Wadi is popular in Northern Indian cuisine, which explains why I have only found these in Indian markets. But as always, Amazon comes through, and you can order some here: Textured Vegetable Protein Chunks, 1 lb.
They may be strange and hard to find, but they are yet another good source of protein for vegetarians, and they can be a remarkable meat substitute when refactoring old recipes to meatless versions.
I find cooking them at high pressure for 8-10 minutes in a pressure cooker with a flavored broth to be the best way to cook them. Otherwise, you will have to simmer them in a pot for 15 minutes or so. I believe they can also be thrown into a crock pot, but I have no experience with cooking them that way.
Despite wadi's Indian character, I use them in all sorts of cooking. Today, I will present them in a Thai dish. I generally like Thai food, but many dishes contain meat and/or fish sauce. Therefore, I have to make many substitutions to get them "Evolved". Soya wadi makes a good substitute for pork, which was the original centerpiece of this dish.
Coconut Curried Wadi and Mango
To prepare the soya wadi, boil or pressure cook 1 cup of soya wadi in a cup of beef or chicken broth for 10 minutes.
Ingredients
1 c prepared soya wadi1 T oil
1 t curry powder
1 c snow peas
1 t red curry paste
1/3 c coconut milk
1 mango, peeled and cut into bite-size chunks
2 T shredded coconut
Steps
1. Put the wadi into a bowl and sprinkle the curry over it and blend well.
2. In another bowl, mix the coconut milk and red curry paste.
3. Heat the oil in a large skillet or wok over medium-high heat. Add the wadi and snow peas and stir fry for 3 minutes.
4. Add the coconut milk mixture to the pan and simmer. Stir in mango and cook for another minute.
5. Serve over hot rice, and sprinkle with the shredded coconut.
