Salad w/ Tofu Steak, Cherry Tomatoes, & Walnuts
This Mediterranean-inspired tofu steak salad is topped with cherry tomatoes, banana peppers, toasted walnuts, and Muhammara. Muhammara is a Middle Eastern dip made from red peppers and walnuts. The recipe resembles baba ghanoush or hummus and pairs exceptionally well with tofu and in salads.
Equipment
- Paper Towels
- Skillet
- Stovetop
Ingredients
Muhammara
- 2 red bell peppers roasted
- 1 ½ c. walnuts toasted
- 2 cloves garlic
- ~10 cherry tomatoes
- 2 habaneros (Aleppo are more traditional)
- 3 tbsp. olive oil
- 2 tsp. lemon juice (2 tbsp. pomegranate molasses are more traditional)
- dash salt
- dash pepper
- 1/2 c. bread crumbs
Salad
- 2 tbsp. muhammara
- 7 oz. extra firm tofu (~1/2 container)
- 2 tbsp. high heat oil
- 1/2 c. lettuce, chopped
- 10 cherry tomatoes, halved
- 1 banana pepper, diced
- 1 ½ tbsp. walnuts, toasted and diced
- dash salt
- dash pepper
Instructions
Prepare Mahummara
- Prepare the Muhammara. This recipe takes less than an hour and requires an oven or something to cook in, like an air fryer or barbecue, and a food processor. It is predominantly made from roasted red peppers and toasted walnuts.You can easily substitute hummus or any other dip of choice.
Fry Tofu
- Drain the tofu and wrap in paper towels to absorb the moisture.It's important to absorb as much water out of the tofu as you can. Oil is less dense than water, so the molecules repel one another. With cold ingredients, this causes separation. When you're frying, though, this can cause boiling hot oil to spray back at you.
- Meanwhile, preheat oil in a cast iron skillet over medium-high heat.
- When the skillet has preheated and the majority of the water has absorbed into the paper towels, carefully add the tofu to the skillet. Fry until golden brown. This should take about 2-4 minutes. Rotate until all sides are evenly fried.Remove from heat and wrap again in paper towels to absorb the excess oil.
Assemble Salad
- Chop lettuce, halve cherry tomatoes, and dice banana peppers and walnuts. If you make muhammara dip for this recipe, reserve some of the extra walnuts for this.
- Lay down a bed of lettuce and tofu. Sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste. Top with muhammara dip, banana peppers, and walnuts. Add finishing salt and pepper.
Tips, Tricks, & Notes
- For a more in-depth article on preparing tofu, check out my article on The Fundamentals of Fried Tofu. High heat oil and a precise cooking temperature are important to keep the tofu from drying out or burning.