Happy Thanksgiving everybody. I love any holiday that centers around food, and in America, that is every holiday. Unfortunately, traditional American Thanksgiving fare is not vegan. And while you can easily veganize most sides by omitting butter, it’s a bit harder with the main dish…Poor turkeys. So what’s a hungry vegan to do? Well you could go out and get a Tofurkey, but I refuse to eat anything with such a nonsensical name. Plus, they are full of processed crap and come out of the frozen food section. No thanks! Here is what I am making for Thanksgiving.
Almond Crusted Tofu
Time: 45 minutes|Serves: four
You will need:
1 pound of tofu, drained and pressed
oil for cooking
For “crust”:
½ cup raw almonds
1/4 tsp sea salt
½ tsp ground black pepper
1 ½ tbs corn starch
2 tbs nutritional yeast
For marinade:
3 tbs maple syrup
¼ cup soy sauce
¼ cup apple cider vinegar
1 tbs oregano
1 ½ tbs basil
pinch of black pepper
Step one:
Mix all marinade ingredients. I like to shake it up in a jar, preferably in sync with some really awesome music while dancing around the kitchen. Cut tofu into thick triangles. Marinate triangles for at least 20 minutes.
Step two:
Place all crust ingredients in a food processor or high powered blender and pulse until they resemble a course almond meal. I like to leave a few large almond chunks for texture. Pour mixture into pan or shallow bowl.
Step three:
Remove tofu wedges from marinade. Coat each wedge in almond mixture.
Dredge yo’ wedges…
Step four:
Heat a skillet over medium-high heat. Add enough oil to thoroughly coat the bottom of the pan. Add tofu triangles and cook for two minutes—do not move your triangles, for this will interrupt their frying process! After two minutes, flip and cook for two more minutes. Remove to plate.
Sriracha dots!
For best results, eat immediately. If you cannot eat them immediately because, say, you’re bringing them over to your boyfriend’s mom’s house to eat for Thanksgiving, don’t worry! They can be reheated in the oven at 350 for 15 minutes. Yum! Okay now tell me what you’re eating tomorrow!
I make something similar, but a less fancy version!
Crust: 1/3 wheat flour, corn meal, nutritional yeast. Some Italian seasoning and garlic powder.
Marinade: soy sauce
Prep: bake for 40 min at 400 in lightly oiled pan, flipping once.
Better than any commercial ‘chicken’.
Happy holidays.
Looks super-veglicious to me. Happy Thanksgiving!
Yum, that sounds great. I will be trying this one. My complete menu is on my Kale is the new Beef blog, but the center piece is stuffed pumpkin