Tofu and Mixed Vegetable Rice Bowl

Step 1

Prepare your tofu by pressing it. I like to wrap mine in a towel and place a heavy flat surface on top (such as a few chopping boards). Afterwards, I slice the tofu it into small 1/2-3/4 inch cubes. I like cutting mine into small cubes so they’re easy to scoop over along with the chopped vegetables.

Step 2

Meanwhile, mix together the sauce ingredients in a bowl until the corn starch has dissolved. Feel free to adjust the sauce to your taste.

Step 3

For the tofu, you can opt to pan-fry or deep fry these until golden brown or crisp or place them in an air-fryer to crisp up. I air-fried mine for 25-30 minutes at 200C until golden brown and crisp. Once the tofu is cooked, set it aside.

Step 4

Heat a pot or pan over medium. Once hot, add some oil for cooking. Sauté the garlic until aromatic before adding in your vegetables. I recommend to add the carrots first since these take longer to cook before adding other vegetables you’re using. Once the vegetables are almost cooked through, add in the vegan ham (if using) and other protein of choice, such as the tofu.

Step 5

Give the sauce another mix to make sure the cornstarch hasn’t stuck to the bottom. Over medium heat, pour in the sauce.

Step 6

Give everything a good mix to coat the protein and vegetables. The sauce will thicken as it cooks due to the corn starch.

Step 7

Taste the veggies and feel free to season more with soy sauce or vegetarian oyster sauce, if needed.

Step 8

Lower the heat and allow everything to simmer until the sauce has thickened. You can add 2-3 tbsp more water for a more runnier sauce consistency. Do note that the sauce will really thicken as it cools due to the corn starch.

Step 9

Turn off the heat. Serve while hot over steamed rice. Do note that the sauce will continue thicken as it cools due to the corn starch.

Step 10

This is great for batch cooking and meal prep. You can make a big batch and store in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks. I like to scoop up enough for 1 serving and will reheat this on a pan or in the microwave. Do note that the sauce will thicken in the refrigerator due to the corn starch so you can opt to add some water when reheating and mix it well until the sauce coats the veggies well again.