EPISODE 97

This salad started off life as a way to use up leftover bits and bobs after making sushi. The seasoned rice with crunchy veggies was so delicious that I longed to recreate it. This is very very easy to make, and is fabulous with any type of rice (leftovers or otherwise). Feel free to make this recipe your add and replace the mint with cilantro, top with avocado chunks, some sliced up nori, a fried/poached egg (obviously not vegan), some addition sesame seeds or maybe more heat in the form of wasabi or siracha…. up to you!

Ingredients – Tofu

• 1 package hard tofu
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 2 tablespoons soya sauce/tamari
• 1 teaspoon sriracha

Instructions – Tofu

Dry the tofu well then cut into smallish cubes, around 2 cm. Place the vegetable oil and tofu in a large pan, and cook on high heat, stirring every few minutes, until the tofu is golden. Add the soy and sriracha and stir frequently until it’s absorbed and the tofu is quite crispy. Remove from the heat. You can add this to the salad either hot, warm, or cold, delicious regardless. This is also a fabulously satisfying snack on it’s own.

Ingredients – Dressing

• 2-3 tablespoons rice wine vinegar (depending on how tangy you like it)
• 2 tablespoons soya sauce
• 1 tablespoon maple syrup
• 2 teaspoons pickled ginger, finely chopped
• Wasabi – to taste (I use around 1 teaspoon)

Instructions – Dressing

Mix together in a small bowl and set aside.

Ingredients – Assembly

• 2 cups cooked rice (any kind – thought I’m quite partial to white jasmine rice)
• 1/2 English cucumber, cubed
• 1 pepper, cubed (I like red as the sweetness and colour is really lovely here)
• 2-3 tablespoons mint, chopped
• 3 tablespoons black sesame seeds

Instructions – Assembly

Mix together the rice, cucumber, pepper, mint, and sesame seeds, then pour over the dressing (if you like your salads lightly dressed, start with 1/2 the dressing, then mix well to combine, taste, and add more dressing to taste. Now add in the tofu (or whatever’s left of it assuming you didn’t snack on it all…), and stir to combine. Enjoy warm, room temp, or cold!