Last week we decidedly took a hiatus from beans cooks to frolic beaches and stare into the abyss that is Tofino, BC.
The getaway was beautiful and life-affirming. I also had a moment, profoundly disheveled, caught in the cross-current of “considerable” surf (read the wave report) thinking to myself “I might die out here.”
C’est la vie, I in fact did not die, but damn does surfing make your feel equally alive and like you just might die in a single thrilling, adrenaline tumefying sweep.
Highlights of the trip include surfing and not dying, a très magnifique (I’m feeling french this week!) sunset at Mackenzie beach, and noshing on kelp salad at Wolf in the Fog.
Meeks first had this salad on his Bach Boys Weekend last Summer, instantly texted me freaking out about how good it was, and so naturally, we had to return, together, to experience this salad, together 🤝
It did not disappoint! I was enthralled by it’s umami and texture, incorporating puffed wild rice and creamy gobs of soft cheese. She was spicy, she was salty, she was creamy, she was a delight! Not to mention, kelp is like a superfood, or whatever. I could feel my micronutrients replenishing with each swallow and bite.
Before we get to recipes of the week, the nachos honestly deserve their own post, plaque, and star at the food hall of fame. Beyond Beef (please sponsor us??) is a godsend for every vegetarian who has The Crave™️ for the classic comfort foods of their past, meat-filled lives. Nachos are high on that list for me — shout out to the tex-mex restaurant I worked at in my 20’s for giving me my best friends while also simultaneously ruining my life. It be like that sometimes ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
I digress, but I love nachos. And I would also consider myself to be a bit of a nacho aficionado (add that to my growing list of talents, passions, and jobs). The perfect nachos are a blend of ooey-gooey, dips, and fresh crunch, imo.
For your ooey-gooey, this includes more cheese than you think you should (“shoulds” are the shackles of life!! Free yourself!!), meat or meat-alternative of your choice *insert Beyond Beef*, a bean of sorts for, you know, fibre, and then honestly, probably some more cheese. A 🔥 addition is chopped onion, or a slew of slow-cooked onion, to the point of caramelization. Gud’gawd!
For dips, you know we NEED the trifecta, representative of the Mexican flag: sour cream, guac, and red salsa. Other additions that slap include chipotle mayo, caesar salad dressing from the tube or RANCH, verde, a smoky-chipotle forward salsa, and Valentina hot sauce, or, your HS of choice.
Finally, the freshies: green onion, chopped tomato, and thin-chopped iceberg lettuce are non-negotiable at this point. Honourable mentions include diced red pepper, olives (not black sliced from a can, please).
Important to note here: your fresh crunch DOES NOT go in the oven! This is what you add AFTER you’ve achieve your ideal bake time of the ‘chos. Ideally, cheese is well melted and you can see the edges of your chips getting toasty.
Top with a smush of lime, and Tajin — if ya know what’s good for ya.
What the gooey, dippy, crunch gives is a blend of experience. It’s giving salt, acid, fat, heat, y’all! This might be a bold statement, but this is the key to making comfort food that checks all the boxes and actually makes you feel better about yourself, which is, like, the point of comfort food! To comfort us to withstand the excruciables of life!
Hugs!
Xo, Tay & Meeks
Monday: Fall Greens, Apples, and Cheddar from Salad Freak by Jess Damuck
Tuesday: Curried Chickpea Salad from Oh She Glows Every Day by Angela Liddon
Wednesday: Freestyle Nachos (beyond beefs!)
Thursday: Dumplings (frozen) and Stir-Fried Gai Lan from The Vegan Chinese Kitchen by Hannah Che
Friday: Dating!
Saturday: Sweet & Sour Tofu, on rice
Sunday: Cavatelli Pasta from Steve Cusato
Fruit & Veg 🍓🥬
Red pepper
Carrots
Scallions
Ginger
Garlic
Pineapple
Gai lan
Cilantro
Lemons
Tomato
Sweet potatoes
Chard
Apple (something tart)
Broccoli crowns
Dairy 🥛🧀
Feta
Cheddar, but a nice aged one
Sour cream
Parmy
Pantry 🥫
Potato starch
Veggie stock
Rice
Dried shiitake mushers
Dumplings! We’ve found a good vegetarian kimchi dumpling at Costco.
