UNRIBS FROM THE HOMEMADE VEGAN PANTRY BY MIYOKO SCHINNER

I was lucky enough to get a copy of Miyoko’s new book to review and to participate in the “blog tour” for the book. Miyoko Schinner is well-known for her ground-breaking book “Artisan Vegan Cheese” (2012), which I own. (I must confess, though, that I haven’t made very recipes out of it due to all the nuts required– a bit too rich for our way of eating, and I lack the space to air-dry cheeses–but I love her easy Meltable Mozzarella recipe!) In any case, I’ve been following Miyoko since her first book, “The Now and Zen Epicure” (now out of print), was published in 1991, and I have her “The New Now and Zen Epicure”, published in 2001, as well.

Her new book, “The Homemade Vegan Pantry”, is a guide to creating vegan versions of staple ingredients for the fridge and pantry. There is something for everyone in this book, I’m sure! I’m looking forward to trying her yogurt recipe, since WholeSoy is no more and I’m having trouble getting my vegan yogurt the way I want it right now. I’m also intrigued by the Flakey Unfish, Unfish Sticks, and San Francisco Fab Cakes with Capers. and many more recipes.

I chose the Unribs recipe to make for this blog tour, mainly because my husband loves all kinds of vegan ribs! I found it easy to make. Yes, there are a few steps, but they are simple and you can go put your feet up or do something else while they bake for 90 minutes. And you end up with a large pile of delicious vegan Unribs! You also have the option of using oil, or not– I used a little. We ate them hot and cold, and one day I sliced some into thin slices and made a sandwich with them on my husband’s special homemade white sandwich bread with a little of my homemade mayo– yum!

The Unribs that I made

I used Mikoyo’s Zippy Barbecue Sauce, also from the book, since I had all of the ingredients at hand and it was delicious and super-easy– just dump all the ingredients into a blender and whiz it up until smooth. NOTE: Don’t be alarmed by the large amount of barbecue sauce used– it works out!

Mikoyo’s Zippy Barbecue Sauce

So, here is the recipe, courtesy of Miyoko and Ten Speed Press. I have included photos within the recipe illustrating the steps in the recipe and the finished product.

Printable Recipe

UNRIBS
Reprinted from THE HOMEMADE VEGAN PANTRY Copyright © 2015 by Miyoko Schinner. Published by Ten Speed Press, an imprint of Penguin Random House LLC.

Ingredients
1/4 cup soy sauce
3 tablespoons nutritional yeast
2 tablespoons smooth peanut butter (if you are allergic to peanuts, other bloggers have said that almond butter or tahini worked fine)
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 tablespoon white, chickpea, or red miso (I used a dark miso)
4 or 5 cloves garlic
1 1/4 cups water
2 1/2 to 3 cups vital wheat gluten
Oil, for cooking (optional)
Sauce:
3 1/2 to 4 cups your favorite store-bought variety (Miyoko has a recipe for Zippy Barbecue Sauce in the book as well, which I used– recipe for it here)
2 cups water

Instructions
In a food processor or blender, combine the soy sauce, nutritional yeast, peanut butter, tomato paste, miso, garlic, and water and process until a smooth and creamy slurry is created. If you are using a food processor, just keep everything in there.

If using a blender, pour it out into a large mixing bowl. Add 2 1?2 cups of the gluten to the slurry and mix well, either using the food processor or by hand in the bowl. If you’re using a food processor, keep pulsing to knead the dough, adding a little more gluten flour as necessary to form a stiff dough (the more gluten you add, the chewier your ribs will be, so you can control how tender or chewy you want them). It may form one ball in the center or break up into little beads; if the latter happens, all you have to do is push it together with your hands.

If you’re mixing it by hand, knead it in the bowl for several minutes until it becomes smooth.

Roll the dough into a log about 6 inches long. Slice the log lengthwise into four “steaks” about 3?4 inch thick.

Now here’s one of the places where you get to decide whether or not to use oil, and how much. Heat a skillet over medium-low heat—if you’re going for oil-free, make sure that it is nonstick. If you’re using oil, add a couple of tablespoons to the skillet and let it get hot. Add the steaks and cook until browned on both sides. They will rise and puff a little.

Preheat the oven to 350°F. If your skillet is ovenproof, you can just leave the steaks in the pan. If not, transfer them to a baking dish. Mix 11?2 cups of the barbecue sauce with the water. Pour the diluted sauce over the steaks in the pan and cover with a lid or aluminium foil.

Bake the ribs for 75 to 90 minutes, until the sauce has reduced and just barely coats them and the steaks are chewy and cooked through. They will be relatively tender while hot but will deflate slightly and become chewier as they cool, so fear not if they seem too soft right out of the oven.

Let them cool until they can be handled without burning your fingers. Then slice each steak lengthwise into “ribs” about 1?3 to 1?2 inch thick.

Heat the skillet over medium-low heat. You’re going to sauté the individual ribs once more to brown or even blacken them on both sides. Once again, you can choose to oil or not to oil. If you like your ribs on the greasy side, you’ll want to use a good 4 to 6 tablespoons of oil to sauté them. Or you can just use a dry nonstick skillet. Cook them all until nicely dark on both sides (I like them almost black).

Then toss them with the remaining 2 to 21?2 cups barbecue sauce. Now you can dig in. Or wait until the next day, when they will have deepened in flavor and become even chewier.

To reheat, just throw them in the oven or on the grill, or eat them cold with some potato salad—yum! Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 1 week or in the freezer for up to 6 months.

Enjoy!