By the end of April, my husband Chris and I packed our bags to move to the Philippines. During this time, the pandemic, especially in Manila, was still fragile, with many lives and livelihoods affected by both the virus and the lockdown. But to continue with our unfinished business in Manila, we cautiously proceeded and went through safety protocols per the country’s mandate. One of these protocols was to check in at a government-approved hotel for a six-day quarantine.
As vegans, we couldn’t entirely expect that the hotel we will stay at will have vegan options. We did not want to be at the mercy of their menu. It didn’t help that part of the mandate prohibited ordering delivery from outside restaurants. Because of such restrictions, I booked a hotel that has a kitchen. To cook our vegan dishes, I brought along canned and dried goods that travel well. For six days, using only the dried goods I brought, I made different variations of ramen soup, stir-fry noodles, pasta with tomato sauce, fried rice, oatscaldo, and more. I thought that I would feel deprived because of our limited resources, but the limitations ignited my creativity and made the quarantine actually fun.
With the oatscaldo recipe below, I hope you have fun making it too. You don’t have to be at a quarantine hotel to try it. The recipe is also ideal if you didn’t get the chance to visit the store for fresh ingredients or if you’re still practicing social distancing. Perhaps you also want a good challenge and want to see what you can make with the ingredients you already have in your pantry. For sure, I had fun working with only what I have in hand. As they say, constraints are good for creativity.
- 1½ liters water
- 1 cup oats
- 1-2 tablespoons fried garlic
- 2 tablespoons dried chopped onions
- 1 teaspoon dried ginger
- few pinches white pepper
- 1 tablespoon mushroom powder or 1 vegan bouillon, or more to taste
- sprinkle of seafood spice seasoning (make sure it's vegan) (optional)
- few pinches of sea salt
- ¾ cup textured vegetable protein/soy protein (optional)
- 1-2 pieces dried beancurd sheets, reconstituted in hot water then cut into chunks (optional)
- 1 piece dried tremella, reconstituted in hot water then cut into chunks (optional)
- 1 tablespoon seaweed (optional)
- 1-2 pieces fried beancurd sheets (optional)
- Put water to a boil then add the oats to cook and soften, about 20 minutes.
- Once the oats have softened, mix in the garlic, onions, ginger, white pepper, mushroom powder, seafood seasoning, and sea salt. Simmer for 3-5 minutes under low heat then adjust seasoning to taste.
- Mix in the vegetable protein, beancurd sheets, tremella, and seaweed (optional).
- Put to a boil then turn off the heat.
- Transfer to a bowl then top with crushed fried beancurd sheets.
- Top with more seafood spice seasoning and fried garlic (optional). Serve hot.
Chris and I have been in Manila for three months now. Looking back, we feel like so much has already happened since we arrived here. Although we have more choices now than when we were cooped up at a hotel, Chris and I still find it fun to raid our pantry and fridge for an impromptu dinner spread. And with the community quarantine (and heavy rains) pushing us to stay indoors, we don’t mind thinking outside of the box and surprise ourselves with what we can come up with.