Vegan Lentil Salad Recipe

This time I share a recipe that my husband taught me, lentils with cabbage and smoked tofu. It is ideal to eat as a salad, although it can also be eaten hot or warm. Although the recipe may seem long, the truth is that it is a very simple dish and, best of all, wide-ranging. If we want, we can reserve the different parts that make it up in the refrigerator for several days to take them alone or combined. Keep reading and discover the steps to prepare this appetizing vegan lentil salad.

Ingredients to make Vegan Lentil Salad:

• 1 cup of lenses
• ¼ unit of Cabbage
• 2 units of Carrots
• 1 jet of vegetable oil
• 1 unit of onion
• 2 units of canned peppers
• 1 unit of firm tofu
• 2 tablespoons packed tomato sauce
• 1 pinch of thyme
• 1 pinch of ground cumin
• 1 pinch of salt
• 1 pinch of pepper
• 1 pinch of Smoked Paprika
• 2 units of fresh tomatoes
• 1 bunch of coriander

To marinate the tofu

• ¾ cup soy sauce
• 4 tablespoons of barbecue sauce
• 1 cup of water (240 milliliters)

How to make Vegan Lentil Salad:

The first thing we must do is the tofu, since it must be prepared in advance. The day before making the lentil salad, remove the tofu from the container, place it on a plate lined with kitchen paper. Crush it for 30 minutes with a weight on top, such as a cooking griddle. After the resting time, cut the tofu into thin strips and place them in a container to marinate them. To marinate the tofu, mix the water with the soy sauce and the barbecue sauce, add the mixture to the tofu, cover the container and put it in the fridge overnight. The next day, remove the tofu strips from the marinade, without draining, and bake them for 15-20 minutes on each side at 200ºC. Remember to line the baking tray with parchment paper. The tofu should be dark from the soy sauce but not burnt. Now we go with the rest of the salad. The lentils should be cooked as usual and dressed with olive oil, nothing more.  Separately, grate the coarse cabbage, place it in a deep glass container, cover it and cook it in the microwave for 5 minutes. Remove it, add the carrots cut into small cubes, stir and cook again for 3-5 more minutes. Take a wide and low saucepan and bring a finger of water to a boil with a splash of oil. When it reaches the boiling point, add the finely chopped onion and cook for 2 minutes. It is very important that you do not let all the water evaporate, because the onion should not be fried.

After two minutes, add the cabbage with the carrot, the chopped canned peppers, the smoked tofu strips, the tomato sauce, thyme, cumin, salt, pepper and paprika to the pan. Let cook for 10 minutes, stirring constantly. Add one or two fresh tomatoes cut to the previous soffit and the bunch of coarsely chopped coriander. Stir well and leave the preparation on the fire until the tomato is heated. Take it off the heat when it’s done.

To assemble the dish, put a bed of hot or cold lenses, as you like. On it, a few tablespoons of cabbage cooked with the rest of the ingredients. Finally, water the entire vegan lentil salad with a good splash of vegetable oil, another of lemon juice and sprinkle a little coriander. Delicious!

Note: the tofu strips, once cold, keep very well in the refrigerator in a container with a lid. If you want, you can fry them in oil to imitate bacon. As for the marinade, you can substitute the barbecue sauce for 2 tablespoons of crushed tomato, 1 teaspoon of liquid smoke and another of molasses.

Tricks

• Remember that the barbecue sauce must be suitable for vegans.
• Cabbage cooked in this way is a perfect accompaniment to pasta.