Food Post

Merchant Gourmet: Plant-Based Recipes

Merchant Gourmet: Plant-Based Recipes

We all love good food, but when good food and convenience go hand in hand with plant-based living, you have struck gold. Merchant Gourmet represents just that- delicious, healthy, veggie and vegan food pouches of wonderful grain and rice mixes.

Merchant Gourmet were kind enough to send me a selection of their vegan friendly pouches and so I have been busy cooking up a storm in the kitchen. This blog will feature those recipes and share Merchant Gourmet’s story and their appetite for change, which you can be a part of!

PR Products

Merchant Gourmet

APPETITE FOR CHANGE

Merchant Gourmet have a simple green dream; a dream Generosity of Spirit champions as well… put simply, we want to help as many people as possible discover plant-based food and to ultimately eat less meat.

If every one of us made small, consistent changes to our lifestyle and diet and took steps to embrace a more sustainable plant-based way of living- together we really could make a difference. Not just for our own health but in beginning to restore the Earth. You don’t have to be perfect, label yourself or go vegan overnight, every little choice makes a difference. Merchant Gourmet pouches are a wonderful place to start and are readily available in most major supermarkets and can really enhance dishes as well as inspire easy and delicious plant-based meals.

EVERY MEAT FREE MEAL HELPS TO SAVE THE PLANET

At the core of Merchant Gourmet’s business philosophy is, “the fundamental belief that a world where people eat more plant-based food will benefit our planet and our health. Helping more people to discover plant-based food and eat less meat is what drives us to grow and be better. If everyone in the UK replaced one more red meat meal per week with a plant-based dish, it would reduce the UK’s greenhouse gas emissions by 50M tonnes, the same as taking 16 million cars off the road!”

Let’s have quick look at Merchant Gourmet’s Key Values:

Quality and Taste

A focus on quality and taste- using top chefs, the best ingredients, sourced from the best producers with minimal processing and nothing artificial.

Pioneering

Merchant Gourmet is 25 years old and is still developing and discovering new plant-based foods to share, sourced and delivered in ever more sustainable ways.

Plant-Based

A core belief that a world where people eat more plant-based foods will benefit our planet and our health.

Simplicity

Providing accessible, simple, clean plant-based food from high quality ingredients. Made with as little processes as possible, from simple sustainable supply chains.

A Force For Good

Merchant Gourmet work to be a force for good in the food industry, their ambition is, “to source our product from sustainable producers, create simple, quality food that benefits the health of those who eat it, and be part of a plant-based movement that benefits our planet by reducing global meat consumption. We are not perfect, and never will be, but we constantly strive to be a bigger and better force for good.”

Plant Based Recipes

PR Products

Black Dal

Featuring: Merchant Gourmet Beluga Lentils

Ingredients:

250g Merchant Gourmet Black Beluga Lentils

1 tbsp Curry Powder

1 tsp Ground Turmeric

15g (approx.) Ginger Paste

2 Cloves of Garlic (minced)

80g Coconut Yogurt

Method:

  1. Heat a large, wide based pan with a drizzle of vegetable oil over a medium heat. Once hot, add the curry powder, ground turmeric, ginger paste and garlic and cook for about 30 seconds, until fragrant.
  2. Add the beluga lentils, and cook for about 30 seconds further. Add 100ml of boiled water and bring to the boil over a high heat.
  3. Once boiling, reduce the heat and cook for a further 5 minutes to thicken up.
  4. Remove the pan from the heat, and stir the coconut yogurt through the lentils.
  5. Enjoy!

Three Bean and Lentil Chilli

Featuring: Merchant Gourmet Cajun Style Lentils & Red Kidney Beans

Ingredients:

250g Merchant Gourmet Cajun Style Lentils & Red Kidney Beans

1 can of Black Beans

1 can of Butter Beans

1 can of Chopped Tomatoes

1 Red Pepper (roughly chopped)

3 Cloves of Garlic (minced)

1 tsp Cumin Powder

2 tsp Smoked Paprika

40g Chipotle Paste

1 Vegetable Stock Cube

Method:

  1. Preheat oven to 200 degrees.
  2. Drain and rinse the butter beans and black beans- add to a bowl with the Merchant Gourmet pouch and mix together.
  3. Heat a large wide based oven proof pan (with a lid) over a high heat, add a drizzle of olive oil. Once hot add minced garlic and cook for about 30 seconds until fragrant.
  4. Add the bean and lentil mix, with red pepper, smoked paprika, cumin, chopped tomatoes and chipotle paste.
  5. Dissolve 1 vegetable stock cube in 250 ml of boiled water and add to the pan. Bring to the boil over a high heat – stirring occasionally.
  6. Cover the pan with the lid and put it in the oven for 45-50 minutes (until the chilli has thickened).
  7. Enjoy!

Baked Stuffed Peppers

Featuring: Merchant Gourmet Smoky Spanish Style Grains & Rice

Ingredients:

250g Merchant Gourmet Smoky Spanish Style Grains & Rice

4 medium bell peppers (any colour)

2 small onions (diced)

1 cup of mushrooms

2 small carrots (sliced)

1 small courgette (sliced)

Tomato purée (to taste)

2 tablespoons of Sundried Tomato Paste

Grated Vegan Cheese

A pinch of chilli

Method:

  1. Preheat the oven to 200 degrees.
  2. Cut off the tops of the bell peppers and scoop out the inside. Wash the peppers carefully and set aside.
  3. In a large pan heat a drizzle of olive oil, add minced onion and fry for 2-3 minutes until soft. Add the mushrooms and fry for a further 5-8 minutes. Add carrots and courgette- simmer and stir occasionally for 5 minutes. Remove from the heat.
  4. Add the cooked Merchant Gourmet mix, tomato purée and sundried tomato paste, stir until well combined. Season to taste with salt, pepper and a pinch of chilli.
  5. Divide the mixture between the peppers, sprinkle with vegan cheese, and place the “lids” on top.
  6. Place the stuffed peppers on a greased baking tray. Bake for 20-25 minutes, until slightly brown on the edges.
  7. Enjoy!

Next time you hit the supermarket, have a hunt for Merchant Gourmet and see what meals you can create.

If my recipes have inspired you – try the brand-new Merchant gourmet recipe book- The Simple Plant-Based Cookbook: An appetite for change with lentils, grains, and chestnuts. This book is the perfect ‘go to’ for light lunches, quick dinners, plant-based twists on classic dishes and even some sweet treats.

Mine is ordered, and on its way and I cannot wait! As always Happy Cooking everyone!


love Em-Gem xx

You may also like...

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *