Cauliflower and kidney bean tacos

I'm back! After being pregnant and becoming a mum, I've been cooking from my instincts and not necessarily coming up with the most creative dishes. Also, I have often not had time to pause to take photos and blog. Nonetheless, I'm still here and tonight I made a scrumptious vegetarian mexican dinner for my best friend and hubbie: cauliflower and kidney bean tacos! The secret is cooking the cauliflower and bean mixture for a good hour or so--like a hearty bolognese. 

Apparently if you don't cook cruciferous vegetables for 30min they are goitrogenic (inducing goiter formation). They contain enzymes that interfere with the formation of thyroid hormone in people with iodine deficiency. In that class of vegetable includes: cauliflower, cabbage, cress, bok choy, broccoli and similar green leaf vegetables.

Ingredients

1 mexican dinner kit ('requiring' 500g of meat)

1 onion finely chopped

1tbsp olive oil

3 garlic cloves crushed

1tbsp ground cumin

1tbsp dried oregano

1/2 cauliflower chopped into bite-sized chunks

1 can kidney beans

sour cream

2 cups water

2 tomatoes diced

1 avocado smooshed with lime juice, salt and pepper

Fresh coriander/cilantro

1 green top of spring onion sliced

1 carrot grated

sprouts

lettuce

grated cheese

sour cream

Tabasco, jalapenos and chilli to taste

Method

Fry onion until soft. Add cumin, garlic and caulflower and cook for a couple of minutes. Add kidney beans, taco seasoning packet and water. Simmer on low, uncovered for 30min-1hr, stirring occasionally  and breaking down cauliflower with a wooden spoon. Add 2 tbsp sour cream towards the end as it thickens. Put taco shells in the oven to crisp.

Serve with chopped tomato, salsa, mashed avocado, cheese, sour cream, lettuce, grated carrot, lettuce, sprouts, coriander and chilli sauce to taste. 

Eggplant Chilli Paneer

Tonight was 'using up stuff the fridge' night. I saw eggplant, corn and green pepper and immediately thought of making Mexican chilli.


However, with no cheese or sour cream to dollop on top, I made do with frozen paneer cheese and a couple of leftover strips of haloumi


Saute finely chopped onion in olive oil. Add chopped red chillies and a spoon of cumin seeds. Add 2 sliced baby eggplant. Fry for a few minutes. Add 1 heirloom tomato (diced) and 3 garlic cloves finely chopped. Add 1/3 cup apple cider vinegar, 1 cup stock and tomato paste (I didn't have any paste left). Add fresh or dried oregano at his point for an authentic Mexican flavour. Add some sour cream if you've got it. I used some smoked paprika and ground coriander at this point. Salt to taste.


Add 1 tin of red kidney beans


Meanwhile fry up paneer cheese. You can buy a big bag from the Indian spice store in McWhirters in Fortitude Valley. It's a great place to pick up all sorts of goodies. Keep paneer frozen in the freezer. Frozen cheese makes life so easy! :)


Fry cubes of cheese in oil and drain on very absorbent paper towel.


Add green capsicum and corn kernels to the bean mixture cook for a few minutes. Add 1/2 lime's worth of juice and diced cheese just prior to serving.


Add chopped coriander and sliced olives to serve. I served it over brown rice, but you can make it more brothy and eat with corn chips if you have them.