Vina

February 3, 2013

Vina Vegetarian Restaurant seems lesser known inwards Newtown than Green Gourmet but I was to a greater extent than interested inwards tasting its Vietnamese cooking, craving around fresh vegetables too herbs. We arrived early on too had no problem securing a table; the need for eat-in too takeaway nutrient solely grew over the adjacent sixty minutes or two.

Vina's bill of fare runs to several pages - though it's non clearly marked, I get together that most dishes are vegan, too the introductory page says they'll endeavour their best to adapt whatsoever declared dietary requirements. Our waiter was friendly too knowledgeable, seeming rattling much upwards to that task. There's a arrive at of fried too fresh foods, mock meats too whole vegetables: salads, soups, noodles, rice newspaper wraps, stir fries, hot pots too rice.

Safe inside the walls of a vegetarian restaurant, nosotros tried an entree whose cite nosotros didn't recognise - Xui Cao ($6) - too were treated to around crunchy-fried dumplings filled amongst finely minced vegatables, tofu too noodles.

We uncovering it impossible to resist sweet, pillowy steamed mock BBQ pork buns wherever nosotros uncovering them ($4.50).

Michael focused mainly on a bowl of vermicelli amongst jump rolls, around delightfully flavoured too shredded mock chicken, lettuce, mint, cucumber too dipping sauce ($12).

I was at to the lowest degree every bit impressed over again yesteryear the DIY rice newspaper rolls ($16) - they featured a mix of tofu, mock beef too crispy-skinned mock pork rubbed amongst lemongrass too spices, served amongst the requisite vermicelli, lettuce, mint, vegetables too dipping sauce. We couldn't behavior to larn out a shred of this behind.

While Vina is non peculiarly atmospheric, it had a appealing golden low-cal on this greyness eventide too the staff were welcoming. The nutrient - peculiarly our brain dishes - was terrific! The noodle soups, noodle bowls too fried rice plates are especially practiced value at simply $12 each. If solely I lived a niggling closer, I'd dear to slink inwards for regular low-fuss feeds.

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Every blogger who's posted well-nigh Vina would recommend y'all visit, run across exploding wonder tempest castle, Sydney Food Guide, Diary of a Ladybird, Conquering King Street, Newtown, Compassionate Vegetarians too I Ate Sydney.

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Vina
395 King St, Newtown NSW
(02) 9557 0456
veg entrees $4-6, mains $6-18

Accessibility: Vina has a ramp on entry too moderate-to-tightly spaced tables. We ordered at the tabular array too paid at a high counter. We didn't take in the toilets, but Toilography did.

Sesame Carrot Rice Newspaper Rolls Amongst Cashew Sauce

February 25, 2013

The terrific rice newspaper wraps I ate at Vina inward Sydney inspired me to line out a jump curlicue recipe from My New Roots that I'd bookmarked a piece ago. It truly smashed through our vege box, clearing ii carrots too a sugariness murphy every bit written too allowing us to sneak inward zucchini too corn every bit well.

The carrots too sugariness murphy are chopped into matchsticks too lightly sauteed inward garlic, ginger too agave nectar, too thus showered alongside sesame seeds. This was sufficiently punchy to operate inward the zucchini too corn without whatever extra seasoning. Sarah bases her dipping sauce some almond butter but nosotros had improve luck locating cashew butter too no regrets. 

With these wraps beingness thus fresh, they were impossible to dip into the cashew sauce alongside dropping one-half their contents into the sauce dish. I tried wrapping the sauce into the rolls (pictured above), but truly preferred spooning the sauce conduct onto each mouthful every bit I ate.

The recipe below recounts what I used this fourth dimension around, but the fillings too sauce are both highly suited to adaptation based on personal sense of savor too what's on hand.

Sesame carrot rice newspaper rolls alongside cashew sauce
(based on a recipe from My New Roots)

filling
1/4 loving cup sesame seeds
1 pocket-size sugariness potato
2 carrots
1 zucchini
1 cob corn
splash of vegetable oil
2 tablespoons minced ginger
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1 tablespoon agave nectar
squeeze of lemon juice
150g bundle rice newspaper wrappers

dipping sauce
1/3 loving cup nut butter (I used cashew)
2 teaspoons tamari
1 tablespoon agave nectar
2 tablespoons water
juice of 1 lime
pinch of chilli flakes

Gently toast the sesame seeds inward a frypan, too thus laid upwards them aside.

Julienne the sugariness potato, carrots too zucchini; shuck the kernels from the corn.

Heat a piffling crude oil inward a frypan. Add the ginger, garlic too agave sauteing for a twain of minutes. Stir inward the sugariness murphy too carrot, coating them inward the flavour mix. Cook, stirring, for 3-5 minutes until the vegetables are heated through too no to a greater extent than than a chip wilted. Take the pan off the estrus too sprinkle over the sesame seeds too lemon juice. Set the pan aside.

Whisk together all of the dipping sauce ingredients, adding to a greater extent than H2O to sparse the sauce out if needed.

Fill a kind out frypan alongside H2O too estrus it until the H2O bubbles. Turn the estrus off. Take a rice newspaper wrapper too dip it inward the water, rotating it some until all of it has been submerged too softened, too thus house it on a plate. Arrange a thick job of the carrots too sugariness potatoes, too thus a few zucchini matchsticks too a trail of corn kernels downward the centre of the wrap. Fold inward the brusk sides, too thus curlicue the long side through (if you lot haven't done this before, in that place are some helpful photos on My New Roots). Repeat alongside the remaining wrappers too filling, or convey everyone brand their ain at the table. Spoon the cashew sauce generously over the rolls.

800Th Post, Sec Giveaway

Today this spider web log reaches some other piffling milestone - 800 posts! It's a practiced fourth dimension to update our where's the best? guide. New abode cooking highlights include:

• caramelised onion dip
• broccoli soup amongst lemon-chive cream
• heaven-sent haloumi
  
• eggplant lasagne rolls
  
• tempeh lasagne
• believe-it-or-not broccoli burgers
• the cheesy tuna bake that isn't
  
• mushroom paprikash (this is erstwhile tidings but we've exclusively actually grown to appreciate it recently)
• raw lime pie
• red velvet cupcakes

Out together with about, we've loved:

• Babka, Mitte, Mixed Business together with Juanita's for breakfast,
• La Panella together with the Vegie Hut for their inexpensive vegan imitation meats,
  
• Peko Peko together with Idea Fine Food together with Wine for a mid-priced meal, and
• Ezard together with Circa, the Prince when we're actually splashing out.
  

Sadly, we've had to take away Filter, Vina Bar together with Three One Two from our favourites every bit they're no longer opened upwards for business.

Las Vegan's Lia Vandersant together with Liam Davies, together with a canister of Monsieur Truffe Hot Dark Chocolate Mix.

To run inwards the draw, tell us close your favourite veg-friendly recipe for winter inwards the comments department below. Give us plenty data that nosotros could crusade making it ourselves, or only link to the recipe if it's already available online. We'll brand together with spider web log the winning entry, together with whatever others that peculiarly make got our fancy!

If y'all don't wishing to add together a contact electronic mail address publicly to our comments, therefore electronic mail us at wheresthebeef_blog@yahoo.com.au as shortly every bit you've posted your entry therefore that, if y'all win, nosotros tin suit delivery of your prize. We won't part your electronic mail address amongst anyone else or hassle y'all ourselves in ane lawsuit this giveaway's been given away. Entries unopen at midnight on Tuesday June 30.