The other night I woke up from some type of fever dream. I can’t remember what it was. And I don’t know if I was, in reality, worrying about things that are going on in my life or I just had to pee. After 20ish minutes of attempting to meditate, I figured I should just stay up and… think about things. So I thought about Bánh mì. Maybe it’s cause it has daikon, and daikon makes me happy.
But I don’t have meat (I try mainly buy meat for specific recipes which I buy fresh so I don’t tend to keep meat in the fridge or freezer). But I don’t have baguette bread. Or mayo. So Crispy Tofu Bánh mì on ciabatta bread it is. Here’s the recipe.
Crispy tofu Bánh mì on ciabatta bread recipe
For the tofu
- 3 slides of firm tofu, pressed to remove moisture (about 150 grams)
- 1 tablespoon sesame oil
- 1 teaspoon cayene pepper
- 1 teaspoon salt
Tofu method
Press the firm tofu slices in kitchen towels to remove the liquid. Season with sesame oil, salt, and cayenne pepper. Let that sit seasoned for 10-15 mins. Place into an air fryer basket and air fry for 25 mins.
If you don’t have an air fryer, you can use your oven, bake at 450F/232C for 20 mins. Until crispy and slightly golden. The tofu shouldn’t be too dried, just crispy enough to add texture. Set aside.
For the rest of the sandwich
- 1/2 cup shaved carrots
- 1/2 cup shaved daikon radish
- 1/2 cup of sliced cucumbers
- 1 bunch of cilantro (around 1/2 cup)
- 1/2 cup rice wine vinegar
- 2 tbsp mirin
- 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
- 1/4 cup boiling water
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp sugar
- ciabatta bread, toasted. or whatever bread you prefer that is very “bready”.
- 1 tbsp sour cream
- hoisin sauce (to taste)
- sriracha sauce (to taste)
Method
Mix the vinegars, mirin, boiling water, salt, and sugar and add the carrots and daikon to the pickling mixture. Let that sit there for at least 10 minutes so it can pickle lightly.
Toast the bread and slather it with sour cream. When the tofu is ready, layer the tofu, carrots, daikon, cucumber, and cilantro. Add some hoisin and sriracha to taste. and there you go, delicious crispy tofu Bánh mì sandwich.
