VEGAN CARAPULCRA WILL MAKE YOU SING!
If you read one of my previous posts (Vegan Dog Cookies with Love) then you know how much I like to rhyme. And if you didn’t read it, you’ll know soon enough…because I’ll be inserting rhymes in future articles, including this one! 
While cooking dinner the other night and singing the praises of what I was cooking, the song “Barracuda” came on the radio. Now some of you older folks (like me) will have no problem remembering this song (from the rock group, Heart). So I was happily singing along…and for some reason instead of singing “ooh Barracuda”…I sang “ooh Carapulcra.” Carapulcra was the Peruvian dish I was making when the song came on, and I just started tweaking the verses. The original version goes like this:
“And if the real thing don’t do the trick, you better make up something quick. You gonna burn, burn, burn, burn, burn to the wick. Ooh…Barracuda! Oh yeah.”
My version goes like this:
“And the seitan will do the trick, cuz’ you’re gonna, whip up this dish quick. It’s so good the bowl, bowl, bowl, bowl you’re gonna lick. Ooh…Carapulcra! Oh yeah.”
This dish will DEFINITELY make you sing. It’s so hard to pick a favorite recipe from my Peruvian cookbook, Peruvegan…but this is definitely one of my “go to” meals. What’s not to like? Potatoes, seitan, onions and cilantro…in a sweet and savory peanut butter broth. YUM! It’s super easy (takes about 10 minutes in prep time) super fast (about 20 minutes to cook) and super delicious!
Let me know if you come up with any additional verses!
VEGAN CARAPULCRA
Ingredients:
1 ½ cups of seitan, cubed
1 onion, diced
2 cloves of garlic, minced
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon cumin
½ teaspoon cinnamon
½ teaspoon garam masala
2 teaspoons aji panca paste
1 teaspoon aji amarillo paste
½ teaspoon salt
3 cups water
¼ cup dry red wine
1 tablespoon of vegetable bouillon base
5 small red potatoes, diced
3 tablespoons crunchy peanut butter
½ cup chopped fresh cilantro
Evaporated cane juice (to taste)
Directions:
In a large fry pan over medium heat, cook the seitan, onion and garlic in olive oil until the onion turns translucent. Add cumin, cinnamon, garam masala, aji panca paste, aji amarillo paste and salt. Stir for another two minutes. Add water, wine, bouillon base and potatoes. Bring to a boil, cover and reduce heat to low. Simmer until potatoes are cooked through, approximately 20-25 minutes. Remove approximately ½ cup of hot broth from the stew, and place it into a mug. Add the peanut butter and stir until it’s incorporated into the broth. Return the mixture to the stew and stir thoroughly. Remove from heat. Add chopped fresh cilantro. Season to taste with salt, pepper and a little evaporated cane juice.
Serves 4………..and don’t forget to sing!
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