I saw a recipe pop up for slow cooker Thai chicken the other day and I realized that I had all the ingredients on hand to make a vegetarian (actually vegan!) version. YAY! It looked easy, tasty and I thought I’d give it a go. The results did not disappoint. It truly was easy and it tasted amazing. Final icing on the cake? I was able to put my leftovers to good use by making them into lettuce wraps the next night at dinner!
A couple of things of note… I ate it before I took a picture of it. So, just take my word for it that it looks good too. Also, the 1 Tbsp of saracha in the recipe makes it pretty hot. If you don’t like spicy foods, I’d drop it down to just 1/2 Tbsp. If you’re not a tofu fan, you can also adapt this same recipe to use a Faux Chicken product such as Quorn Chik’n Cutlets or Gardein Chick’n Scallopini.
Slow Cooker Thai Tofu
Serves 4. Recipe based off of Shrinking Kitchen
Ingredients:
- 4 Tbsp PB2 (or 1/4 cup of peanut butter)
- 3/4 cup light coconut milk
- 1 Tbsp Sriracha Hot Chili Sauce (use 1/2 Tbsp if you like less heat)
- 2 Tbsp lime juice
- 1 Tbsp low-sodium soy sauce
- 1 Tbsp Sugar
- 2 Tbsp grated fresh ginger
- 1 package extra firm Tofu, sliced in 1/2 inch slabs
- 1/3 cup chopped peanuts, for topping
- 4 Tbsp chopped cilantro, for topping
- 1/2 cup bean sprouts, for topping
- 8oz Whole wheat pasta
- 1 cup shredded carrots
Directions:
- Combine PB2 or peanut butter with coconut milk in a medium bowl.
- Add in Sriracha (or less), lime juice, soy sauce, sugar, and ginger. Stir well to combine.
- Coat the tofu with the mixture and place in a slow cooker. Pour half of the remaining mixture into the slow cooker. Retain the other half in the refrigerator for use later.
- Cook on high for 2 1/2 – 3 hours or low for 4 – 5ish hours.
- Cook and drain the pasta. Heat remaining peanut sauce and carrots in the pasta pot, cooking over medium heat until well combined and carrots are slightly limp. Add the pasta back to the pot and stir well to combine.
- Serve tofu over the top of the pasta. Top with chopped peanuts and cilantro.
Thai Tofu Lettuce Wraps from the leftovers
Ingredients:
- Leftover Thai Tofu (recipe above)
- 1 cup shredded carrots
- 1/2 can water chestnuts, finely chopped
- 1/4 cup green onions, for topping
- Leftover bean sprouts, for topping
- Leftover cilantro, for topping
- Lettuce leaves (iceburg, romaine or green leaf), washed and dried
Directions:
- Cut the leftover tofu into cubes. Heat over medium heat along with carrots and water chestnuts.
- When it’s heated through, add green onions and serve with lettuce leaves, bean sprouts and cilantro.
- Eat by placing a bit of the tofu mixture into the lettuce leaf, roll it into a wrap and devour!