Vegan Sausages: Where are you!?!

So I was whipping up dinner last night and we were having an old favourite – Sausage and Bean Casserole (made with baked beans!) from my Weight Watchers vegetarian cookbook and half way through cooking I realised that in my vegan month I won’t be able to eat these sausages! I don’t eat any other meat substitutes such as veggie bacon/ burgers or “chicken” pieces because I don’t really like them but sausages are my go to easy meal.

I would never have even thought about quorn as being a non vegan product untill someone told me that it is made with eggs. So I decided to do a little google search for vegan sausages available in the supermarket in the UK and well I couldn’t find many. Instead I’ll have to try to get to a health food shop as well as my supermarket, luckily I found a great health food shop around the corner from my work so I really really hope they stock some of these brands! Here are some of the brands I’ve found which I would like to try:

Linda McCartney Foods – Vegan Sausages:

“Vegetarian sausages made from a blend of seasoned cereal and vegetable protein. Vegan friendly, contains – gluten, wheat and sulphur dioxide”

Linda McCartney Sausages

I see these sausages in the supermarket all the time and I had never realised they were vegan! I will definitely be trying these and fingers crossed they’re a tasty alternative to my favourite Cauldron Quorn sausages. The pack makes them look appealing and it’s nice to see they can brown up nicely.

You can buy these from all the major supermarkets as well as Holland and Barrett’s, how did I miss this!

Fry’s Traditional Sausages:

“Egg, dairy, garlic, onion, nut and cholesterol free with no artificial preservatives, flavorings or colorings and no hydrogenated fats or GMO ingredients. FRY’s Traditional Sausages are approved by The Vegan Society and The Vegetarian Society and they are Kosher, Shuddha and Halaal.”

Fry’s Sausages

The photo on the box doesn’t look very appealing to me, my quorn sausages are speckled with herbs which I’ve always loved but these look a bit pasty. I haven’t tasted them yet though so I won’t judge by the photo. I understand there are onion and garlic allergy sufferers but I’m thinking the lack of those flavours might take from the flavour. Has anyone tried these?

You can buy these sausages in Holland and Barrett or health food stores so hopefully will be easy to find and try!

Taifun Organic Grill Sausages:

“Organic, Free From Genetically Modified Ingredients, Organic, Suitable for Vegans”

Taifun Sausages

I’ve enjoyed Taifun products in the past, such as their basil tofu, so I’d definitely like to try these. They look like a funny colour but maybe when they have been browned up in a pan or under the grill they may look more appealing. Not sure 4 in a pack will go far in my house but they look quite big so maybe you need less sausages for one portion.

I like that they are organic and it will be interesting seeing the texture since they are made from tofu. Also look at that lovely speckled herby effect! Yum!

You can buy these from Waitrose and health food stores.

Redwood Veggideli Sausages:

“Free From Animal Products, Free From Artificial Colourings, Free From Artificial Preservative, Cholesterol Free, Dairy Free, Egg Free, GMO Free, Free From Hydrogenated Fats/Oils, Meat Free”

Redwoods Gourmet Lincolnshire Sausages

These sausages actually look pretty good, I’ve seen them before in the health food shop and they’re not too expensive. I think the photo of the sausages is a little misleading because at first glance it looks like they’re herby and spiced but then you realise that’s the gravy!

You can buy these online at Redwoods website or from health food shops.

So after a little research it turns out maybe I won’t be going without my bangers and mash after all. I mean who could get through bonfire season without eating sausages!!! I may even find a brand which I like so much that even after my vegan month I will continue to eat them over the quorn products.

I haven’t included some other sausage products I found such as vegan continental sliced sausage or vegan chorizo because that’s not really what I like to eat but there are brands out there so do look out for them if you fancy a vegan pepperoni pizza.

Do you have a favourite brand of vegan sausage? Have I missed any brands? Have you tried any of these?

Basil Tofu Stirfry with Noodles: Meat Free Monday

I think everyone should have a basic stir fry recipe for those evenings when you just want something healthy but super quick and easy! I admit my “go to” stir fry recipe used to be a bag of mixed stir fry veg, a jar of sauce and some straight to wok noodles; now there’s nothing wrong with this, but its much cheaper and more rewarding to be able to throw it together from scratch

When I was cooking Tofu for the month of January as part of my first monthly challenges I got a better understanding of some basic ingredients used in Asian cooking. I also bought different types of tofu, although I didn’t get a chance to blog about a few of them! One of my favourites was Taifun’s ‘Basil Tofu’ which has a very savoury basil taste to it and also it is a very firm tofu, I never felt the need to press it which makes it an even quicker recipe.

The nice thing about a stir fry as well is you can always chop and change the ingredients to whatever is handy or needs using up. There are four elements – the vegetables, the protein, the sauce and the accompaniment (eg noodles/ rice). These can all be changed around and mixed up to make stirfrys more interesting.

This is a simple stirfry recipe so feel free to add things or jazz it up to your personal taste – that’s the whole fun of this kind of meal!

Serves 2

For the stirfry sauce:

1 tblspn Runny Honey
1 tblspn Mirin
1 tblspn Light Soy Sauce
1 inch Ginger (finely chopped or grated)
1 Garlic Clove (crushed)
1 Red Chilli (Finely sliced)
1/4 – 1/2 tblspn Water

To make the stirfry sauce simply mix everything together and put to one side. Make sure everything is mixed well and that the honey is not just sat at the bottom of the bowl. Also for the first three times I made this I kept adding a lot more water because it looked like it needed it but then I regretted it when I poured it onto the vegetables and it was soggy and diluted so resist the urge!

For the Stirfry:

200g Basil tofu
Vegetables – such as peppers, courgette, onion, mushrooms, bok choi, bean sprouts, finely sliced carrot, sugar snap peas, mushrooms etc
Noodles or rice (however much you like per person)
Stirfry oil such as sesame oil for frying

Ok the first thing I’d recommend when making this is to have everything prepared before you start cooking as it will be much easier. Slice all your vegetables and put to one side on a plate or in a big bowl. Also dice the tofu and put to one side.

Put your noodles in a pan and stick your kettle on to boil but wait untill you cook them as they typically take about 2-3 minutes to cook!

In a wok add a little oil and allow it to get really hot, then add the tofu and stirfry turning it reguarly untill browned on the outside. You  may need to do this in batches. Once cooked transfer the tofu to some kitchen towel and leave to one side.

Add a little more oil to the wok if it looks like it needs it and add all of the vegetables (I usually keep mushrooms out for 5 minutes before adding as they get soft very quickly). Stir the veg and when they look like they are nearly ready stick your noodles on to boil.

Once the vegetables are cooked pour over the sauce and cook for a further 1-2 minutes then turn the heat off. Drain the noodles.

Pile the noodles and vegetables into two bowls and then place the tofu on top! I often add extras like sesame seeds or sweet chilli sauce. It’s quite a big portion but its about 50% vegetables so who cares!