw skinless peanuts
• White sugar, depending on how sweet you want it
• Vegetable oil

Fried Seaweed (Ho Ti)

• Dried Chinese seaweed
• Bihon, chopped into small bits
• Vegetable oil

Sweet Sauce

• 1 tbsp of soy sauce
• 3 tbsp of brown sugar
• 1/4 cup of water at room temperature
• 1 tsp of cornstarch

Others

• Lumpia wrappers
• Chinese cabbage (pechay)

Procedure

Lumpia

1. Mince all of the vegetables, mushrooms, and tokwa separately, and set aside.
2. In a large pot, sauté the shallots in oil over medium heat until brown.
3. Lower the heat, then add your minced vegetables, mushrooms, ubod, and tokwa in the pot. Don’t keep stirring, so that they don’t break apart. Just move your vegetables around lightly. Cover, then let the whole thing cook.
4. Add a little rock sugar and let it melt in the soup stock. Do not add water since the mixture of vegetables will produce soup.
5. Cook everything until soft, but don’t overcook. Season with a little salt.

Sugary Peanuts

1. Roast the skinless peanuts in some oil over medium heat until light brown.
2. Cool, then either pound in mortar and pestle or pulse in a food processor until grainy.
3. Add in white sugar and mix.

Fried Seaweed (Ho Ti)

1. In a pan, add your oil and set the heat to medium to high. Toss in your Bihon noodles and fry until white.
2. Add your Chinese seaweed and mix with the noodles until crispy.
3. Remove from oil and let it drip in a strainer.

Sweet Sauce

1. In a small bowl, mix water and cornstarch to make a slurry.
2. Add soy sauce and sugar, then stir.
3. Heat your sauce in the microwave or in a pan for 15 seconds. Keep mixing until it becomes sticky.

Assembly:

1. Lay your lumpia wrapper flat and place a pechay leaf over it.
2. Spoon some of the vegetable filling onto the leaf. That way, the moisture does not tear the wrapper.
3. Place sugary peanuts and fried seaweed on top of the filling. Wrap it up into a neat roll.
4. Top with crushed peanuts and serve with sweet sauce on the side.

1. Corn and Vegetable Fritters

Ingredients

• 1 and 1/2 cup of all-purpose flour
• 1 and 1/2 cups of canned corn
• 1/4 cup of carrots, finely diced
• 1/4 cup of celery, finely diced
• 1/3 cup of spring onion, chopped
• 1/2 cup of milk
• 2 eggs
• 1 tsp of baking soda
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 1/2 cup of coconut oil, for frying
• Sweet chili sauce

Procedure

1. Add your canned corn, carrots, celery, spring onion, flour, baking soda, and milk in a large bowl and mix well. Beat in your eggs, and pour in the mixture to form a batter.
2. In a large pan, heat your oil over medium to high heat.
3. Scoop a tablespoon of the mixture and form a fritter. Drop it in the hot oil. Repeat on the remaining batter, but make sure not to overcrowd the pan.
4. Flip when you see the edges beginning to brown. Repeat on the other side and on the remaining fritters.
5. Serve with chili sauce on the side. Enjoy!

Got any vegetarian recipes? Share them with us!

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