We went to the store last night after work and got another load of grub. A little embarrassing but, I have a recipe I have wanted to try from over at Authentic Deliciousness’ blog, which called for parsnips. I have to be honest, I had never seen a parsnip before, I knew nothing more about them than that they are root vegetables. So at the store, the labels are not exactly in the spots they should be, as I ended up with a rutabaga, Googled ‘parsnips’ when I got home, and well, it wasn’t one, so I Googled other root veggies to identify this one. Since it is a root vegetable I think it will work for this meal. And hey, we get to try rutabaga right?
Anyways, I was planning on making VeganYumYum’s Pan Fried Tofu, Kale, and Stir-Fried Noodles, but ended up going a different way with it. What I hadn’t realized when I picked out this recipe was that it was simply tofu, kale, and noodles with a sauce. That would not fly in my house, as I mentioned earlier, we are pretty picky when it comes to tofu. And the sauce, while pretty good, was missing a bit of something, and only called for ¼ teaspoon of hot chili sauce, I mean, come on! I also like to buy my greens organic and there was no organic kale available, so we got red chard. So I changed up the sauce a bit, added more veggies, and cut the tofu in half.
Tofu & Veggie Noodle Stir-Fry
1 tsp coconut oil
½ package firm tofu, pressed, and cut into small chunks
1 bunch of chard, cut into bite sized pieces
½ red bell pepper, diced
¼ onion, diced
1/2 cup broccoli, cooked
½ cup snap peas cooked
½ package of rice stick noodles
Sauce
¼ cup water
¼ cup shoyu (or other soy sauce)
1 tbsp ginger, minced
1-2 tbsp pure maple syrup
1 tbsp rice vinegar (seasoned or unseasoned would work, I used seasoned)
1-2 tbsp agave nectar
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tsp stone ground brown mustard
1 tsp or more hot chili sauce (I would start with this depending on how spicy you like things, I used 2 tbsp, but I’m a spice freak)
¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper (optional)
Press tofu and cut into small chunks.
Whip together the sauce. Reserve half the sauce for the stir-fry, and marinate the tofu in the other half of the sauce for about a half hour. You can use this time to chop and cook the other veggies.
Cook rice noodles according to package directions, set aside.
In a large skillet, heat a couple of tablespoons of water. Add bell pepper and onion and cook until translucent.
Heat coconut oil and add tofu, stir-frying over medium high heat until tofu crisp. Add cooked broccoli, snow peas, and remaining sauce.
Add chard in small batches, covering with a lid to help with the chard.
Serve over hot rice noodles.
Well, my Mom is coming for a visit today, haven’t seen her for probably six months or more, so I’m pretty excited. I’m also taking her out to lunch. Now this might not mean much to you all out there, but this is the first time I have ever been able to afford to take her out, when I was in college it was always the other way around, so I’m proud to take her to the tea room here in town she likes. They aren’t the most vegan friendly place, but if all else fails I can munch on their amazing sweet potato chips and have a nice pot of Earl Grey tea. As I’m sure you could tell by the picture of the groceries with the two boxes on it, we are fans of the Earl Grey.
‘Til next time!
