TOFU TIKKA SALAD

Nairobi is super hot. I am trying all the ways to keep myself and my family cool during these days of hot sun. Poor boys, when they reach home they are completely exhausted after that running, swimming and so on. Got some fresh salad from the boga market and tried something new yesterday.

I love anything with tofu. Tofu has a very dull taste and so to enhance it I tried something new to trick my younger ones. I cooked the tofu like I prepare "Paneer tikka" with all the same spices. Pan roasted the Tofu and added it to the salad with lettuce, Italian spinach and seasoned with simple seasonings  olive oil, red wine vinegar, black pepper. 

Tofu tikka salad

My younger one told me it is "chicken" mom and my elder one "who is getting used to my
tricks" tried very hard and told me that it is "paneer". I didn't want to mess up anything here. I just kept quiet. 

Making them eat the salad is a big challenge and they were looking for the so called "chicken and paneer" in the salad bowl to peck it off like a bird and leave off the greens. Lol! There was a big debate between them but at last they finished everything I had given them to eat. 

Ingredients:

For the tofu tikkas:

Tofu- 250 gms

Garam masala- 1 tbspn

Turmeric powder- 1 tbspn

Chilly powder/ paprika- 1 tspn

Ginger- garlic paste- 1 tbspn

Lemon juice- 1 tspn

Oil- 1 tspn (for pan roasting)

Salt to taste

For the salad:

Lettuce- 250 gms

Italian spinach- 2 bunches

Olive oil- 1 tspn

Red wine vinegar- 1tspn

Black pepper- 1 tspn

Pan roasted red peppers- 1(cut into long slices)

Salt- a pinch

Method:

1. Cut the tofu gently into small cubes or the way you want it and place on a dry kitchen towel to remove the moisture for around 10 minutes.

2. Add all the spices including the oil, lemon juice and prepare a smooth paste with little water and blend the paste uniformly with the tofu cubes. Let the tofu cubes to marinate in the spices for 15 minutes.

I always blend the oil with the veggies or anything I am pan roasting to minimise the amount of oil used for cooking.

Tofu in the marinade

 3. Cut the red peppers and pan roast along with the tofu slices(to save time) for 10 minutes under low fire.

Pan roasted tofu and red peppers

4. Wash the lettuce and the spinach and cut them with your hands(not with the knife to avoid browning of the leaves) in a salad bowl. The spinach I got in the market today were very huge and so I had to chop it.

The Italian spinach

5. Add all the other ingredients for the salad and mix uniformly with hands or the salad spoon. Now add the pan roasted tofu and red peppers to the salad and toss  gently.