Asian

Cashew Tofu Stir Fry Recipe

Cashew Tofu Stir Fry Recipe. Vegan Cashew Delight Recipe with Tofu and Veggies. Use meat subs for variation. Easy One…

  • Ready 30 minutes
  • Serves 2 servings
  • Prep 10 minutes
  • Cook 20 minutes
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Cashew Tofu Stir Fry Recipe

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When I started my first job after grad school, I was in a new much larger city, with many options for lunches and dinners, many cuisines and types of restaurants. In those pre-gan & pre balance issues days, I tried to be open to trying out the new cuisines and new foods. Many times I was left disappointed. Coming from a mainly vegetarian, fresh food lifestyle (grew up eating mostly all Indian food with loads of beans and veggies), the eggs, cheese, overly used dairy products, meats etc felt stale to me. I learnt to like some of them because those were the options available at that time to someone in a new country, culture. Things have changed since then. More than decade has gone by, and I seek out more vegetarian and vegan restaurants because the restaurants that are vegan or vegetarian tend to have this freshness in the flavors of everything. Like something as simple as Thai food with sauces and curries. I liked thai before, but love it much more now. The fresh non meaty curries, non eggy/fishy sauces pack such a pleasing flavor that it makes me love the veggies in it. That probably is another reason I have started liking Tofu. Thai dishes are also easily flexible to your own preference. Have you had any changes in flavor preferences lately?

I love quick meals and this one is easy and quick to put together. It is my version of the Cashew delight or Cashew something from Thai restaurants. Toast the cashews, add the veggies and protein you like, add the sauces, cook for a few and serve. 
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Cashew Tofu Stir Fry. Vegan Thai Cashew Delight Recipe with Tofu and Veggies. Easy One Pot weeknight meal. Serve with rice or grains of choice. VeganRicha.com Vegan gluten-free Recipe

More Thai Recipes from the blog

Cashew Tofu Stir Fry. Vegan Cashew Delight Recipe with Tofu and Veggies. Easy One Pot weeknight meal. Serve with rice or grains of choice. VeganRicha.com Vegan gluten-free Recipe
Cashew Tofu Stir Fry. Vegan Cashew Delight Recipe with Tofu and Veggies. Easy One Pot weeknight meal. Serve with rice or grains of choice. VeganRicha.com Vegan gluten-free Recipe

Reading for the day:

The Safari Club is holding its annual convention in Vegas this week. If you were saddened by Cecil the Lion’s killing, watch this newsreport about the millions being bid in The Safari Club’s annual Killvention in Las Vegas, where you can bid on hunts to kill exotic animals all over the world. There’s literally millions of dollars, and seminars on justifying the hunts.

In Kerala, India, the temple Elephants, young and old, continue to suffer and die a painful death. Huffington Post covers the issues in this article about Elephant Abuse in Kerala finally gone criminal. The elephants are tortured for years, blinded, beaten, maimed and what not in the name of religious uses and entertainment.

From the article “After the elephants emerge from their musth, i.e. their heat period, It’s a secret tradition that involves seven or eight drunk men beating the living day lights out of this animal for 48-72 hours. The practice is based on a superstitious belief that the elephants may have forgotten their commands during their musth.
It’s a horrifying ritual designed to break the elephant’s spirit and remind them that their masters are in control.”

Recipe

Cashew Tofu Stir Fry

A one-pot, 30-minute cashew tofu stir fry recipe with lots of veggies! Sweet-spicy-tangy vegan cashew delight is easy to make and so versatile! (gluten-free)

  • Serves 2 servings
  • Prep 10 minutes
  • Cook 20 minutes
  • Total 30 minutes

Ingredients

For the Tofu

  • 10 ounces firm or extra firm tofu (pressed and cubed or torn into bite-sized pieces)
  • 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
  • 1 tablespoon cornstarch

For the Stir fry

  • 2 teaspoons oil
  • 1/3 cup cashews (raw or roasted unsalted)
  • 4-5 dried red chilies (stems removed and optionally broken into halves)
  • 4-5 cloves garlic (finely chopped)
  • 1/2 inch ginger (finely chopped)
  • 1/2 cup chopped onion
  • 1/2 to 3/4 cup green bell pepper (chopped or 3/4 cup broccoli or other vegetable thinly sliced or chopped)
  • 1/4 teaspoon black or white pepper (or a generous dash of both)

For the Sauce

  • 2 tablespoons soy sauce (or use 1 tablespoon soy sauce and 1 tablespoon dark soy sauce)
  • 3 tablespoons vegan hoisin sauce (or more, to taste. Or use 2 tablespoons or more hoisin sauce and 1 tablespoon vegan oyster sauce)
  • 2 teaspoons rice wine vinegar
  • 1/4 teaspoon sugar (or other sweetener of choice)
  • 1/4 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
  • 1/2 teaspoon cornstarch (mixed in 1/2 cup veggie broth or water)

For Garnish

  • green onion
  • pepper flakes

Instructions

Crisp the tofu.

  1. 1

    Press and tear tofu into bite size pieces and add to a bowl. Add the black pepper and cornstarch, and toss well to coat. Heat the oil in a skillet over medium heat. Once hot, add the tofu and cook 2 minutes then flip and cook for another 2. Repeat until most edges are golden, about 6 minutes. Remove the tofu from the pan, and set it aside.

Make the stir fry.

  1. 2

    Heat oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add the cashews and chilies and cook until the cashews are golden on most sides. (If using raw cashews, toast those for a minute before adding chilies.) Stir frequently. Remove from skillet, but let the oil remain the skillet.

  2. 3

    Add garlic and ginger to the skillet. Reduce heat to low. Mix and cook for 2 minutes or until translucent. Add onions and veggies and a generous pinch of salt. Increase heat to medium high. Cook for 2 to 3 minutes. Stir frequently.

  3. 4

    Add all of the sauce ingredients to the skillet. Mix and cook for a minute. Taste and add salt, tang, (and heat) if needed. Simmer for a few minutes until the sauce thickens slightly. Add in the crisped tofu, toasted cashews and chilies and toss well to coat with the sauce. Switch off heat after a minute, and serve over cooked white/brown rice or grains of choice, like quinoa. Garnish with chopped green onion and pepper flakes.

Notes

Tearing the tofu instead of cubing gives it more surface area to absorb the flavors of the sauce. It also yields a more chicken-like texture. Cashew tofu stir fry is naturally gluten-free. If you don't want to use tofu, you can use chickpea tofu, chickpeas, seitan, soaked and drained soy curls, or vegan chicken substitute in place of the tofu. No need to crisp up the chickpeas, if using.

Nutrition

  • Calories431 kcal
  • Carbohydrates42 g
  • Protein22 g
  • Fat22 g
  • Saturated Fat3 g
  • Polyunsaturated Fat8 g
  • Monounsaturated Fat10 g
  • Trans Fat0.01 g
  • Cholesterol1 mg
  • Sodium986 mg
  • Potassium678 mg
  • Fiber6 g
  • Sugar16 g
  • Vitamin A1000 IU
  • Vitamin C164 mg
  • Calcium237 mg
  • Iron5 mg