How to prepare TVP

My husband is the TVP expert, and gave me these instructions. TVP is available in different shapes & sizes (all dried); minced, cutlets, and chunks.

He soaks the cutlets for 4 minutes, but the thicker cutlets take a lot longer, so you will have to experiment with how long to soak. You must boil the water first, and it's best to use a Bodum (plunge-type glass coffee maker)so that the chunks are totally submerged. Once you've solved the texture problem with the correct amount of soaking, you can move on to the seasoning step.

He splashs it with Tamari (a bit, not a lot), and stirs it all up so it's well mixed. He says the chunks don't have a large surface area so you won't need a lot.

Then he says you need something with acid in it:
lemon juice, or lime juice, or balsamic vinegar
His latest find was mint sauce (purchased, but basically consists of mint in vinegar with a bit of sugar)

You can put this in soup, or a cassoulet-type bean dish, or add to stews.

Vegetarian Barley Risotto

We have started using pearl barley in recipes and really love it! If you have a pressure cooker, this risotto takes practically no time at all to prepare and cook.

Serves 4

2 TB olive oil
1 cup pearl barley
50 grams TVP cutlet (or large chunks)
3 cups vegetarian stock (we have used McCormick's in the past, which are vegetarian, but nowadays we make our own vegetable stock)
2 oz sun-dried tomatoes, chopped (soft & pliable, not dried out and hard)
4 cloves garlic, chopped
1 small cooking onion, chopped
1 leek, chopped (white & tender green parts - well cleaned of sand & grit)
sea salt to season
2 cups thinly chopped carrot slices
5 fresh sprigs of fresh rosemary, chopped fine
a few fresh basil leaves, chopped
1 TB dried thyme leaves

1 oz butter
1 oz parmesan reggiano cheese, grated (or a 3-yr old cheddar that bites back)

Pre-soak TVP for 5 minutes in 3 cups of water that has been brought to the boil, drain and discard liquid (we use a bodum coffeemaker in order to submerge the TVP completely).

Saute onions & garlic in bottom of a pressure cooker with olive oil.
When onions are softened, add leeks, when softened, add everything else except butter and parmesan cheese.

Cover pressure cooker with lid and cook for 10 minutes (after it comes up to pressure).

If you don't have a pressure release valve, let it set until the pressure releases before opening.

Add cheese and butter and mix well (if you had to wait for the pressure to come down, you may need to reheat in order to get butter and cheese to melt and mix together).