Vegan Fesenjan
Vegan Fesenjan is a delicious plant-based version of the famous Persian dish Fesenjan, also known as Fesenjoon. This hearty stew has a rich walnut-based gravy which has a very unique flavor.
Servings 4
Calories 417kcal
Equipment
- Cooking pot
Ingredients
- 1 cup walnut kernels
- 4 tablespoons pomegranate molasses adjust to taste
- 1 large white onion finely chopped
- 1 medium-sized potato cut into bite-size cubes
- 1 cup soya chunks
- 1 cube vegetable bouillon
- 1 teaspoon brown sugar/ any other sweetener of your choice
- ¼ teaspoon cinnamon powder
- ¼ teaspoon turmeric powder
- Ground black pepper to taste
- Salt to taste
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 3.5 + 0.5 cups water around 500 ml, adjust to get the desired consistency
Ingredients for garnishing
- ¼ cup pomegranate arils
- ¼ cup roughly chopped fresh parsley
Instructions
- Put the walnut kernels in a grinder and make a fine powder.
- Heat a heavy-bottomed pot and put the ground walnuts into it. Dry roast on low flame for 3-4 minutes or until the walnuts become fragrant and start releasing oil. Keep on stirring in between to avoid burning.
- Add around 3.5 cups of water to the roasted ground walnut and let it boil.
- Once the water starts boiling, add the vegetable bouillon, pomegranate molasses, brown sugar, cinnamon, salt, and pepper. Mix everything and cover the pot. Cook for about an hour. Keep on checking and stirring in between to make sure it’s not sticking to the bottom.
- While the walnut stew is getting ready, soak soya chunks in hot water for around 10 minutes. After 10 minutes, squeeze out the water and keep the chunks aside.
- Heat oil in a different pot. Throw in the onions and cook until they start turning brown.
- Add turmeric powder and saute for a few seconds.
- Add potato cubes and cook for 4-5 minutes, stirring in between.
- Next, add soya chunks and stir fry for around 2 minutes. Add around ½ a cup of water and cook for another 3-4 minutes.
- Add walnut stew which has been cooked for at least 1 hour. Mix well and cover. Cook for another 30 minutes. Keep checking after 10-15 minutes to ensure that it’s not sticking to the bottom.
- Once done, take it out in a serving dish, garnish with chopped parsley/ coriander leaves, pomegranate arils and serve with steamed basmati rice.
Notes
- Squeeze out all the water from soya chunks before adding them to the dish. This will help them in soaking the delicious stew.
- Powdered walnuts get burned very easily so roast them on low flame and don't leave them unattended while doing so.
- Be patient with cooking fesenjan, if you won't cook it for a long time on low flame, you won't get the real taste of the dish.
- Vegan fesenjan can also be made with just potatoes or roasted eggplant cubes.
- More recipe tips and tricks are given within the post above, please follow them to make this recipe.
Nutrition
Calories: 417kcal | Carbohydrates: 39g | Protein: 17g | Fat: 23g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 14g | Monounsaturated Fat: 5g | Sodium: 28mg | Potassium: 449mg | Fiber: 8g | Sugar: 17g | Vitamin A: 324IU | Vitamin C: 19mg | Calcium: 133mg | Iron: 4mg