So Good Sweet & Sour Soybeans

Submitted by rosequartz

Vegan sweet and sour soybeans, a high-protein stir-fry of crisp-tender carrots, peppers and pineapple in a glossy brown-sugar and vinegar sauce. A meatless spin on the takeout favorite.

YIELD

6 servings

PREP

20 min

COOK

20 min

READY

40 min

Sweet and sour, but make it plant-powered. Here, nutty cooked soybeans stand in for the usual battered pork or chicken, soaking up a glossy sauce while delivering a serious hit of protein. That turns it into a satisfying vegan main, not just a side.

The sauce is straight from the takeout playbook: brown sugar and wine vinegar for the sweet-sour push, soy and sherry for depth, and cornstarch to pull it together. Mix it before you start, because once the pan is hot, things move quickly.

Stir-fry in stages over high heat so the carrots and peppers stay crisp-tender with a little snap.

Chunks of pineapple and wedges of tomatoes go in near the end, just long enough to warm through without collapsing into the sauce.

Kitchen Tips

Have the sauce mixed and every vegetable chopped before you heat the pan. Stir-frying leaves no time to prep mid-cook.
Cook over genuinely high heat so the vegetables sear and stay crisp rather than stewing soft.
Add the tomatoes and pineapple last so they hold their shape and don’t turn to mush.
Stir the cornstarch sauce again right before it goes in, since it settles fast in the bowl.

Variations

Swap the soybeans for cubed tofu, tempeh, or chickpeas.
Add a pinch of red pepper flakes or a spoonful of chili-garlic sauce for heat.
Use tamari in place of soy sauce to keep the dish gluten-free.

Ingredients

TABLESPOONS VEGETABLE OIL

LARGE ONION
cut 1" squares

LARGE CARROTS
cut 1/4 inch slice

CLOVE GARLIC
minced or pressed

GREEN BELL PEPPER
seeded and cut into cubes *

CUP PINEAPPLE CHUNK
fresh or canned, drained *

TOMATOES
cut in wedges *

2 ½

CUPS SOYBEANS (DAIZU)
cooked

Directions

Prepare sweet-sour sauce and reserve.

In a bowl combine 1½ teaspoon each cornstarch, soy sauce, and dry sherry; ½ cup each brown sugar and wine vinegar; and ⅓ cup vegetable stock.

Heat oil in a wide frying pan over high heat; add onion, carrots, and garlic and cook stirring for about 3 minutes or until vegetables are crisp-tender.

Add green pepper and cook for 1 minute.

Add pineapple, tomatoes, and soybeans and cook for 2 minutes or until hot.

Stir sweet-sour sauce, pour into pan, and continue to cook, stirring, until sauce bubbles and thickens.