Steak of luck

Cottage cheese ‘steak’ with red bell pepper and green olive sauce

Vegetarian main course dishes that go beyond plated carbs, impress me a lot. While most Indian and international cuisines have an exhaustive array of appetizers, salads and soups that can be made using vegetables only, when it comes to mains, the options are often restricting. If you don’t believe me, thumb through any restaurant menu and you will see how your choices will be restricted to pasta, rice and potato-based dishes.

As a vegetarian cook, I admire roasts. Roasts are wholesome and fit perfectly into my idea of main course meals. I miss having an easy main course-friendly ingredient that can be roasted into a glorious brown, be dressed in a glimmering sauce and served just like that.

My answer to a non-vegetarian roasts, is this cottage cheese ‘steak’. 

Ingredients for herb infused cottage cheese steak

½ liter milk
Juice of ½ lemon
2 tablespoon coriander (finely chopped)
2 tablespoon oregano (finely chopped)
2 tablespoon basil (finely chopped)
Salt as per taste

Method: In a thick bottomed pan, boil milk and add all the herbs. Let the liquid simmer for 3-4 minutes before adding lemon juice to it. This will make the milk curdle. Once the milk begins to disintegrate, stir it for three to four minutes until all the water and solid mass has separated. Pour this liquid on a wet cheese cloth and strain thewater out. Transfer the crumbly cheese in a bowl and let it rest for three to four hours in the refrigerator. To make the vegetarian steak, add salt to the cheese crumbs and knead it well. Make a big ball with the crumbs and pat it into a patty. Roast the patty on both sides until brown and keep it aside.

Ingredients for roasted bell pepper and green olive sauce
1 roasted bell pepper
2 pods of garlic (roasted)
Handful of torn basil leaves
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 tablespoon green olives
Salt and pepper as per taste
½ cup sweet corn (boiled)
Few green olives for garnish

Method: In a blender, churn bell pepper, garlic, basil leaves and green olives into a thick paste. In a pan heat olive oil and simmer the pepper paste for three to four minutes. Season it with salt and pepper and add sweet corn to it. Transfer the hot sauce in a deep plate and garnish it with green olives. On top, place the cottage cheese steak and serve hot.