Being a huge fan of sesame chicken and General Tso’s chicken, I wanted to create a dish that takes in these flavors while being purely vegetarian/vegan. This is a simple twist on these dishes while having a little bit of my own flare.
What you will need:
- 1-2 cups of brown rice
- 3-4 cups of water
- 1/4 cup of scallions
- 1/2 cup of chopped Thai basil
- 1/2 cup of low sodium soy sauce
- 2 tbsp Hoisin sauce
- 1 tbsp chili oil
- 1 dried chili
- 3-4 cups of frozen or fresh veggies of choice
- Salt to taste
- 1 tsp sesame oil
To make this dish a healthy option, I started by rinsing my brown rice and putting it in my electric pressure cooker. My Fagor pressure cooker has a brown rice option which is possibly one of the best features. For each cup of brown rice, I added 1.5 – 2 cups of water. Add 1 tsp of sesame oil to the brown rice and salt to taste. The brown rice will take the longest time to cook; to ensure that it is ready by the time the dish is ready I set the rice to cook first.
For the tofu, there are two options. At the Asian grocery store near me, they carry fried tofu that is perfect for the dish. Alternatively, if a similar item is not available. Using peanut oil in a wok or deep but narrow pot, bring the oil to temperature. To give the tofu a little bit more of a kick I will add 1 dried chili pepper to the oil.
While the oil is coming to temperature, grab your extra firm tofu, rinse the tofu and lightly press the tofu to remove any excess water. I prefer to cube the tofu into 1/4-1/2 inch cubes. Then fry them in the peanut oil. Allow the tofu to remain until it looks nice and crispy. Once done, place the tofu on paper towels to soak up any additional oil.
Now that the tofu is done, set it to the side. Using a steamer, place 3-4 cups of frozen vegetables into your steamer. While the veggies are steaming, chop your scallions (1/4 cup) and Thai basil.
In a wok, add 1 – 2 tsp of chili oil and if needed you can add some more sesame or olive oil. As the oil is coming to temperature (medium to medium-high temperature) add the scallions and Thai basil. This will be pretty quick; the greens should start to cook, and add the fried tofu lightly. As everything is starting to marinade, add 1/2 cup of soy sauce and the 1-2 tbsp of hoisin sauce. Mix the sauce thoroughly into the tofu, and it should be readied in a few minutes.
At this point, your rice, and steamed veggies are ready to be plated. I prefer my veggies to have a little crunch on them. Plate the brown rice and add the steamed veggies. When adding the tofu, add a little bit of the sauce on top of the veggies. There you have a Sweet and Spicy Popcorn Tofu.
