Instant Pot or Not Cholent- Vegan and GF

If you like beans, you will LOVE this amazing vegan cholent/chulent recipe that is made with a mixture of pinto beans, red kidney beans, and navy beans. The Instant Pot transforms an ancient recipe into modern times.

Chulent or cholent is a old traditional Sabbath day meal that has been made for centuries by observant Jews. (Cholent recipes can be traced back to 1180 in Vienna). 

Before the invention of electricity, the town baker had a big oven that he would keep burning through the Sabbath which started Friday at sundown and ended Saturday at sundown. Since it was forbidden to light a fire on the Sabbath, the townspeople would bring a crock of beans to the baker's oven before sundown on Friday and let it slow cook to eat as their Saturday hot Sabbath meal. 

The word cholent is thought to be derived from the Medieval French word "chaud" meaning hot and "lent" meaning slow. Thus a slow cooking hot meal.

Before cooking in the Instant Pot filled about 1/4 of the 6 quart pot

After the invention of electricity, people started using slow cookers to make their cholent or would leave their oven on a low flame all night to cook their chulent/cholent for the Sabbath day meal. 

Jews from different countries developed variations of the recipe using chickpeas or a variety of different beans, meat, eggs, dumplings, chicken etc. Almost every country has their variation of cholent. There are probably as many cholent recipes as there are cooks. 

Indian Cholent may contain turmeric, cardamom, lentils, and chicken. 

Italian Cholent may contain rosemary, brisket, potatoes, and cannelloni beans.

Polish Cholent may contain potatoes, flankin, a variety of beans, garlic, paprika, and dumplings

Eastern European Cholent may contain barley, potatoes, butter beans, brisket, and garlic

Vegetarian Cholent may contain sweet potatoes, potatoes, dumplings, a variety of beans

I make a vegan version that is absolutely delicious and because I am not " religious, " I make mine ahead of time in the Instant Pot!!!! Of course you could use the slow cooker and cook it for 8 hours. You might need to add more water for the slow cooker. 

Ingredients: 

3 cloves garlic, chopped

olive oil spray 

1 large onion sliced into 1/2 moons 

2 large organic carrots, sliced into thick slices 

10 whole baby portobello mushrooms , halved

1 teaspoon of ground ginger ( not fresh) 

1/2 teaspoon of Trader Joe's 21 Salute ( salt free seasoning mix) 

1 teaspoon of Himalayan salt 

1/2 teaspoon of cracked pepper

3 cups of vegetable broth ( I use Tabatchnicks or Whole Foods 365)

2 cups of water( or an extra cup if needed to cover the beans) 

1 pound total of dry bean mixture ( pinto beans, red kidney beans, navy beans) * see note below

Directions: 

Spray bottom of the Instant Pot with olive oil spray. Add onions and garlic and sautee until onions become soft. Add beans, carrots, mushrooms, ginger, 21 Salute, salt , pepper, vegetable broth, and water. Cancel the saute function and press pressure cook for 50 minutes. Make sure the steam knob is closed. When done cooking, allow steam to release naturally according to manufacturer's directions for about 30 minutes. When done, remove lid and serve.

chulent mix of beans

My Notes: 

1. Many supermarkets carry pre-made bags of cholent bean mixture in the kosher foods section. 

2. There is no need to soak the beans for the Instant Pot 

3. If you prefer to soak the beans overnight, pressure cook for 25 minutes 

4. This really tastes amazing if you like beans

5. You could make this in the Instant Pot before the Sabbath and keep it on warm until after sundown on saturday. 

6. ** Beware- some cholent mix packages contain barley which is not gluten free- read the ingredients

Sharing on Beth Fish Weekend Cooking where anyone can share a food related post. 

Sharing on Souper Sundays where anyone can share a soup, salad, or sammie.

Time Saving Tips for Holiday Entertaining

Entertaining for the holidays? Wondering how you will put it all together?

Whether you are having an open house holiday party or extended family for a sit down dinner,

I have a few tips that can make serving easier.

Choose appetizers you make in advance and served cold.

