Haggis veggis

September 18, 2007 · Filed under cookbook, pit stop, scotland, scottish

The pluck (heart, liver and lungs of a sheep), boiled in it’s own stomach with seasonings and oats and onions and more, for a long, long time. Sounds like torture for sheep and diner alike? Well, it doesn’t have to be; crafty vegetarians have been creating veggie versions of this Scottish delight for years. Serve it up with some neeps (turnips), tatties (potatoes) and a pint of McEwan’s, and you’re ready to beat back the encroaching English. Or at least enjoy a drink with them.McEwans

Here’s an exemplary recipe from Lisa Ferguson, chosen by NKRH for its non-use of fake-meat and its brilliant inclusion of whiskey (that’s Scotch whiskey, duh). As with many vegetarian adaptations of traditional dishes, this haggis is big on seasoning, starch and flavor.

And here’s a packaged vegetarian haggis, produced by the folks at MacSween:

MacSweens Haggis

If you think this stuff looks bad, imagine the vegetarian version’s blood and guts relatives. In truth, this vegetarian haggis is an absolute delight. MacSweens’ website also provides a list of interesting recipes for the haggis beginner and expert alike: haggis burgers, haggis pakoras, stuffed peppers with haggis, and more.

Finally, the reason why I ever got on this in the first place is a presciently named pub, the Last Drop Tavern, which sits just outside the old gallows in Edinburgh. Simply put, nothing beats a plate of vegetarian haggis in a beautiful city full of beautiful people, near an old noose. Nothing.

the last drop in Edinburgh

And finally, this is as good of a time as any to outline…

NKRH travel tip #2: Don’t ever order Budweisers and Heinekens when traveling. Always ask the bartender instead to recommend a good local beer.

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Drunk in the jungle

September 12, 2007 · Filed under cookbook, pit stop, thai, thailand

It’s true…the NKRH can’t live without Thai food. The following two dishes promise to make a better drinking companion than just about any God-given war buddy. Sure, this food won’t slug it out in the sh%! with you quite like a fellow combatant would…actually, in a way, this food kind of will, if you really think about it.

Anyway, keep a couple of cold lagers on hand when you eat, because when prepared to Thai specs, these plates are smoking hot.

Thai beer image courtesy of bangkokbob.net
This liquor store image comes from a site called bangkokbob.net…kids, stay away from that one

Drunken Noodles
The modifier in the name refers to the dish’s most famed use…as a post-drinking nightcap. Most people may know the dish as Pad Kee Mao. Others may order it as simply flat noodles with spicy mint leaves or basil. And that’s basically it: flat rice noodles, garlic, onion, chili peppers (in the best versions, this dish contains full chilies intact, for the occasional red-alert mouthful), and mint or basil. Commonly, the dish is lightly seasoned with nothing more than a light soy and a little kaffir lime zest. The farther one travels from Thailand, the darker and more sugary the soy sauce. Find a restaurant that veers lighter in this regard if you can. Hands down, aside from a taco/burrito stand and (for meat eaters) a doner kebab truck, there are few things in this world that cap a night of drinking better than drunken noodles.

Jungle Curry
Less well known than Drunken Noodles, the Jungle Curry (Kaeng Paa Moo) is so named for its everything-but-the-kitchen-sink ingredients. A good jungle curry should sit comfortably to the right of the east west divide, with such distinctly Asian pleasures as pea eggplants, green peppercorn sprigs, bean curd skins, white radishes, straw mushrooms, and yams. This curry differs from most Thai curries in that it doesn’t use coconut milk. Referred to as a “country” curry (suggesting that no two jungle curry recipes will be exactly the same), this delicacy of northern origin can, but will often not, contain shrimp paste—as with all Thai curries, it’s best to ask before ordering. While the dish is light, certain elements (the sweet potatoes in particular) give the Jungle Curry a heartening, comfort-food backbone, making it the rare dish that can stand up well to both warm summer afternoons and cold winter evenings. For all the debauchery and beer swilling jackassery that a dish of Drunken Noodles complements, the Jungle Curry makes a perfect panacea for the quiet, heartbroken wine drunk.

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The Masthead

September 12, 2007 · Filed under travel tips

About the cover photo already. Two omnipresent devices –familial obligation and ticking biological clocks– landed me on a cruise to Ensenada, Mexico over the summer. I opted to not inform the cruise line (Royal Caribbean) that I was a vegetarian ahead of time, in hopes that time spent foraging would fill most of the daily malaise, and keep me well clear of the drunkfest on the swim deck.

No dice.

There was a vegetarian option at every turn: a featured vegetarian dish at each formal dinner (avoid the buffalo mozzarella however – clearly a cost-cutting taking place on the white goo), sauteed vegetables, savory pastries and rice for lunch (and bright red Sriracha sauce to keep things interesting), and alongside the typical vegetarian fare common in American breakfasts, there was a miso soup bar each morning, with broth, scallions, cilantro, mushrooms, tofu, and the aforementioned Sriracha. There was even a mediocre-to-bad midnight burrito bar one evening. For a Mexican food fan like myself, every little bit helps. All in all, chalk it up to a full stomach weekend and one terribly soaked liver.

However, satiation aside, let me point out that NKRH does not condone cruises by any means. They are innocuous ways to fail to truly see the world. They’re madly gross polluters. They sit uncomfortably high on terrorist target lists. And honestly, cruises hold no real value other than the hope for a handful of young single folks that they might actually get laid before they pass out and puke on themselves.

NKRH Travel Tip #1: Avoid cruises at all cost.

