For the times when you want a new spin on the same old salad, try our take on a satisfying asian salad – bursting with bold flavors, packed with protein and crunch, it works great as a fresh entree for those nights you don’t feel like turning on the oven! This recipe blows out of the water any pre-packaged asian blend mix you can find at the stores – the dressing has the right balance of sweet and spicy and comes together in just a few of minutes. In fact, we have all the ingredients in our fridge and pantry ready to go! It’s also super customizable with your favorite mix of veggies or even meat (though we are vegetarian!). Why would you want to go the store bought route? 

We’ve provided a rough estimate of proportions in our recipe below but one of the things we love about this recipe is the ability to change proportions to match your taste. For one thing, we both have very different levels of spice tolerance, so we adjust sambal to our individual tastes! 

Tips & Tricks

• We typically use an angel hair coleslaw or a standard coleslaw mix but this recipe also works great with a sprouts/shredded carrot mix.
• If you are going for a gluten free recipe, sub Tamari for soy sauce and skip the crunch noodles.
• Other veggies we love to add: purple cabbage, mushrooms, sweet peppers
• Toppings: our favorite is peanuts but others that would work great include almonds, sunflower seeds or pepitas; pro tip: lightly toast your seeds to give it some extra crunch and depth of flavor
• If you are packing this salad for a work lunch, you can dress the salad but keep the tofu and crunchy toppings separate to add when serving.

Recipe Information

• Prep time: 5 minutes
• Cook time: 20-30 minutes (if you haven’t already cooked the tofu)
• Yield: 2 entree servings (or 4 side servings)

Ingredients

• 1/2+ bag angel hair coleslaw (or regular coleslaw mix)
• 1/2 cup shredded carrots
• 1 box extra firm tofu (cubed, then pan fried or baked)
• Sauce ingredients:
  • 2 tbsp Grama’s Sweet Chilli Sauce
  • 1 tsp rice vinegar
  • 2 tsp sesame oil
  • 1 tbsp soy sauce (or tamari for GF)
  • 1 tbsp honey
  • Lime juice to taste
• Spices components:
  • Salt / pepper to taste
  • Garlic powder to taste
  • Ginger powder to taste
• Toppings / Mix-Ins:
  • Toasted sesame seeds
  • La Choy Rice Noodles
  • La Choy Chow Mein
  • Honey roasted peanuts
  • Chopped cilantro or basil

Directions

• Crispy Tofu:  
  • Drain tofu, then place in a bowl on top of several sheets of paper towels. You can add a paper towel and a heavy weight like a can of food on top for some pressure. Set aside for ~30 minutes.
  • Cut tofu into small cubes and cook either (1) stir fried until crispy or (2) baked at 350F for 30 minutes.
• Combine salad components, spices and toppings / mix-ins together in a bowl and flavor to taste.
• Serve immediately and enjoy!