Chickpeas
Vegan Mayo
Almonds
Taco chips
Salsa
Beyond beefs or other alternative
Black beans
Orecchiette pasta
Pepperoncinis
Breads 🍞
Pita
Protein 💪
2 packs tofu, cubed up
Vegetarian sausage
OSS (Oils, Spices, & Sauces) 🍯
EVOO, salt, pepper
Ketchup
Rice vinegar
Shoaxing wine
Maple syrup
Soy sauce
Vegetarian oyster sauce
Turmeric
Curry powder
Cayenne powder
Grainy mustard
Apple cider vinegar
Sweetie but Sour Tofu
Sweet and Sour Tofu!! Our most frequented date joint in town, by far, is Green Leaf Vietnamese Bistro. I’d say almost half of our dates end up here, and for good reason - the best sweet and sour soup we’ve ever had. Every single time we go, I slurp and wish that I could somehow cook to the same standard. I’ve tried and tried, but I can’t crack the code. Some say it can’t be done. So for this week, we slightly digress to the world of non-souped sweet and sour. Loads of pineapple coming at you in this one, with the crispy tofu and a sauce that you’ll want on everything. Serve it over some rice and baby, you’ve got a stew cookin’
Ingredients
Fruit & Veg 🍓🥬
1 red pepper, cut into chopped
1-2 large carrots, chopped into semicircles
4 scallions, sliced thin
2 tbsp ginger, peeled and minced
3 cloves garlic, minced
0.5 pineapple, peeled, cored, and chopped into cubes
Pantry 🥫
200g potato starch
150 ml veggie stock
Rice, as desired
Protein 💪
2 packs tofu, cubed up
OSS (Oils, Spices, & Sauces) 🍯
6 tbsp ketchup
2 tbsp rice vinegar
4 tbsp shoaxing wine
2 tbsp maple syrup
1.5 tbsp soy sauce
Lots of vegetable oil for frying tofu (unless you want to bake/air fry)
Approach
Saucin’
Combine the ketchup, rice vinegar, shoaxing wine, maple syrup, and soy sauce in a bowl. That’s the only step!!
Tofu Town
If you want to serve this over rice, start that now. If not, no prob!
Starch up that tofu. Pat your tofu dry, and in a large bowl, combine with the potato starch. Toss and toss until the tofus are coated.
If you’re frying the tofu, heat up some real LARGE GLUGS of oil in a wok or saucepan, and when ready, chuck in that tofu until it’s fried how you like.
When you remove the tofu, let it rest on some paper towel. Get rid of some of the extra oil!
Pour the extra oil into a jar to use later, but leave about 2 tbsp in the wok.
If you’re baking or air frying the tofu, spread the bits over some parchment on a pan and hit it at 450F for 20 mins, or until it looks good.
Veggieville
In a large pot (same wok if you’ve fried the tofu), heat up about 2 tbsp oil.
Once hot, add in carrot. Stir-fry this for 3 minutes or so.
Next, add the scallion, ginger, and garlic, and stir-fry until it’s really smelling nice.
Add in the pineapple chunks for a minute or so, and add in the bell pepper for another minute.
Pour in the sauce, mix it up, and add in the tofu. Mix it up and let it cook for a few mins to combine the flavours.
Assembly
Scoop some rice into a bowl (if having), ladle on this sweet and sour tofu, and go to town. Munch!
Post-meal thoughts
Adding in some salt and pepper to the starch before tossing with tofu will add a little bit more flavour to these buddies if you happen to have a naked piece.
Baking or air frying the tofu uses much less oil, but doesn’t crisp in the same way that a full oil fry will. Still though, it’s plenty good and what I opt for at home.
Extra scallions, sesame seeds, chili crisp, or fried shallots are a great topping to add in later.
How’d that recipe go? Share with others what the flip happens when you replace olive oil for ranch — we love to hear it! 🙃