Vegan Laksa Recipe

Vegan laksa..... it's been the most elusive of soul soothing dishes and finally I've nailed a recipe that reflects the laksa of my childfood! This is a meal incredibly close to my heart: whilst there are a million variations of this spicy coconut curry noodle soup throughout SouthEast Asia they all can be traced to their Peranakan roots. Peranakan culture was created when Chinese sailors travelled to the spice trading ports in Malaysia and Indonesia, and this is also how my ancestors ended up settling in Malaysia via Singapore. History lesson aside, despite all the variations on a theme this dish almost always involves shrimp paste and chicken stock. I have searched high and low for a vegan version out there, or even a vegan recipe that triggers my (non vegan) childhood memories but you know..... food that is incredibly nostalgic will always hold the highest expectations. I have tweaked this recipe for years. And here we are.
Please. Enjoy. May this recipe bring you the warmest of internal hugs and the best kind of fire to your heart and belly.
Time: 1 hour cooking time, approx 10 mins prep (depends on your knife skills and efficiency, ammirite?)
Feeds 2 people.
Ingredients:


1 onion, chopped
4 garlic cloves, peeled
30g ginger, peeled and sliced (Life hack! peel with a teaspoon. trust me)
1Tb coriander seeds
1tsp turmeric
1T chopped lemongrass (hit your asian grocer for prechopped frozen lemongrass)
3 dried red chillies
1tsp tomato paste
1tsp tamarind paste
60g coconut oil
1/2 bunch fresh coriander
20 curry leaves
2C vegetable stock
200ml coconut milk
100g cooked noodles: rice noodles, wheat noodles, your laksa, your call. Traditionally it's both rice vermicelli and egg noodles. I know! Double noodle! Yet another reason laksa is the freakin best)
1/4 pumpkin
1/4 white cabbage
2 C chopped vegetables: broccolli, green beans, zucchini, mushrooms.
1C bean sprouts
A handful of thai basil
1tsp rice vinegar
2Tb fried onion
1/2 lemon
salt and pepper


Method:

1. Preheat oven to 180'C, throw your pumpkin and cabbage into an oven tray, toss in oil and salt. When oven is ready, pop the tray in and keep an eye on it. Should take around 20mins, toss at halfway mark. You want the pumpkin to be golden and gooey and the cabbage to be charred.
2. Place first 9 ingredients (up to and including the tamarind paste) into a blender, along with 30g of the coconut oil and the stems and roots of the coriander (reserve the coriander leaves for the bean shoot salad garnish we're doing). Blend into a paste.
3. Heat remaining 30g coconut oil in medium to large heavy based saucepan over low-medium heat. Add your blended paste, and cook for 20-30 mins: low and slow is the key, we want to see it grow darker gradually, without splitting.
4. Add vegetable stock, curry leaves, coconut milk. Simmer, covered, for 30 mins.
5. In the meantime, combine your fresh herbs, bean sprouts, rice vinegar, salt and pepper in a small bowl. (i used smoked salt, but hey.... whatever you have)
6. Divide your noodles and chopped veg into your serving bowls: you'll need pretty big bowls, we're talking 2-3C capacity.
7. Pour hot soup into bowls.
8. Garnish with roasted pumpkin and charred cabbage, and pepper.
9. Place bean sprout salad, fried onion, lemon wedges on table for the people to add to their own bowls. It's all about empowerment and personal taste.

It may seem like there's a whole lot going on here...... because there is. You can always skip the roasted pumpkin/cabbage stage, it's def not traditional, but it adds an awesome smoky and sweet vibe. Feel free to grab some fried tofu puffs, readily available from asian grocers, for the texture and soup sponge explosions they provide. At the end of the day, this is about you and what you like to eat. The paste and the stock i wouldn't mess with too much, but the rest is completely flexible.