Easy and very tasty recipes with textured soy

Like tofu, textured soybeans are derived from soybeans, which in this case is obtained from the flour of this legume. Besides being very low in fat, it has a high percentage of vegetable proteins (20.21 g of protein per 100 g), which is why it is also known as “soy meat”. And, as you will see below, it is cooked many times as if it were minced meat.

In stores and supermarkets, you can find it in different ways. The most common is fine or coarse textured soybeans (depending on size), but it is also found in fillets, strips or rinds. Depending on the recipe, one is more interesting than the other. But they all have in common that you have to hydrate them because they are dry.

In some recipes, you will have to hydrate it before cooking, letting it rest in water or broth until it is soft, while in others you can take advantage of cooking to soften it. Now, you always have to remember that when hydrating it doubles its size, so do not go overboard with the amounts when you see it dry and it seems little.

Zucchini Spaghetti with Textured Soy Bolognese

One of the most common uses of textured soy is as if it were minced meat to make a vegan Bolognese sauce, that is, 100% vegetarian, without anything of animal origin.

Ingredients

For the Bolognese sauce: 150 g of fine textured soybeans - 1 onion - 1 carrot - 1 clove of garlic - 1 can of crushed tomato - virgin olive oil - oregano - basil - salt and freshly ground pepper.

How to make vegan bolognese step by step

In a frying pan with a thread of oil, sauté the chopped onion, carrot and garlic until well cooked.
Add the textured soybeans and sauté everything together for a few minutes.
Add the crushed tomato, aromatic herbs, salt and pepper and let it chup chup for about 15 minutes.
Taste it, rectify the salt if necessary and add a pinch of sugar to remove the acidity. Stir well and turn off.
You can use it to accompany some zucchini spaghetti, as we have done here, or some of normal pasta, for example.

Paella with textured soy

Textured soy also works wonderfully with rice and paellas.

Ingredients

For 4-5 people: 450 g of round grain brown rice - 100 g of green pepper - 150 g of red pepper - 150 g of coarse textured soybeans - 200 g of peas - 225 g of garrofones (large beans typical of the Valencian gastronomy) - 5 ripe tomatoes - 4 cloves of garlic - 3 large artichokes - 2 lemons - 1 branch of parsley - 5 strands of saffron - extra virgin olive oil and salt.

How to make paella with textured soy

Put the textured soybeans and 4 strands of saffron previously crushed in a mortar to hydrate with hot water, and reserve.
Remove the leaves from the artichokes, cut them into 8 parts and dip them in lemon water to prevent them from rusting.
Heat a paella over the fire, with a splash of olive oil. As soon as it starts to sparkle, add the grated tomato and the minced garlic and parsley and sauté, stirring continuously.
Add the pepper cut into strips, the artichoke and the drained textured soybeans, while stirring.
Add the peas, garrofones, the remaining saffron and a pinch of salt, and sauté until the vegetables are colored.
Add the rice in the shape of a cross, from the ends of the paella, and pour warm water until reaching the exact height of the cross. Stir gently and cook without stirring for 25-30 minutes.
After the time has elapsed, taste and correct the salt, remove the paella from the heat and let it rest for 15 minutes before serving.

Depending on the degree of doneness of the grain, you can add a little more boiling water and continue cooking a little more until it is just right without stirring. If you want to know more, here are all the tricks to make the perfect paella.

Zucchini stuffed with textured soybeans

In the same way that the textured soy bolognese is made, you can use it to fill some zucchini as if it were minced meat.

Ingredients

Serves 4: 2 large zucchini - 250 g of fine textured soybeans - 300 ml of crushed tomato - 2 onions - 3 carrots - 3 cloves of garlic - 2 bay leaves - extra virgin olive oil - black pepper and salt.

How to Make Textured Soy Stuffed Zucchini

Hydrate the textured soybeans with plenty of mineral water for at least a couple of hours.
Cut the zucchini in half, empty them without reaching the skin, reserve the pulp and steam them.
Cut and chop the garlic, onion and carrot and sauté everything with a good drizzle of olive oil.
Once the onion is translucent, add the previously drained textured soybeans and the chopped zucchini pulp.
Sauté everything together for a couple of minutes, add the tomato sauce and bay leaves and then cook for about 15 minutes over low heat.
Fill the zucchini with the sauce and bake at 180º for about 10 minutes.

If you want to save steps, you can mix the previously hydrated textured soy with homemade tomato that you already have made or from the pot, and fill the zucchini with the mixture.

More recipes with zucchini, here.

Piquillos stuffed with millet and textured soybeans

Textured soy also pairs very well with millet and quinoa.

Ingredients

Serves 4: 12 canned piquillo peppers - 250 g of millet - 40 g of fine textured soybeans - 1 spring onion - 1 tomato - 2 fennel branches - 1 clove of garlic - fresh dill - Sherry vinegar - oil extra virgin olive - pepper and salt.

