We live in a kind of golden age of counterfeit meat products. Meat-free foods shaped like meat have flooded the market, making it easier than ever to find Soyrizo at the grocery store or an Impossible burger at Burger King. These products offer vegetarians and vegans something that is easy to grill while grilling, but that doesn’t mean we should be cutting out vegetables altogether.
Relying heavily on these mass-produced meat substitutes is not going to “save the environment” no matter what the counterfeit meat food giants might tell you – check out Alicia Kennedy’s op-ed for In these times on the green washing trend – but more importantly: vegetables are good and taste like meat or eggs if they are prepared correctly, but not as good if they are prepared without care.
You have to add fat to the vegetable – like you already have in a piece of animal protein – to make it so delicious.
The words “carrot dog” may frenzy your average BBQ dad, but a smoked, grilled carrot done with some fat is not just a whimsical hot dog substitute, it’s an intensely flavorful way to enjoy a carrot . (I love a grilled carrot and I love the mood, so the term “carrot dog” doesn’t bother me. I draw the line with “Bread steak, “however.)
And while a given Michelin-starred restaurant tons of creeping press for removing meat, fish and dairy products from the menu, Chef Amanda Cohen has been cooking and serving vegetables in her restaurant Dirt Candy in an incredibly creative and delicious way since 2008. Her broccoli dog is one of her most famous dishes, but other vegetables (like the carrot, beetroot, and mushroom) have also received the dog treat, as well as the pastrami treat and the downright fine mousse treat.
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In short – Chef Cohen thinks much longer and harder about vegetarian dogs (and vegetables in general) than I do, which is why I asked about her to see if she had any tips on making smoked vegetables, be it carrots, broccoli or Cabbage taste fantastic. (Spoiler: It depends on the fat and the surface.)
A smoked carrot may take a few more steps than pork chops, but they’re simple steps that even a novice can cook at home
“The thing about smoking a vegetable versus smoking a piece of animal protein is that vegetables don’t have their own source of fat,” Chef Cohen told me via email. “When you smoke animal protein, it absorbs the smoke and mixes it with the fat, and you get this really delicious, intoxicating product. When you smoke a vegetable, it is not porous. It won’t soak in the smoke. And the smoke itself basically only sticks to the outside. You want a large surface area so you can get the flavor in as many places as possible. But you also need to finish cooking it in a fat. You have to add fat to the vegetables – like you already have in a piece of animal protein – to make them delicious. “
A smoked carrot may take a few more steps than pork chops, but they’re simple steps that even a novice can cook at home. Cohen’s Nashville Hot Carrot Dogs are cooked using a variety of methods to achieve the delicious effect you want.
“We just cook them to make them a little soft and easier to shape,” she explained. “It’s no fun eating a carrot dog in a bun if it has a pointy end. We want the whole thing to be the same size and to have to be able to shape it. And we know from what we do with it that when it is smoked it doesn’t cook enough and that it has to cook too long as a whole carrot. So I have to start this process and move it forward. So we cook it so it’s just tender enough to shape and then we smoke it and then we dip it in batter and deep fry it and we finish it with the hot oil because it’s a Nashville Hot Carrot Dog is. “
If smoking and deep-frying sounds a little too labor-intensive for a barbecue in the garden, don’t worry. Cohens Broccoli Dog Recipe is slightly more accessible to the average home cook, but you can apply these principles to all of your vegetarian grilling and smoking activities as well.
Cut large vegetables into pieces to add surface area, cook more robust products like carrots, and develop flavors through a variety of cooking methods such as: And – perhaps most importantly – always finish your veggies with some fat by sautéing, dipping, or drizzling with butter or some other aromatic oil. It might not be as easy as throwing an Impossible burger on the grill, but if you think of veggies and cook them that way, you’ll become a better cook regardless of your diet.
It’s worth noting, however, that Chef Cohen isn’t against the occasional Impossible or Beyond product, especially if it leads them down a veggie-heavy path. “They eat less meat because they try these different types of products, which hopefully takes on the dark side of eating more vegetables, which is what I care about.”
