If you or someone you know is trying to stop consuming harmful products, here is an amazing recipe that you can use and share. It is every bit as tasty as the animal-based dish that it mimics. But the plant-based version is infinitely healthier, as all animal products contain cholesterol, which is the main cause of heart disease, the world’s number one killer. Cholesterol does not exist in the plant kingdom. Yes, zero cholesterol in plants or mushrooms, so eat as many of these as you like with absolutely no chance of clogging your arteries. On the other hand, consuming animal products is like playing Russian roulette with your tubes. And don’t forget that you and I are largely made of tubes… it is absolutely critical that these millions of tubes stay open at all times.
If you eat any animal products at all, and your lab test reveals that your cholesterol is in “the acceptable range”, that only means that, compared to other unhealthy people, your heart attack is not expected until a little later than those gobbling more beasts than you. You are still playing Russian roulette, but with “fewer” bullets. Ask yourself if there is any “safe” number of bullets to have in the chamber of a gun when playing Russian roulette, other than zero. And by the way, vegans do have cholesterol in our arteries, but there is no problem with having your own cholesterol… it is useful in the brain and in repairing damaged arteries. Your own endogenous cholesterol almost never poses a threat to your health.
Aside from the health benefits of eating plant-based shredded beef, the best part of this recipe is that its main ingredient is something that you would normally throw away, hopefully in the compost pile. The main ingredient is the peel of a ripe plantain. Plantains are basically large bananas that are versatile and rich in nutrients.
How to make Vegan Shredded Beef
After you turn the fruity flesh of the plantain into plant based yogurt, using the recipe I posted here, set the peels aside. Cut off the course ends. Now take a fork in one hand and hold the plantain peel with the other hand as you scrape the insides of the peels along their length. Keep scraping until you’ve shredded the plantain peel into thin shreds, then rotate your cutting board 180 degrees so you can easily shred the other half. Now you can slice the long shreds into about three sections. Peel and chop some onions and you may want to chop up some mushrooms, bell peppers, tomatoes or any other plant that you choose. You can make this recipe a little different each time, as we are fond of doing here at Vida Lotus.
In a frying pan, add some cooking oil. We recommend avocado or grapeseed oil, as these two options will add nutrients and flavor while resisting the heat in cooking. Please do not cook with olive oil as it becomes damaged at a relatively low temperature, thus wasting its flavor and nutrients. (If you doubt this, do a small test with a single drop of olive oil, and watch it go up in smoke. Might as well burn money.) Once the oil is hot, add in the onions and the shredded plantain peels. Stir with a wooden spoon. Add some freshly minced garlic. After a couple of minutes, add the other ingredients of your choice. If you like spicy food, you may want to add some chopped jalapenos.
Next comes the seasoning. We recommend pink Himalayan sea salt, freshly crushed pepper (black, red and white), cumin (which has a meaty flavor) and paprika for both flavor and color. You can add in any other dried spices that you like at this point. If you have fresh herbs on hand, and I hope you do, don’t add them in until you have taken the pan off the stove. Fresh herbs are healthiest and most enjoyable when eaten raw, so save them from last. Add them on top to bring any dish to life. Recommended herbs: basil, rosemary, oregano, sage, thyme, and dill.
Garnish your plate with more fresh herbs. The fuscia-colored leaves that you see in the pictures and videos above are called “mangueyitas”. They are edible, decorative herbs that we cultivate here at Vida Lotus.
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