Vegan Chile Rellenos

                            

Ingredients:

8 poblano or Pasilla chiles (canned green chiles okay)
1 pound firm tofu
1 cup white flour
3/4 cup unsweetened soy milk
salt and pepper
vegetable oil
2 cups tomato sauce
1 teaspoon olive oil
1 teaspoon cumin powder
1 small onion, diced
chili powder, to taste (optional)

Directions:

Roast chiles until skin begins to blister on all sides. You can do this over an open flame in a cast-iron skillet, or in the oven.

In a small pan, simmer diced onion, cumin, salt and pepper in olive oil until the onions become translucent. Add the tomato sauce. Simmer for at least 20 minutes – stirring occasionally. To heat this dish up even more, you can add chili powder.

In a small mixing bowl, whisk flour, soymilk, and pinch of salt. The batter should be thick, but not so thick that you can't move a whisk through it easily. (You might have to adjust the flour/soy milk ratio accordingly.) Set aside.

Slice tofu into 3/8 slices.

Peel the cooled chiles. The skin should pull off easily. Using a small knife, core the chiles, seeds and all, by slicing off the stem side.

Stuff the chiles with one slice of tofu, dip in batter, and fry in vegetable oil until each side is golden. Set on dry paper towels to drain excess oil.

Serve the chile rellenos with a dollop of the tomato sauce and enjoy!

Serves: 4

Preparation time: 30-45 minutes

Matt Berger

* I used more like 3 cups of tomato sauce. The sauce is really, really good.