Here you have a deconstructed Vietnamese sandwich known as a banh mi. That doesn’t mean that this bowl couldn’t very well get dressed up with a baguette to become a sandwich once again. Just slice the tofu instead of cubing it. That’s how many of the recipes in this book work once you’re familiar with them; you can use them interchangeably and tweak them to your taste. When you get to the Stacked Sandwiches chapter, you’ll see how even many of those components can transition back to salads. The only limit is your imagination.
Ingredients
Prep Ahead
- The Jalapeño-Lime Aioli
- The BBQ Sauce
- 1 (16 oz/450 g) brick medium-firm or firm tofu
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch
- ½ cup The BBQ Sauce or store-bought sauce
- 4 cups stemmed and shredded or finely chopped kale
- 4 cups shredded or finely chopped napa cabbage
- ¼ cup The Jalapeño-Lime Aioli, plus more for drizzling
- 3 green onions, white and green parts, coarsely chopped (½ cup)
- 2 cups shredded or ribboned carrot (about 1 large carrot)
- 1 cups shredded or ribboned English cucumber (about 1 cucumber)
- 1 cup packed coarsely chopped cilantro
- ½ cup sliced pickled or fresh jalapeño chile peppers
How to Make It
- Preheat the oven to 425°F.
- Drain the excess water from the tofu and pat dry with a tea towel or paper towels. Cut into small cubes. Toss the cubes in the cornstarch and lay out on a baking sheet, spacing the cubes ¼ inch apart. Bake for 30 to 40 minutes until golden and crispy. There isn’t really a need to flip the pieces while baking unless you find your oven bakes unevenly.
- Toss the crispy tofu in the BBQ sauce in a bowl. Lay out the cubes on the baking sheet, spacing them ¼ inch apart once again. Reserve any excess sauce to toss with the tofu just before assembling the bowls. Bake for 10 minutes.
- To assemble the bowls, toss the kale and cabbage together in a large bowl with the aioli and the chopped green onions. Toss to coat well.
- Place the dressed greens in serving bowls. Top with the carrot, cucumber, cilantro, jalapeños, and tofu. Drizzle with more aioli, if desired.
