Cookbook Review: The Spicy Plant-Based Cookbook

Y'all know I like it hot! The spicier, the better! We grow hot peppers (ghosts, trinidad scorpions, carolina reapers), and I've been known to sneak those into my cooking. So when I was offered a review copy of The Spicy Plant-Based Cookbook, I couldn't resist. This new vegan cookbook features more than 200 fiery snacks, dips, and main dishes with a spicy punch! This book has spicy recipes for sauces and spreads, breakfasts and brunch, apps and snacks, salads, soups and stews, mains, sides, and desserts and drinks.

I chose two recipes to try! Paul always orders panang curry when we eat Thai food, so I picked the Curry Seitan Stew when I saw it was made with panang curry paste. This hearty stew has seitan, panang, coconut milk, and lots of spices. They don't include a recipe for seitan, so I made my own using my fave recipe in Vegan Eats World. The spiciness comes from the storebought panang paste, which has a little heat to it.

I loved this stew! I've had tofu panang but never seitan panang, and I loved the meaty seitan with this spicy, rich sauce. Granted, this would have been a better winter recipe. It's in the 90s here, so a hearty stew isn't really what I'm craving. But I'll be making this again in the colder months for sure!

Next up, I made the Indian Tofu Palak. This is a vegan version of palak paneer, which traditionally has cheese and yogurt. Tofu stands in for the cheese, and I used homemade, unsweetened soy yogurt for the sauce. The spice comes from the curry powder, so it's not very hot. But I did use a spicy curry.

This was fantastic! The recipe didn't call for hing (asefoetida), but I added some because it's my favorite spice of the moment, and it really takes Indian dishes to the next level. The tofu "cheese" was coated in nooch and garlic while cooking, so it was very cheesy. I will definitely be making this again soon!

There are so many recipes in this book that I want to try! Cajun Tempeh Po'Boys, General Tso's Tofu, Spicy Southern Jambalaya, and Korean Style Hot Pot! There are even spicy salads, like Messy Taco Salad and Indian Red Onion Salad (Rani Pyaz). But I think my next recipe to try will have to be the Cucumber Margaritas with a cayenne pepper rim. Sounds like the perfect Southern drink!