Monday

Pacific Rim Tofu Salad ~ Vegetarian & Vegan Friendly

Tofu.


Love it, indifferent about it, or loathe it?

Please don't run the other way if you don't like it ~
You can substitute boneless, skinless chicken breast strips, or tenders in this recipe (or even salmon), if you prefer!

Liza Barnes, in her article Tofu 101 gives a great analogy of tofu ~

"Cheese is to cow's milk as tofu is to soymilk."

However you feel about tofu it has a lot, nutritionally, going for it and it fits right in with our current eating style, which makes me very happy. :)

A 3 ounce portion contains 70 calories (4.5 grams of fat)

0.5 g Saturated Fat ---- *yay!*
0 grams Trans Fat ---- *yay!*
Cholesterol 0 grams ---- *yay!*
Sodium 5 grams ---- (not bad)
Total Carbohydrate 1 gram ---- *yay!*
Dietary fiber 1 gram
Sugars 0 gram ----*yay!*
Protein 8 grams ---- *yay!*
Calcium 10% of daily recommended requirements --- *yay!*
Iron 6% of daily recommended requirements


I've always enjoyed tofu, and now I find I'm serving it more often.


I tend to prefer recipes using firm or extra firm tofu as a substitute for chicken breast and other mild meats in recipes, and because plain tofu is a "flavor neutral" it takes on whatever you decide to season it with ~ as in this DELICIOUS salad:

A light, yet filling salad. Low in calories, low carb but bright with flavor from the lively dressing.

The dressing is simply a little canola oil, water, unseasoned rice vinegar, sesame oil, a little honey or Splenda, etc., grated ginger, garlic and low sodium soy sauce.

It goes together in minutes ~

Whisk the dressing ingredients together.

Drain & slice the tofu, toss with a little of the dressing & brown in a non-stick pan for a few minutes.

While the tofu is browning, I prep the vegetables; slice the hot house cucumber and radishes on a mandolin, you can grate the carrots or use a julienne hand tool.

Arrange the veggies on a plate, place the warm tofu on top and drizzle with remaining dressing.

Voila!

A quick, healthful lunch or dinner is served. :)

NOTE: You can substitute boneless, skinless chicken breast strips (or tenders), or then salmon filet slices for the tofu if you prefer, and still have a fast, healthful meal.

If you would like the recipe, click HERE for a printable copy on my Recipe Blog.










4 comments:

  1. Mari dear..just now happened to know about the ordeal you passed through..quite sad n tough but am so glad that you moved on and is in the right path now..Thanks for enlightening us as well n waiting to see some healthy gorgeous food here..Tofu is my fav as well..hugs xo

    ReplyDelete
  2. Years ago (in a dieting phase) I tried tofu many different ways. Although I don't hate it, I never really could say that I liked it. Yes, for me chicken would be a good thing to add to your beautiful salad :)

    ReplyDelete
  3. Thank you so much for your kind words of support, and comments. Monique, it will probably remind you of cooked egg whites, very bland ~ so it begs to be spiced/seasoned up any way you like. :) xo~m.

    ReplyDelete

Thank you for your comments, friends ~ they make my day!

A Sampling of my food . . .

Subscribe:

 Subscribe in a reader...or

Enter your email address:

Delivered by FeedBurner