Meatless Monday with Vegan Orange Glazed Sesame Tofu and Pistachio Cabbage Slaw

Welcome (back) to the Miratel blog for our latest recipe share in honour of Meatless Monday. Miratel took the Meatless Monday pledge to support reducing meat consumption 15% by eliminating it one day per week to preserve the health of our planet. We consider our support of this great movement part of our CSR business strategies as it spreads awareness of the impact of our everyday choices on our environment.

Today’s recipe is for Vegan Orange Glazed Sesame Tofu and Pistachio Cabbage Slaw. This light, yet delicious and satisfying recipe makes for a perfect summer meal and comes courtesy of Vegucated Kitchen (stop by and have a look – you won’t regret it).

Vegan Orange Glazed Sesame Tofu Ingredients (6 triangles (2-3 servings)

•  1 block of tofu drained

For the Marinade

Image courtesy of vegucatedkitchen.com

• Juice of 1 orange (or about 1/2 cup orange juice)
• 1 teaspoon of orange zest
• 2 Tablespoons of orange marmalade
• 2 Tablspoons soy sauce
• 1 clove garlic, zested or finely minced
• 1 teaspoon ginger, zested or finely minced

Additional Ingredients

• Peanut oil (or cooking oil of your choice)
• Arrowroot or cornstarch
• Sesame seeds
• 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper
• Cilantro, chopped

Instructions

1. Slice the tofu horizontally twice, so that you end up with 3 ‘slabs’
2. Lay the slabs on towels and drain thoroughly by gently pressing out any excess water. This works best if you also cover the slabs with another cloth, place a cutting board on top, and weight the board with soup cans to create a tofu press. The idea isn’t to flatten, but to gently squeeze. Allow to drain for 10 minutes if possible.
3. Meanwhile, combine the marinade ingredients in a flat tray and whisk to blend.
4. Add the drained tofu in a single layer, allowing the marinade to evenly coat as much of the tofu as possible. Allow to rest in the fridge for an hour if possible.
5. After the tofu has marinated, remove it from the marinade tray and set the marinade aside.
6.  Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add 1-2 Tablespoons of peanut oil.
7. In a shallow dish, lightly coat the tofu in arrowroot or cornstarch.
8. When the skillet is hot, add the tofu in a single layer. Allow to cook for about 2-3 minutes on each side until browned and lightly crispy.
9. Once both sides of the tofu is cooked, remove tofu from skillet and reduce heat to medium.
10. Whisk a bit of arrowroot (about 2 Tablespoons) into the cool marinade.
11. Pour the marinade into the skillet and stir constantly until the sauce thickens. Stir in a few teaspoons of sesame seeds and the crushed red pepper. Adjust seasoning to taste.
12. Spoon the glaze over the tofu and serve immediately alongside the Pistachio Cabbage Slaw.

Pistachio Cabbage Slaw Ingredients

Image courtesy of vegucatedkitchen.com

• 1/2 head of cabbage shredded into thin ribbons
• 1/4 red onion, sliced thinly
• 1 carrot, julienned or very thinly sliced
• 1/2 cup raw pistachios, coarsely chopped

For the Vinaigrette

• 3 Tablespoons white balsamic raspberry vinegar
• 1 Tablespoon of coconut milk
• 1 Tablespoon honey
• juice of 1 lime
• 1/8 teaspoon celery seed
• salt to taste

Directions:

1. In a large salad bowl, combine the vegetables and toss.
2. In a small jar combine the vinaigrette ingredients, seal with lid, and shake until blended. Taste and add honey if a sweeter dressing is desired.
3. Pour dressing over salad and thoroughly toss to coat.
4. Ideally, allow to chill for about 1 hour in the refrigerator, and then toss again before serving. Salad may also be served immediately but the flavours do develop as the liquids draw out of the vegetables.
5. Sprinkle the salad with the pistachios just before serving.
6. May be garnished with chopped cilantro.

If you haven’t already, we encourage you to visit the Meatless Monday website and join us in taking the pledge today. Spread the word at home and at work and promote CSR business initiatives to make your green call centre, office, factory, shop, restaurant or salon even greener.

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Miratel Solutions is a Toronto call centre, eBusiness, and letter shop mail house specializing in professional fundraising services including telephone fundraising, online fundraising, lottery services, donation caging, donation processing and other donor management services. We are committed to our CSR business values in all contact centre services and mail house operations and advancing the missions of the nonprofits we proudly serve.