Even though it’s freezing, dark and often raining despondently, I love Manchester in the autumn. Fog transforms the city into the scenes of Valette’s œvre, the bright leaves and swirling grey clouds complementing the red brick industrial and neo-Gothic architecture beautifully, and there’s a sense of the city doing what it was built to do: hunker down and get sh*t done. Ancient radiators are cranked up, the expressions of the people in insubstantial outfits outside nightclubs get steadily grimmer, pavements become fierce places of battling to avoid puddles and there’s one thought running through the heads of everyone in town: Dear God when is this bus going to arrive, sort it out Andy.
Despite the weather, I still feel inspired to create, and my muse in these dark nights has long been: sweet potatoes. They’re honestly a miracle. We can revel in the autumnal aesthetics and infinite potential for wedge/dip situations but the best part is, they’re actually good for you – a big whack of fibre, plus they have enough vitamin C to be considered one of your five a day. This particular concoction was born of alterations of a few different recipes based on what I had in the fridge, so the ingredients are a bit all over the place, but tbh it’s absolutely on the money. It’s what my old schoolfriend’s mum would aptly call bonfire food: comforting and fuelling but not too heavy, and the spices in the tofu scramble are just enough to put a flare of heat in the back of your throat that warms you up from within. Plus you can feel infinitely smug when you remember the whole thing is entirely plants, although if not too strict on that front some chorizo and a bit of mild cheese like Cheddar or Manchego do go really well if you want to add extra heft (or especially if you’re unsure about tofu 😉). If you’re really pushing the boat out, you could run with the Spanish theme and substitute the turmeric for some saffron, and I also think something like this carrot salad would work well on the side to add some freshness. Enjoy.
Per person:
• 1 medium sweet potato
• 1/2 a red onion
• 1 large clove garlic
• 1 tsp smoked paprika
• 1 tsp ground turmeric
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• hot chilli sauce, to taste (I used about 2 tbsp of a relatively mild one)
• 2 tbsp tomato purée
• ~5 sun-dried tomatoes
• 100g firm smoked tofu
• 50g good quality cooking chorizo, chopped (optional)
• Cheddar or Manchego (optional)
• Tahini, feta, tzatziki, plain yoghurt, humous, garlic mayo, chopped parsley, pesto, extra chilli sauce, pomegranate seeds, or whatever other toppings you like
1. Preheat the oven to 220oC/200oC fan and line a baking sheet with aluminium foil. Rub olive oil over the sweet potato skins and prick them all over with a fork. Place the potatoes on the baking sheet and bake for 45-50 minutes. They are ready when all of the flesh is soft enough to stick a knife through easily.
2. While the potatoes are baking, finely chop the onion and crush the garlic. Heat a little olive oil in a frying pan over a low heat and add the onion and garlic to soften. Allow to begin caramelising, then add the spices, chilli sauce, tomato purée and sun-dried tomatoes. Stir well to combine and continue cooking for a couple of minutes. At this point, you can also add the chorizo, if using.
3. Drain the tofu, getting rid of as much water as you can. Take a fork and drag it through/lightly mash the tofu, going for roughly the consistency of scrambled eggs. Add to the pan and stir well, season with salt and pepper, and cook for about five minutes, until the tofu starts to brown slightly. If it starts to look dry, add a little more olive oil.
4. When the potatoes are done, cut in half and, if you like, grate some cheese on top and return to the oven for another couple of minutes. Plate up the potatoes with the tofu scramble and garnish as you see fit.
