Summer Tofu and Grain Salad {gf, vegan}

Now this is my kind of salad! Hearty chunks of marinated tofu with crispy vegetables atop a base of brown rice and tofu with a lime and sesame dressing and a sprinkle of peanuts for extra crunch. Say bye bye to bland salads that leave you hungry, and dig into this hearty vegetarian, gluten free grain-tastic dish!
So, confession time…this salad was supposed to be rice paper rolls. Caroline and I went shopping together for all the ingredients for rice paper rolls and then, come Australia Day and twenty minutes before my guests were due to arrive, I just couldn’t face all the piling and the rolling and trying to make rice paper rolls look photogenic. So…I took all the insides of a rice paper roll dumped them in a bowl, added some actual rice (and quinoa!), and turned the dipping sauce into a dressing. Voila: Summer Tofu and Brown Rice Salad! And everyone loved it – and Caroline called me a goose because it turns out rice paper rolls aren’t hard to make at all. So, there’s my project for next weekend.
 This hearty, grain filled salad starts with a quick cook packet of brown rice and quinoa – how did I not know about these before! 90 seconds and boom! Grains ready to go. Definitely stocking up on some of these for when time is short and hunger is mighty. While the grains were cooling down a little I marinated and baked some extra firm tofu. This is seriously the only way I eat tofu now. The marinade comes together super quickly: miso paste, maple syrup, soy sauce, sesame oil, crushed garlic. Done. Bake for 20 minutes and you’ve got flavoursome, chewy, slightly crispy tofu. If you aren’t a tofu lover this might change your opinion. If you aren’t, you are totally welcome to use some cooked chicken in place of the tofu. Just skip the tofu baking step. No harm, no fowl. (Haha, Dad jokes. I am writing this way past my bedtime.)
I wanted bright and crispy veggies to balance out the tofu and grains. Shredded carrot, crispy snow peas, and fresh cucumber slices. All of my favourite rice paper roll veggies in salad form instead. Once everything is tossed together I whisked together lime juice, sesame oil, maple syrup and soy sauce for a bright and light dressing. And then, spring onions and salted peanuts for crunchy sprinkles. Mm mm.

I have made this salad twice this week, and I can’t see it stopping anytime soon. In these hot summer days this hearty salad keeps me full without weighing me down and gives so much flavour to my lunch box. It’s a great one to make for lunches too because you can dress it and leave it in the fridge without getting soggy salad syndrome. The hardy veggies in this one, along with the grains just soak up all that good dressing flavour! I hope you enjoy this salad as much as I have, and let me know your favourite rice paper roll combinations in the comments below!

Summer Tofu and Grain Salad

| gluten free | vegan | serves 3 | store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to three days

*note: ensure these ingredients are gluten free. Check your labels carefully.

Ingredients

For the tofu

• 250 grams extra firm tofu
• 1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
• 1 tablespoon maple syrup
• 1 tablespoon miso paste*
• 1 tablespoon minced garlic
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce*

To serve

• 1 packed 90 second brown rice and quinoa mix (or two cups cooked brown rice or quinoa)
• 1 carrot
• 1 cup snow peas
• 1 small lebanese cucumber
• 2 stalks spring onion
• 1/3 cup roasted peanuts

For the dressing

• 1/4 cup lime juice
• 1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
• 1 tablespoon maple syrup
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce*

Method

1. Preheat your oven to 180C (350F) and line a baking tray with baking paper.
2. Cut tofu into evenly sized cubes about the size of playing dice. In a medium size bowl whisk together sesame oil, maple syrup, miso paste, mince garlic and soy sauce until smooth. Add the diced tofu and toss gently until entirely coated. Spread tofu over baking tray and cook for twenty minutes or until the tofu is golden. Once cooked remove from oven and allow to cool.
3. While the tofu is baking prepare rice and quinoa mixture according to packet instructions. Add to a large bowl and allow to cool to room temperature.
4. Use a julienne peeler to cut the carrot into long strips. If you don’t have a julienne peeler, just use a regular peeler to make thin ribbons of carrot. Remove the stalk from the snow peas. Thinly slice cucumber into discs.
5. Once the tofu and rice have come to room temperature add the carrot, snow peas and cucumber and toss everything together gently.
6. Make the dressing by whisking all ingredients together. Pour over the top of the salad. Thinly slice spring onion and sprinkle over the salad along with the peanuts.
7. Serve.