Vermicelli Salad w/ Cucumber & Tofu
This vermicelli salad combines fried tofu, carrots, red bell peppers, tomatoes, cucumbers, ginger, garlic, shallots, tamari, tahini, rice vinegar, and freshly squeezed lime juice. It's a great recipe to mix and match in your own fruits and vegetables to what you have on hand or to your own personal tastes and preferences.
Equipment
- Large Bowl
- Skillet
- Stovetop
- Paper Towels
Ingredients
- 100 g. vermicelli
- 16 oz. tofu fried
- 2 carrots diced
- 1 red bell pepper diced
- 1 tomato diced
- 1 English cucumber (or 1 standard cucumber), diced
- 1 tbsp. ginger minced
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1/4 shallot minced
- 3 tbsp. tamari
- 3 tbsp. white rice vinegar
- 2 tbsp. tahini
- 1 lime juiced
Instructions
Cook Vermicelli
- Add about 4 inches of water to a large pot and bring to a boil over high heat.
- Cook vermicelli according to the manufacturer's instructions.Vermicelli cooks very quickly. I tend to add the vermicelli and then immediately remove it from heat. Then, go on to prepare the produce. Merely sitting in the once boiling water is sufficient enough soften it enough to eat without overcooking.
Fry Tofu
- While the pot is boiling for the vermicelli, drain the water out of the tofu and cut into cubes.
- 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 at high temperatures, 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
- Mince and chop all of the produce and add to a large bowl.
- It can help to mix the tamari, rice vinegar, tahini, and lime together in a separate bowl and then mix in. Although this isn't explicitly necessary as long as the tahini doesn't clump together.
- Serve immediately or chill in the refrigerator for about an hour. I'm quite fond of this dish at room temperature or mixed in with salmon or scrambled eggs. It keeps incredibly well in the refrigerator, though. There's enough sodium and acidity in the mix to last for about a week without the produce browning. The liquid will start to separate and just need stirring before serving again.