Hylyng

In the fasting season, people didn’t necessarily eat “fasting food” in today’s sense of the word — bland, meagre, diet-friendly.
Fasting could be lavish. Of course, only on the tables of the small part of society that could afford it.

The fish that replaced ham during fasts had, for centuries, been unavailable to the majority of the population. Rivers and streams belonged to the King and the nobility, and poaching on their lands was a crime punishable by death.

Figs, citrus fruit, and overseas spices were not peasant fare either.

Today, most of these products are much easier to get, both in terms of price and the simple fact that they sit right there on the supermarket shelf.

So I invite you to take advantage of these possibilities and make a fasting — and of course vegan — Kashubian-style TVP protein. Exotic products and spices fit perfectly into the tradition of strongly seasoned Old Polish fasting dishes.

INGREDIENTS

Marinade:

• 1/2 L vegetable broth (see NOTES)
• 50 g yuba
• 50 g soy protein (see NOTES)
  (In this recipe, you’ll use half of the yuba and soy protein)
• 30 g (3 tbsp) soy sauce
• 50 g lime juice
• 1 sheet of nori
• 20 g (2 tbsp) wakame
• 2 tsp ground dried lemongrass

Sauce:

• 175 g red onion
• 100 g dried prunes
• 50 g linseed oil
• 20 g (2 tbsp) soy sauce

Spices:

• 3 bay leaves
• 1/2 tsp ground juniper
• 1 tsp mustard seeds (whole or ground)
• 1/3 tsp fenugreek
• 2 tsp mixed ground seaweeds
• 1 heaping tsp lemongrass
• 300 g canned chopped tomatoes
• 30 g quince syrup (see NOTES)
• 20 g lime juice

METHOD

Marinade:

1. Bring all ingredients, including the TVP protein, to a boil and set aside for several hours.
2. Cut half of the yuba into 2–3 cm pieces, and half of the soy protein into strips 0.5–1 cm wide.
   (The other halves are saved for another dish.)

Sauce:
3. Slice the onions into thin crescents and the prunes into slices.
4. Heat oil in a pan, add onions, and sauté over low heat until translucent. Add prunes, soy sauce, and spices (bay leaves, juniper, mustard seeds, and fenugreek).
5. Sauté for a few minutes, stirring. Add the soy protein, seaweeds, and lemongrass.
6. Sauté again briefly, then add tomatoes, lime juice, and syrup. Cook until the tomatoes reduce significantly and the sugars begin to caramelize.
7. Set aside to cool. Adjust with syrup or lime juice if needed.

VARIATIONS

Not everyone has all of these ingredients in their cupboard — in fact, hardly anyone even has a pantry these days. Not everything can be easily bought at a supermarket. But fresh or dried lemongrass is easy to find; you can simply add it to the broth.

Wakame may be harder to get. In the worst case, just use nori. You can also add Polish edible seaweed — morszczyn (bladderwrack).

A ground seaweed mix (wakame–nori–morszczyn) is a great thing to keep on your spice shelf.

NOTES

I used my own broth (recipe drafted and waiting its turn), based on dried vegetables — basically a good vegetable stock. If your broth contains no oil, add 2 tbsp of oil before cooking the veganina.

Yuba is a product made from dried soy milk skin, a by-product of tofu production, also known as “tofu skin.” Sold online and in Asian grocery stores. Below I write more about choosing such products.

Soy protein (textured soy protein), affectionately called “sawdust cutlets,” is excellent, underrated, and — importantly these days — cheap. I used German Vantastic Foods soy medallions. Texture matters: some types turn mushy when cooked. For this dish, the pieces must stay firm.

You don’t need the exact same products I used, but the two components (yuba and soy protein) must differ clearly in texture.

The Kashubian sauce is one of the great underappreciated treasures of Polish folk cuisine — a sauce worthy of the popularity of Mexican, Asian, or Italian sauces.

Instead of quince syrup, you can use another strong, traditional Polish syrup (apple, dandelion) or maple/date syrup. In the worst case, use sugar — ideally brown. I recommend dark muscovado: expensive, but worth having as a spice.

SERVING

Best after at least 24 hours. This is one of those dishes that need time to rest, soak, and let the flavours blend.

Serve with bread — on toast, in a hot sandwich. When serving, add a slice of pear or apple, as ripe and sweet as possible. Raw or grilled/pan-fried. Orange or pineapple would also be interesting — and completely traditional. Old Polish cuisine often paired fruit, including exotic fruit, with savoury dishes.

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