To bring you even more recipe inspiration we’ve invite our friend Joann from Woman in Real Life to share a delicious vegan recipe idea. Not only does she have incredibly tasty recipes and beautiful, earthy home decorating ideas on her blog, but she is wonderfully kind and generous. She’s completely converted our view of tofu and think she will yours with this tantalizing vegan teriyaki bowl recipe!
Teriyaki Bowl Recipe with Tofu
My thanks to Jane and Sonja for inviting me to share a recipe with you here on Sustain My Craft Habit! We all agreed that their lovely, nature-inspired ideas for the home tie in nicely with my plant-based, often whole foods recipes. For those who don’t know me, I’m Joann, the mother of two teens and two beagle-mix rescue pups. I blog about celebrating the art in the everyday, with simple DIYs, decor ideas and plenty of vegan recipes. Drop by and visit me at Woman in Real Life.
Even as a vegetarian for the past two decades, I’m always striving to incorporate more healthy whole foods into my diet. We all get busy and healthy eating can easily fall by the wayside. When my daughter and I are left to our own devices, we like to grab a couple of quick healthy takeout bowls from Freshii, a fast food restaurant with more nutritious fare. Our favourite bowl is the Teriyaki Twist, a combination of brown rice, edamame, carrots, green onions and other healthful goodies. As much as I would love to buy these bowls every time the craving strikes, regular takeout is a strain on the wallet. So I decided to duplicate this simple bowl at home.
These Teriyaki Bowls With Tofu are built on a foundation of brown rice. They also work well with a base of noodles. The toppings are simple, natural foods, including shredded carrots, green onions, lightly cooked edamame, broccoli, cucumber and sesame seeds.
The flavour in this teriyaki bowl recipe comes from the homemade teriyaki sauce, an easy-to-make blend of sesame oil, fresh garlic, ginger, brown sugar, soy sauce, agave nectar and cornstarch. The sauce provides a rich, salty-sweet flavour that elevates simple veggies and rice into a tasty mealtime treat.
When we order our bowls at Freshii, we always elect for the optional tofu topping. It’s a softer tofu at the restaurant, but I tend to use extra-firm tofu at home. Extra-firm tofu is the star of one of my favourite meals, this Easy Weeknight Baked Tofu. For these homemade Teriyaki Bowls With Tofu, simply saute cubed tofu in olive oil and soy sauce.
Teriyaki Bowls with Tofu
Ingredients
For the Bowl
- 2 cups cooked brown rice
- 2 cups broccoli florets cut small
- 1 cup shredded carrots
- 1/2 English cucumber cut into thin semi-circles
- 1/2 cup shelled edamame boiled for 3 or 4 minutes
- green onions chopped
- sesame seeds
For the Tofu
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1/2 350 gm block of extra-firm tofu drained and cut into ½-inch cubes
- 1 tbsp light soy sauce
For the Teriyaki Sauce
- 2 tbsp sesame oil
- 1 clove garlic thinly sliced
- 1 ½-inch by 1-inch piece ginger root peeled and thinly sliced
- 2 tbsp brown sugar
- 1/4 cup low-sodium soy sauce
- 1 tsp agave nectar
- 1 tbsp cornstarch
- 1/2 cup cold water
Instructions
For the tofu
- Put a splash of water in a frying pan over medium heat. Add olive oil and tofu and saute for 5 minutes. Drizzle soy sauce over tofu and stir. Cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until tofu is browned and firm.
For the teriyaki sauce
- Add sesame oil to a small pot over medium heat. Stir in garlic and ginger and heat for a minute. Add brown sugar, soy sauce and agave nectar and stir. In a small bowl stir together cornstarch and cold water. Stir cornstarch slurry into teriyaki sauce and heat for 3 or 4 minutes, stirring constantly until thick and smooth.
To assemble the bowl
- Divide rice, broccoli, carrots, cucumber and edamame between two serving bowls. Top with green onions, sesame seeds and tofu. Drizzle with teriyaki sauce. Serve and enjoy!
Nutrition
I’ve shown the bowls with raw broccoli, in keeping with how they are served at the restaurant. If you prefer cooked broccoli though, simply saute it in a bit of oil or water for a few minutes. To save on dishes, cook the broccoli with the tofu.
If you’re in a hurry, you could definitely use a store-bought teriyaki sauce on these bowls. Peanut sauce is a nice alternative too. These homemade Teriyaki Bowls With Tofu turned out to be a delicious substitute for our fast food favourites. The only topping I didn’t include was the crispy wontons, because I like to keep things super simple to prepare. If you want to add them, I believe some grocery stores carry them ready-made as “wonton strips.”
For another family-favourite takeout meal to replicate at home, try these Peach Avocado Sushi Rolls, also served with (a thinner) teriyaki sauce. (Now I’m craving sushi!)
Visit Woman in Real Life’s recipes section for more easy, plant-based vegan meals and homemade baked goods. And follow along with me on Instagram to discover new recipes as they are posted.
What’s your favourite restaurant-style meal to make at home?
Like it? Pin it for later!
Joann @ Woman in Real Life
Thursday 22nd of February 2018
Thank you for inviting me to guest post and thanks as well for your lovely words! I think you are both wonderfully kind as well! :)
Jane and Sonja
Friday 23rd of February 2018
Our pleasure Joann! It's all true and we hope our readers take the opportunity to hop over and visit your beautiful blog. Thank you for sharing this yummy recipe with us!