Baked Brie With Raspberry Preserves Topping

Crudites of Raw Vegetables with Dip

Cheese Ball and Crackers 

 A Variety of Cheeses, Garnished with Whole Strawberries, Little Bunches of Grapes, and Crackers

Fruit Platters with Vanilla Yogurt Dip

Apple Slices Dipped in Chocolate and Sprinkled with Cinnamon

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Crock Pot Serving Idea

 Serving Soup at a dinner party? Use a crock pot to keep the soup, chili, or even potatoes warm. Pour cold soup into a cold crock pot and turn temperature to low or high depending on how much time until it will be served. Soup can be placed in crock pot up to 4 hours before serving. This allows you to wash the cooking pot in advance and not have to allow time to reheat the soup. Soup is ready for serving whenever you are.

 Coffee Carafe -

Serving tea or coffee after a dinner party? Prepare coffee and tea in advance and keep piping hot for up to 8 hours in a simple thermos carafe. Here's how: Purchase two 1.8 liter thermos carafes from a store like Marshalls, TJMaxx or Kohls, The carafes keep water or coffee hot for at least 8 hours. Before the dinner party boil water or use your coffee maker to make hot water and pour it into the carafe. Make coffee and pour it into your other carafe. Clean up and store coffee or hot water in the carafe.After dinner there is no need to start making coffee or tea, both are piping hot and ready to serve and you don't even have to leave the table. 

Hot Plate Warmers

Sometimes you just run out of oven space. Cook food in advance, clean pots and pans in advance. Place food in an aluminum through away pan and place on hot plate about an hour before serving. A hotplate keeps food warm and delicious. Again guests can serve themselves.

Here are some additional Tidbits:

Need a really quick soup ? This one is almost ridiculous, but it tastes great! Take a jar of Vegetable juice ( like V-8 juice) and heat it up. It tastes like tomato soup!! Really!! ( and it is very low calorie too) If you want to be more impressive, add a pat of butter, cooked brown rice, chopped hard boiled egg, or chopped cilantro just before heating.

Peeling Hard Boiled eggs? They will be easier to peel if you add a pinch of salt to the water , bring to a boil and then shut off the heat, cover the pot and allow eggs to steam for 10 minutes. Rinse with cold water and peel.

Like to cook with wine? When you have leftover wine, freeze it in ice cube trays. This makes it easy to use for future cooking.

Want to keep your trash can smelling fresh? Place a laundry sheet ( like bounce) at the bottom of the wastebasket

Want to save time at your next party? Place an extra unopened garbage bag under the open garbage bag in your wastebaskets. When you empty your wastebasket, there is another one already there for you to open right up. Great time saver at parties!

Want to peel garlic quickly. Method one- place in microwave for 15 seconds, skin peels right off .
Method 2- crush the garlic with wide knife, skin peels right off.

Need to clean the blender quickly? Fill the blender with 3/4 water and 1 drop liquid detergent and blend. It cleans itself. Rinse well

Want an easy to clean spoon from the honey jar? Coat the spoon with cooking spray first!

Burn food in a pot or pan? Cover burned area with baking soda and water. Soak overnight.

Need to clean a narrow vase or thermos quickly? Fill with water, drop in 2 Alka seltzer tablets; allow to sit for 10 minutes, swoosh and rinse

Need to clean the toilets before company? drop un 2 Alka seltzer tablets and allow to sit 25 minutes and flush

Need to open a clogged drain? drop 3 alka seltzer tablets down the drain and then a cup of vinegar. Wait a few minutes and run the hot water.

Does tomato sauce stain your plastic storage containers? Spray the containers with cooking spray first to prevent the containers from discoloring.

Want to know if your raw eggs are still fresh? Make a bowl of cold salty water. Place the egg in the water. It should sink. If it floats to the top, its not fresh!

Does your jelly jar get messy? Put the jelly into a squeeze bottle and it will save you a lot of mess.

Want to lower the fat content when baking? Substitute applesauce for the oil. Works great!

Want to keep your potatoes from growing buds? Place an apple in the bag with them.

If you have any time saving tips to share, please click comments in the green box that follows the posting and share your ideas..

This has been  posted on the following fabulous blogs: Tuesday Twister, Simple Lives Thursday, It's a blog party, Vegetarian Foody Fridays, Gluten Free Wednesday, Slightly Indulgent Tuesday, Real Food Wednesday, Fight Back Friday, Midnight Maniac Meatless Mondays, My Meatless Mondays, Family Food Fridays, Seasonal Saturday, Katies Cucina , Simply Gluten-Free,, Food on Fridays, Fresh, Clean and Pure Friday, Foodie Friday, Dr. Laura's Tasty Tuesday, Hearth and Soul Hop