Tofu Salad with Cucumber and Sesame Soy Dressing

Vegetables and herbs

1. A homemade tofu salad should be very juicy, so try to get young, very fresh cucumbers, as they are the base of the dish. Don’t skimp on herbs either: there should be plenty of green onions and cilantro. Be sure to add hot pepper, or half sweet and half hot if you prefer.

   

2. Cut the cucumbers and pepper. There’s no need to peel young green cucumbers: they are crisp enough and the skin isn’t noticeable. Just wash the cucumbers, dry them and cut into large cubes. Remove the seeds from all the pepper and cut it into thin strips. By the way, in season you can find pepper varieties that are only very mildly hot, and they are perfect for this salad.

   

3. Prepare the herbs and mix them with the vegetables. Wash all the herbs and pat off any drops of water. I use only the green tops of the green onions in this salad and save the white part for other dishes. Cut the green tops coarsely, and try cutting on the diagonal to get “feathers”. Remove the toughest part of the cilantro stems and either chop the rest coarsely with a knife or tear it with your fingers. Add the herbs to the cucumbers and pepper, then toss lightly so everything is evenly distributed.

   

Dressing

1. The salad dressing is based on soy sauce with various additions. Tofu salad doesn’t need to be chilled, so add the tofu and the dressing right before serving.

2. Make the dressing. In a small bowl, mix 2-3 tbsp light soy sauce and 1 tsp rice vinegar (black vinegar works too, and the taste will be excellent). Add a peeled piece of ginger the size of a walnut, finely chopped with a knife. Finely chop a clove of garlic as well. Add 1 tsp brown sugar (5 g) to the dressing. Once the sugar dissolves, pour in 1 tbsp fragrant sesame oil and mix well.

   

Serving

1. Add the tofu and dress the salad. Sprinkle the salad with 1 tsp white sesame seeds (3 g). Right before dressing, cut the tofu into cubes the same size as the cucumbers and add it to the salad. Pour over the dressing and toss gently so the soft tofu doesn’t crumble.

2. Divide the appetizer among salad bowls or small dishes. The salad goes well alongside other dishes, or it can serve as an appetizer on its own.

   

   You can add other juicy vegetables to the salad, such as celery stalks, radishes or cherry tomatoes. Instead of sesame seeds you can use quinoa, and instead of vinegar, lemon or lime juice, although the taste and aroma will then be very intense and different. If you want a colorful salad, use peppers of different colors.