Vegan Side Dishes

Thirty-four weeks pregnant. The home stretch. Rohan is head-down, engaged, ready. My body is not ready — my back hurts, my feet are swollen, I pee every forty minutes, and I waddle with the grace of a heavily laden cargo ship. The hospital bag is packed. Again. The same checklist as Anaya: onesies, receiving blankets, the breast pump. But this time I added something new: Amma's rasam thermos. The actual thermos she brought to my first labor. She gave it to me last week with instructions: "Fill it before you go to the hospital. The hospital food will be terrible." The same thermos. The same rasam. The circle continues. I've been walking less (the sciatic nerve, the weight, the general impossibility of forward motion) and writing more. The book is at seventy thousand words. Twelve chapters drafted. Two to go. The final chapter — the one about Amma's diagnosis, about cooking in the shadow of Alzheimer's, about preserving recipes before they're lost — is the one I haven't been able to finish. Sarah Chen says: "Write it after Rohan is born. Give yourself time." "I don't have time. Amma doesn't have time." "You have more time than you think. The book will wait." But will Amma wait? Will the score stay at 19? Will she still know the sambar recipe when the book is published? Will she read it? I can't think about this. So I cook. I made Amma's entire festival menu this week — not for a festival, for practice. Murukku (spirals still wide), mysore pak (perfect, finally), payasam (correct), sundal (automatic), adhirasam (earlobe dough: achieved). Every dish she makes for Diwali and Navaratri and Pongal, made in my kitchen, from her recipes, by my hands. If she can't make these someday, I can. That's the promise I made when I started writing. That's the promise the book fulfills. The murukku spirals are still wide. But they're mine. And that, finally, is enough.

The murukku and mysore pak were Amma’s — but the dishes that anchored the practice run, the ones I kept coming back to between the spiraling and the frying, were the quieter sides: the sundal, the rice, the roasted things that hold a festival menu together without demanding applause. If you’ve never cooked a full menu as a rehearsal, as a promise, these vegan sides are exactly where to start — simple enough to build confidence, meaningful enough to matter. This is the kind of cooking that says: I know how to do this. I’ve done it before. I can do it again.

Prep Time: 15 min | Cook Time: 30 min | Total Time: 45 min | Servings: 4

Ingredients

Spiced Roasted Chickpeas
1 can (15 oz) chickpeas, drained, rinsed, and patted very dry
1 1/2 tbsp olive oil
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp smoked paprika
1/4 tsp turmeric
1/4 tsp fine sea salt
Pinch of cayenne (optional)
Coconut Rice
1 cup long-grain white rice, rinsed
3/4 cup full-fat coconut milk
3/4 cup water
1/4 tsp fine sea salt
2 tbsp toasted shredded coconut (for garnish)
Roasted Spiced Vegetables
2 cups cauliflower florets
1 medium zucchini, cut into 1/2-inch half-moons
1 red bell pepper, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 1/2 tbsp olive oil
1/2 tsp ground coriander
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp fine sea salt
Fresh cilantro and a squeeze of lemon, to finish

Instructions

Preheat oven. Heat oven to 425°F. Line two rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper.
Season the chickpeas. Spread the dried chickpeas on one baking sheet. Drizzle with 1 1/2 tbsp olive oil, then sprinkle with cumin, smoked paprika, turmeric, salt, and cayenne if using. Toss to coat evenly and spread into a single layer.
Season the vegetables. On the second baking sheet, combine cauliflower, zucchini, and bell pepper. Drizzle with 1 1/2 tbsp olive oil, sprinkle with coriander, garlic powder, and salt, and toss to coat. Spread into a single layer.
Roast both trays. Place both trays in the oven. Roast the chickpeas for 25–30 minutes, shaking the pan once halfway, until golden and crisp. Roast the vegetables for 22–25 minutes, stirring once, until tender and lightly caramelized at the edges.
Cook the coconut rice. While vegetables roast, combine rice, coconut milk, water, and salt in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, stir once, then reduce heat to low, cover tightly, and cook for 15 minutes. Remove from heat and let steam, covered, for 5 minutes. Fluff with a fork.
Finish and serve. Plate the coconut rice and top with toasted coconut. Arrange the roasted vegetables alongside and finish with fresh cilantro and a squeeze of lemon. Serve the spiced chickpeas in a small bowl for spooning over everything.

Nutrition (per serving)

Vegan Side Dishes — The Practice Run That Became a Promise