Tofu and Bean Burrito

By Tom and Shona Pickering

Our approach to cooking...

Our approach to cooking is based around taste, convenience and health. So typically, we try to make our meals quite fast and easy, without sacrificing on the healthy qualities that whole plant foods provide.

We tend to cook a lot of ‘one pot meals’, where in we throw everything in a big pot and cook it up with a dose of delicious herbs and spices for flavour. This way we often put about 6 portions of food together in around 15 minutes, which is great when you find yourself pressed for time.

Plant based cooking has really taught us how to be creative in the kitchen, but the best advice we could give is to go with the flow. We’re not professional chefs (in case it wasn’t obvious!) – far from it. Bu that’s the thing, you really don’t need to be in order to cook up delicious wholesome plant based goodness.

There might be times when you want to cook something but you only have half the ingredients available. No problem, just substitute with other ingredients. There might be times where you think you’ve got the measurements wrong, or overdone the spices. No problem, in time you’ll get the hang of it. In fact, we don’t ever measure portions or spices anymore, we’ve just learned how much flavour we need depending on the dish, and often it tastes different to the time before as a result of this, but it’s still always tasty!

I suppose what we’re trying to say is have fun with it. Use these recipes as a starting point then make them your own. These are all quite simple recipes really, but deep down that’s something that all of us seem to have forgotten. The whole foods the planet has provided for us generally provide everything we need.

With that said, it’s time to tuck in!

I’m obsessed with burritos – I’d eat them every day if it was socially acceptable. Actually, who says it isn’t socially acceptable? This is just one of the many burrito dishes I cook regularly – I’m of the firm belief you can stick anything in a wrap and it works!

Ingredients

  • Tofu
  • Butterbeans
  • Quinoa
  • Wholemeal wraps
  • 1½ cups of mushrooms
  • 1 cup of plum tomatoes
  • Half a red onion
  • 3 - 4 tablespoons of tomato puree
  • Cucumber
  • ½ teaspoon turmeric
  • 1 teaspoon cumin
  • ½teaspoon black pepper
  • 1 teaspoon onion powder
  • 1 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1 teaspoon smoked paprika

Instructions

  1. Boil one cup of quinoa in a pan and let it simmer away for 12 – 15 minutes.

  2. Add the chopped mushrooms, onion and plum tomatoes to a pan with a splash of boiling water and cook on high heat (add a splash of more water if it all evaporates).

  3. After 5 minutes add a full block of tofu chopped into cubes and a tin of butterbeans, along with all the spices. Cook for a further 7 – 8 minutes, adding a splash more water when necessary, then add 3 – 4 tablespoons of tomato purée so that it nicely coats all the food.

  4. Drain the quinoa and heat up a wholemeal wrap in the oven (just to warm it through, don’t cook it like a taco). Add the quinoa to the wrap followed by the mix you’ve just cooked up, along with some diced cucumber and any leafy greens should you desire.

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