Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall: 'How you can make these 12 vegetables the star of your dish - every time'

“This is immensely satisfying food: fat mushrooms, roasted until charred and oozing their dark juices, sandwiched in toasted sourdough with roasted red onion and a generous amount of kimchi (or kraut),” says Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall.

“Give it a go in one piece if you like, but no one will think less of you if you serve it as an open sandwich, or even partially dismantle this chunky sarnie before tucking in.”

Plant count 5/ Fibre count 10g/ Ready in 50 minutes

Serves 2. Ingredients: 2tbsp olive oil; 4 large, open cap mushrooms, such as portobello; 1 large or 2 medium red onion(s), cut into 4 thick rounds; 4 slices of wholegrain sourdough, or 2 sourdough rolls, split; About 4 heaped tbsp of your favourite kimchi or spicy sauerkraut; Sea salt and black pepper

There’s no need to preheat your oven for this – unless it’s a non-fan oven that takes a while to heat up.

Trickle the olive oil into a roasting dish and spread it around with a brush. Add the mushrooms, gill side down and use the brush to get some oil on the top of them. Add the onion rounds to the dish, and oil these too. Season everything well with salt and pepper.

Put the roasting dish into a cold oven and set it to 180°C Fan/200°C/Gas 6. Cook for 20 minutes, or until the mushrooms are well shrunken and darkened and the onion is soft (it might take a little longer in a non-fan oven).

Take the dish out and use tongs to flip everything over. Season again and return to the oven for 15 to 20 minutes or until everything is completely tender and nicely caramelised.

Meanwhile, toast the sourdough slices (or rolls). Take one slice of toasted sourdough (or toasted roll base) and lay a whole mushroom on it. Put a spoonful of kimchi/kraut on top and add a round or two of caramelised onion. Cover with a second mushroom and a little more kimchi/kraut, then top with another layer of onion.

Repeat with the other toast, mushrooms, kimchi/kraut and onion to make the second sarnie. Squeeze the lids on top and serve, with the rest of the kimchi/kraut on the side.

Tip: If you don’t have any kimchi, whip up a simple spicy slaw to use instead: finely shred ¼ small white cabbage, and mix with 1 grated medium carrot, 1tsp harissa and 2tsp mayo or plain yoghurt (plant-based or regular).

A slice of cheese, such as Gruyère, Cheddar or even a luscious soft Brie or Taleggio, melts deliciously on the hot mushrooms.

Ribboned carrot and quinoa salad

“Quinoa is a grain (technically a seed) that offers ‘complete’ protein, i.e. it has all the amino acids we need,” says Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall. “Cook it and cool it ahead of time for this delicious and satisfying salad.

“Tahini makes for a lovely creamy dressing, but if its distinctive taste is not your thing, use peanut butter instead – it also works well.”

Plant count 12/ Fibre count 13g/ Ready in 1½ hours including cooling

Serves 3 as a light meal, 4 as part of a sharing spread. Ingredients: 150g quinoa; 1tsp veg bouillon powder or ½ veg stock cube; 1 small-medium red onion, thinly sliced; 150g carrots (1 large or 2 small), scrubbed or peeled; Juice of 1 lemon; 400g tin lentils, drained, or 250g drained pre-cooked lentils or from a jar/pouch, rinsed and patted dry; 35g raisins (optional); 1tbsp extra virgin olive oil; Sea salt and black pepper

For the tahini/peanut butter dressing: 2tbsp tahini or smooth peanut butter; 1 small garlic clove, grated; A pinch of dried chilli flakes; Juice of ½ lemon; ½tsp soft brown sugar; 2tbsp extra virgin olive oil

To finish: A few hazelnuts, ideally toasted, roughly chopped; A small handful of parsley or chives, chopped

Cook the quinoa ahead of time: rinse it thoroughly in a sieve then tip it into a saucepan. Dissolve the bouillon/stock cube in 500 millilitres boiling water and add to the pan. Bring to a simmer and cook, uncovered, for 15 to 20 minutes until all the water is absorbed, then take off the heat and leave the pan covered for 10 minutes.

Fluff up the quinoa with a fork, transfer to a bowl and leave to cool completely, 45 to 55 minutes. (Refrigerate if cooking well ahead.)

Meanwhile, put the sliced onion into a large bowl. Cut the carrots into ribbons using a veg peeler and drop them straight into the bowl. (You’ll be left with a thin stick of carrot, which you can eat, or slice with a knife and add to the salad.) Squeeze over the lemon juice, add a good pinch of salt and mix well. Set aside in a cool place.

In the meantime, make the dressing: in a small bowl, mix the tahini or peanut butter with the garlic, chilli flakes, lemon juice, sugar and some salt and pepper. Add the extra virgin olive oil and stir in thoroughly. The dressing may ‘seize’ or go grainy, but don’t worry, just whisk in one tablespoon water, and then another, and it will become smooth again. Taste to check the seasoning and adjust as necessary.

Stir the lentils through the quinoa and toss in the raisins too, if using. Stir in the one tablespoon extra virgin olive oil and season with salt and pepper.

To serve, heap the lentil/quinoa mix onto a large serving plate, or individual plates. Top with the carrot ribbons and onion and trickle over the juice from the bowl. Spoon the tahini dressing generously over the salad, and finish with chopped nuts and a scattering of parsley or chives.

Fried rice with peas, soy and sesame

“This simple main course is very customisable,” says Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall. “The key things are the onion and the soy/sesame/bouillon mix, which brings lots of savoury flavour. You can then use pretty much any veg you like.

“If your brown rice is a bit clumpy in places, break it up with a fork before adding it to the pan.”

Plant count 8/ Fibre count 7g/ Ready in 25 minutes

Serves 2. Ingredients: 2tbsp rapeseed oil; 1 medium onion, quartered and sliced; About 75g extra-firm tofu; 1tbsp soy sauce or tamari, plus a little more to serve; 1tbsp toasted sesame oil; 1 tsp vegetable bouillon powder (or ¼ veg stock cube, crumbled); 1 small garlic clove, grated; 1–2cm piece of fresh ginger, grated (optional); 100g frozen peas; A couple of handfuls of roughly shredded de-stalked kale, cabbage greens, spinach or pak choi (or a mix); 300g cooked brown rice

To finish: 2–3tsp sesame seeds; A handful of coriander and/or mint leaves, chopped (optional)

Heat the rapeseed oil in a large, wide frying pan over a medium heat. Add the onion and fry for about 10 minutes until softened, stirring from time to time.

Meanwhile, cut the tofu into roughly one centimetre cubes. Whisk the soy/tamari, sesame oil and bouillon powder (or stock cube) together in a small bowl.

Add the grated garlic to the onion with the ginger, if using, and cook for another minute, stirring often. Add the tofu cubes to the pan and cook for another few minutes, stirring frequently.

Add the frozen peas and cook for two to three minutes until defrosted, then add the shredded greens and cook for a few minutes more until they are starting to wilt. Add the soy, sesame and bouillon mix, stir and cook until most of the liquid has evaporated (less than a minute).

Add the cooked rice, stir it through, then cover the pan and cook for three to four minutes, stirring now and then, to get the heat into the rice and make sure everything is piping hot.

Serve straight away, with a scattering of sesame seeds and herbs, if using. Add a little more soy sauce/tamari at the table if you like.