Fry Ups

I'd like to call this a Saturday morning staple, but in reality we're usually still in bed by 12! I've eaten many mediocre/bad fry ups in cafes and hotels - how hard is it to get wrong? On reflection I think I'd rather stay at a good B&B without breakfast than one that specifically makes crap cooked vegan breakfasts and costs the same.

My fry ups vary each time dependent on what's available, but the absolute must is fried bread. It's got to be cooked properly too, so that it's full of flavour, crisp on the outside and soft in the middle without being overly fatty. Tofu scramble makes a regular appearance too, the recipe of which also varies each time.

As I had my camera set up in the kitchen this lunchtime; here's today's:

Fry minced garlic and sliced chestnut mushrooms in sunflower oil, then crumble smoked tofu over the top, stir and add tamari, concentrated mushroom stock, dried herbs, salt and pepper. Finally; garnish with fresh parsley before serving:

Plain tofu works too, along with other ingredients such as red/white onion, peppers, other types of mushroom and whatever dark looking sauces are in the cupboard - soya sauce, vegetarian worcester sauce etc.

Meanwhile, fry some kind of potato product (in this case hash browns, which taste nasty cooked in the oven but great fried), redwoods bacon and tomatoes in the same pan:

Add slices of decent quality fresh bread and plenty of ground sea salt. Once its soaked up the existing oil add more and turn them over - add more salt.

I'm not really a great fan of salt (I bought my current bottle of table salt in 2004), but in this case it works really well (the same applies to baked potatoes).

Always cook the fried bread last (add the others to the top of the scrambled tofu pan to keep them warm) and serve straight away with red/brown sauce and anything else you fancy. I'm not really a fan of beans but often add a sausage or two :)