Tofu with vegan Parmesancrust, Potato-Carrot-Mash and Red Cabbage
Are you looking for a Christmas dinner for the whole family, a meal to cook for your next date or just a wonderful feel-good meal? You've come to the right place ... this dish has something for everyone.
And because everything always tastes ten times better when it's crisp, we breaded our tofu with a crispy, vegan parmesan panko crust and sautéed it in plenty of oil. To do so we used the vegan parmesan alternative "Cashewsan" from Dr. Mannah's, which, as the name suggests, is cashew-based. The taste is fantastic: nice and cheesy. The consistency is great, too. It's easy to handle, just like non-vegan parmesan. You can use it as a topping for pasta or salad, for garnishing or for a vegan parmesan crust. Plus, the packaging is 100 % plastic-free and compostable. We are big fans!
We mixed the "Cashewsan" with some panko to make the breading even crunchier. Of course, if you can't get these coarse Japanese breadcrumbs, you can use regular breadcrumbs. To give the tofu more flavor, we rubbed it with mustard before breading. The mustard flavor is rather subtle after frying and not too spicy.
The crispy tofu, creamy mashed potatoes and carrots are a natural fit for any season, whereas the apple red cabbage might be a dish for winter days. If you want to eat this dish during summer, go for it, but maybe exchange the red cabbage with a fresh coleslaw, cucumber salad, baked veggies or a quick veggie stir fry (without the rice, of course). For the pros with lots of time: you can also make your own red cabbage. It's easy, but takes a little longer.
Tofu with vegan Parmesancrust, Potato-Carrot-Mash and Red Cabbage
Ingredients
For the tofu:
- 400 g (1lb) tofu
- 50 g (1.75) mustard
- 100 g (0.75 cups) flour
- 1 tsp salt
- 1.5 tsp garlic powder
- 1.5 tsp onion powder
- 1 tsp sweet paprika powder
- 100 ml (0.5 cup) plant-based milk
- 110 g (0.25 lb) vegan “Cashewsan” (e.g. from Dr. Mannah's)
- 30 g (1 oz) panko breadcrumbs
- Vegetable oil for frying
For the potatocarrot puree:
- 200 g (0.5 lb) carrots
- 650 g (1.5 lb) floury potatoes
- 2 tbsp vegan butter
- 40 ml (0.25) plant-based milk
- 1 tsp mustard
- nutmeg
- salt
- pepper
For the sauce:
- 2 tbsp vegan butter
- 2 carrots
- 2 small onions
- 2 cloves of garlic
- 1.5 tsp mustard
- 2 tbsp tomato paste
- 100 ml (0.5 cup) vegan red wine
- 250 ml (1 cup) vegan cooking cream
- 350 ml (3.5 cups) vegetable broth
- 1 tbsp cranberry jam
- 1.5 tsp agave syrup
- 10 g (0.33 oz) fresh thyme
- 5 bay leaves
- 1 tbsp juniper berries
- 1 tsp cinnamon
Also:
- 500 g (1 lb) apple red cabbage
- 10 g (0.33 oz) fresh thyme
Instructions
First, prepare the sauce. You can keep it warm while you prepare the rest of the dish. To do so, heat the vegan butter in a pan over medium heat. Peel and chop the carrots, onions and garlic, add them to the pan and sautée for approx. 5 minutes. Then add mustard and tomato paste, and sautée on high heat for approx. 2 minutes. Deglaze with vegan red wine, plant-based cooking cream and vegetable stock and simmer briefly. Add cranberry jam and agave syrup and mix well. Chop the fresh thyme and add it to the pan, as well as the bay leaves, juniper berries and cinnamon. Put on a lid and simmer on low heat.
In the meantime, peel the potatoes and carrots for the puree and cut them into thumb-sized pieces. Place in a saucepan, cover with cold water and add salt. Boil for approx. 15–20 minutes until they are soft.
Remove any excess water from the tofu with a kitchen towel, cut it into triangles and rub it with mustard. Then prepare three bowls: Fill the first bowl with flour, salt, garlic powder, onion powder and sweet paprika powder, the second bowl with plant-based milk and the third bowl with vegan parmesan and panko breadcrumbs. Mix the respective ingredients well. Then, one by one, roll the tofu pieces first in the flour mixture, then in the plant-based milk and afterward in the "parmesan" panko mix and set aside.
Back to the potatoes: Drain and mash the potatoes and carrots with a potato masher. Add the vegan butter, plant-based milk and mustard and mix well. Season to taste with nutmeg, salt and pepper. If the mash is too dry, add a little more plant-based milk. Cover the potato carrot puree and keep it warm in the pot on low heat.
Heat up the red cabbage over medium heat.
Heat some oil in a large pan and fry the tofu triangles on both sides until brown and crisp. Then place on a paper towel to drain off excess fat.
Before serving, remove bay leaves and juniper berries from the sauce. Serve with crispy tofu triangles, potato carrot puree, apple red cabbage and gravy. Garnish with fresh thyme.
