YUMMY VEGGIE FOOD SWAPS FOR THE FESTIVE SEASON

From creating a delicious vegetarian centrepiece for your table, to changing up your sides and boosting your sauces, there are plenty of ingredients to explore.

For vegetarians or vegans, Christmas dinner needn’t be a meal where you are missing out on the centrepiece dish. Seitan, sometimes known as the ‘vegan steak’, is made of wheat gluten and mimics the taste and texture of meat. Tofu has endless uses, from the classic vegan scramble to a Christmas-worthy maple-glazed baked dish that could compete with ham for flavour. Jackfruit is another ‘meaty’ vegetable that can work as a main dish on the big day. This tropical fruit resembles pulled pork and readily absorbs flavours when cooked, making it ideal for a platter with all the trimmings.

Roast potatoes at Christmas are almost mandatory, but there are a number of other vegetables that are worth trying and, in many cases, offer more flavour. Jerusalem artichokes, celeriac, swede, carrot and kūmara are all wonderful and interesting alternatives.

For meat lovers, if you want to boost the umami flavours in your meat or vegetable dishes and sauces on the big day, flavour enhancers such as soy, Marmite, miso, brown sauce and tomato purée are all excellent. In addition, celery salt is a spice that will boost the umami in almost anything. Try an experiment with aquafaba, the viscous water of tinned chickpeas beloved of vegans for its ability to double as egg whites. The liquid of a 400g can is the equivalent to about six egg whites, and whisked with about 100g sugar and baked, it can result in delicious vegan meringues.