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Ridiculously good BBQ pasta

February 28th, 2013 at 01:38 am

Years ago, we went to a restaurant that didn't have any vegan options. The server said she'd speak to the chef, and came back to say HE was vegan himself, and would whip up a special dish for me! He made pasta tossed in a BBQ sauce; it had veggies and may have had tofu (it's been so long I can't remember). All the meat-eaters at my table sampled it and loved it.

AS has mentioned making something similar for years, so I finally, finally tried it. And it was great! So I'm writing down what I did; otherwise I might forget. (Sauce is thanks to vegandad.blogspot.com, an inactive blog that's still up and full of great recipes.)

INGREDIENTS
Sauce:
- 1/4 cup margarine
- 1 sweet Vidalia onion, halved & thinly sliced
- 3 cloves of garlic, chopped
- 1/2 cup water
- 1 cup ketchup
- 1/3 cup maple syrup
- 1/3 cup brown sugar
- 1 tbsp vegan Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tbsp mustard
- few dashes of hot sauce (might use 1/2 a canned chipotle next time instead for a smokier flavor)

The rest:
1 lb. pasta (we used mostaccioli)
2 T vegetable oil
1 pkg extra firm tofu, drained, pressed & cut into smallish rectangles
1 large or 2 small zucchini, halved & sliced
1 large red, yellow or orange bell pepper, or equivalent in smaller peppers, chopped into largish pieces
8 oz. pineapple chunks, drained
1 pkg cherry tomatoes

Make the sauce:
1. Melt margarine in a saucepan over medium heat. Saute onion and garlic for 15 mins, until onions have cooked down and starting to brown
2. Add the remaining ingredients and bring to bubbling. Simmer for 15-20 mins, until sauce thickens and gets a nice deep red color. Can leave on low if it finishes first, stirring occasionally.

While that's cooking, heat pasta water. Add pasta when it's boiling; cook al dente. Reserve 1/4 cup water before draining.

Meanwhile, heat 1.5 T oil in large deep pan over med-high. When hot, add tofu in a single layer; check frequently and flip when lightly golden-brown and getting crisp.

When the other side of the tofu is just about done, add zucchini and peppers to the pan. Turn heat to high and flip or stir frequently. After about 5 minutes, add tomatoes and pineapple and continue to cook until tomatoes start to soften; the skin might slip off a couple.

Pour the reserved 1/4 c. pasta water into the BBQ sauce and stir.

Put the pasta in with the vegetables and pour the sauce over the top. Toss/stir over high heat for a minute or two until everything is coated with sauce.

2 Responses to “Ridiculously good BBQ pasta”

  1. mjrube94 Says:
    1362016789

    I'm going to try it! Thanks!

  2. ceejay74 Says:
    1423090451

    Oh wow, thanks for the catch! For some reason I had it in my head that there was a $5000 limit. I'll adjust my numbers when I get a chance.

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