How to make piquillos stuffed with millet and textured soybeans

Bring a pot with plenty of water and a pinch of salt to a boil.
Add the textured soybeans and millet. And once cooked, drain it and transfer it to a bowl.
Chop the onion and tomato, and add it to the millet and soybeans.
Chop 1 branch of fennel and add it. Salt and pepper, season with oil and vinegar, and mix until you get a smooth paste.
Fill the peppers with the mixture. Reserve in the fridge.
In a frying pan, heat the mustard, add the cream and reduce until it thickens.
Arrange 3 peppers on each plate and garnish with the dill. Accompany with the hot mustard sauce. Garnish with the remaining fennel branch.

You can make the same recipe by substituting the millet for quinoa.

Vegan Textured Soy Meatballs

Since textured soy can be used like ground meat, it works great for making vegan meatballs.

Ingredients

For 8 meatballs: 120 g of fine textured soybeans - 1/2 red onion - 400 g of crushed tomato - flour for coating or wheat flour - garlic - fresh parsley - oregano - extra virgin olive oil - pepper and salt.

How to make vegetarian meatballs

Soak the textured soybeans in water for about 10 minutes, then drain very well.
Sauté with a little olive oil, salt, pepper and minced garlic until lightly browned.
Add 2 tablespoons of crushed tomato, add salt if necessary, mix well, remove from heat.
Let it cool in a bowl and, once cold, form the meatballs. If the sauce has been very liquid, you can add a little flour to make the dough more manageable
Coat the meatballs in a little flour and sauté them with a little olive oil until golden brown to seal them.
Chop the onion and fry it in olive oil.
Add the crushed tomato, salt, pepper, oregano and parsley.
Sauté everything together a little and add the vegan meatballs.
Rectify with salt if necessary and let it chup chup until the tomato is done.

To give them more flavor, you can add some vegetables, mushrooms, spices … to the dough for the meatballs.

Vegan Textured Soy Burger

And of course you can also make vegan textured soy burgers.

Ingredients

For 1 hamburger: 1/2 green pepper - 1/2 red pepper - 1/2 onion - 50 gr of fine textured soy - flour - salt and pepper.

How to Make Vegan Textured Soy Burgers

Soak the textured soybeans in about twice the amount of water as soybeans until they are soft (the fine only takes a few minutes).
Wash the vegetables and chop them very finely with the help of a knife, a mandolin or a mincer.
Drain the soybeans well over a colander and mix it with the vegetable hash.
Salt and pepper, mix and slowly incorporate a little flour (one or two tablespoons at most depending on the consistency you want).
Knead with your hands until the ingredients are integrated and have enough consistency to form the burgers.
Shape the hamburgers and fry them on a griddle with a little oil.

You can accompany it with seed bread, lettuce, tomato, pickles … and a light mustard sauce, for example.

Spinach and textured soy lasagna

Another dish that you can make with textured soy is a vegetarian lasagna (but not vegan because it has milk and cheese).

Ingredients

For 2 servings: 250 g of spinach - 50 g of fine textured soybeans - 6 lasagna plates - 1 medium onion - crushed tomato - 1 clove of garlic - oregano - oil and salt - bechamel - grated cheese.

How to Make Textured Spinach and Soy Lasagna

Cook the lasagna plates following the manufacturer's instructions.
Wash the spinach, cut them and sauté them together with minced garlic and a pinch of salt in a pan with a thread of oil.
Soak the textured soybeans in water for about 15-20 minutes.
Chop the onion and fry it in a pan with a little oil and salt.
Drain the soybeans well, add it to the onion and brown it a little.
Add the crushed tomato and a little oregano, and simmer until the tomato is reduced.
Assemble the lasagna by putting a plate of pasta, the spinach, another plate, the soy sauce, another plate and on top of it bechamel and grated cheese, and gratin it.

If you want it to be a vegan recipe, make the béchamel with non-dairy milk instead of cow's milk and substitute nutritional yeast for the cheese, which tastes just like Parmesan.

Eggs stuffed with textured soy

And yes, you can also use textured soy to fill eggs.

Ingredients

For 4 people: 90 g of fine textured soybeans - 4 fresh eggs - tomato sauce - piquillo peppers - mayonnaise - olives and pickles.

How to Make Textured Soy Stuffed Eggs

Boil the textured soybeans for 10-15 minutes with a little salt and, in parallel, cook the eggs (here are all the tricks to make the perfect boiled egg).
Let them cool, peel them, cut them in half and reserve the yolks.
Sauté the onion, add the well drained textured soybeans and the tomato sauce.
Sauté everything together a little, turn off, add two of the reserved yolks and mix well.
With the help of a teaspoon, fill the egg whites with this mixture.
Cover them with a tablespoon of mayonnaise (here is the formula to make it perfect and not cut) and decorate with strips of piquillo pepper and slices of olive and pickle.