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Bishop, CA – Where the mountains meet the mouth

September 4, 2007 · Filed under california, pit stop

Almost every adventure sport-person in California knows highway 395. Winding its way along the sheer eastern escarpment of the Sierra Nevada mountains, 395 is home to some of the state’s most severe scenery. Attesting to the area’s geological prowess, a mere 85 miles separates the contiguous 48′s highest point (Mt. Whitney at 14,494 ft/4418 m) from the lowest point (Badwater, Death Valley at 282 ft/86 m below sea level) — and the 395 cuts right between the two. But as always with NKRH, the big question is “where to eat?”

Save it for Bishop. Last major stop from the South before hitting Mammoth Mountain, Bishop boasts two unlikely places in particular: India Palace (Indian, duh) and Imperial Gourmet (Chinese). Both sit at the rear of a minimall at 395 and Yaney St., and both boast large veggie-friendly sections of the menu. The produce at Imperial Gourmet is crisp (who knew fresh gai lan was so easy to score 200 miles from absolutely anything?) and the cooking at India Palace is straight homemade (I swear they put the lentils on the stove the second I ordered the dal). I’d go on, but let’s just say these two can hold their own against any Indian or Chinese restaurant in New York or the Bay Area. That’s a feat in itself for a couple of family-run stops in the beautiful middle of nowhere.

Imperial Gourmet is at 785 N. Main St, ste K in Bishop, CA. 760-872-1144

India Palace is at 787 N. Main St, ste D in Bishop, CA. 760-873-7000. Closed Tuesday.

Actual image of chinese broccoli from Jasmine Seafood in San Diego

Thanks to Yummy 4 My Tummy for this broccoli shot from Jasmine Seafood in San Diego (oops, I forgot to take a camera to Bishop).

And don’t forget to bread up at legendary Eric Schat’s Bakery before you head home from your adventures. This Dutch 395 stalwart claims to be home of the “original sheepherder bread” but the real treat is the jalapeño cheese bread–an absolute adventure all to itself.

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Banh Mi – Vietnamese Hand Food

August 20, 2007 · Filed under california, cookbook, pit stop, vietnamese

The bread may harken back to 19th Century French occupation, but the fillings are 100% Vietnam. Simply put, the banh mi is a baguette slathered with mayo, filled with a substantial amount of spongy soy meat (a grayish turkey), then finished off with a solid dose of fragrant Southeast Asian accents like cilantro, hot chili peppers (jalapeño in the sandwich’s SoCal incarnation), and a shredded radish and carrot mixture dressed almost imperceptibly in rice vinegar. Common street fare in Vietnam, you’ll find six to eight-dollar versions in the hipster Eastside neighborhoods of Los Angeles, though I’ve heard chatter that one can find more OG versions for half the price in the neighboring San Gabriel Valley.

I’ve also heard there’s a donut shop in Humboldt county that makes a superb version. If anyone has any local banh mi recommendations, send them my way.

KP's banh mi, courtesy of Los Anjealous

In the meantime: Angelenos can check out KP’s deli in Silverlake (pictured above, courtesy of our friends at Los Anjealous whose top ten LA vegan summary is a must read for anyone hungry in LA) and Lemongrass in Eagle Rock. For a delightful Mc-version of the veggie banh-mi, check out Lee’s Sandwiches, a family-run mini-franchise scattered across California and the Southwest.

Not today, but sometime soon, I’ll be talking about a Vietnamese crepe called a ban xeo. Now that’s serious hand food.

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Potato salad sandwich at Stubbs. Seriously.

August 18, 2007 · Filed under american, cookbook, pit stop, texas

A few years back, I was at SXSW music festival in Austin, Tejas, bouncing around from daytime party to daytime party, soaking up the sunshine and free sponsored booze when I happily came across a launch party for the newfangled Filter magazine at Stubbs BBQ. Now anyone who knows Austin knows Stubbs. Anyone who’s stared at the artisan BBQ sauces in his or her local supermarket probably knows Stubbs. Not really a great place for vegetarians, unless you’re starving and there’s a magazine sponsored free spread (and bottomless Lone Stars to literally boot).

Working with what few vegetarian fixins were on hand, I constructed a sandwich for the ages. There’s not a day goes by that I don’t think about her. Here it is:

  • 2 slices of big ol’ Texas toast
  • Stubbs BBQ sauce
  • thinly sliced onions
  • pickled chili peppers of some sort (looked like orange cayenne)
  • Stubbs potato salad (the mustardy kind with a touch of sweet)

Throw everything together between two slices of bread and you’re good to go. It’s not on the menu, and I’m sure you’d get a strange look from the waitstaff if you tried to order it, but I highly recommend it — the perfect blend of soft and crisp, sweet, sour and spicy. I might point out that I’m no taker of weed, so this is definitely not merely reefer induced goodness.

Don’t forget about the veggie tacos across the street from Emo’s while you’re at SXSW. As far as I can tell, the truck disappears at all other times of the year, but it is an utter fixture during the festival. Can an Austonian please comment on where that heavenly truck disappears to?

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Hunger don’t hurt

August 17, 2007 · Filed under dear diary

Hey there, welcome to the No-Kill Roadhouse. We’re a food guide for the adventurous vegetarian traveler. Our basic premise is this: eat and drink as the locals do, but in a way that’s consistent with your ethical beliefs.

We’ll be drilling artists and musicians for their best vegetarian travel tips, we’ll be asking vegetarian chefs for their favorite world recipes, we’ll be scouting out the best veggie destinations, and we’ll probably throw our fair share of drinking stories into the mix. Don’t judge us; we’re only human.

About your editor? I’m a vegetarian musician who’s crossed the nation at least ten times in my lifetime. As you can imagine, that can add up to lot of grilled cheese. But it doesn’t have to — there are a lot of good regional eats out there, and hopefully with a good dose of expert advice, our road-tested suggestions, and (especially) your comments, everyone’ll get to taste their fair share.

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