Thai Basil Chilli Tofu with Brown Rice

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This Thai Basil Chilli Tofu served with brown rice is a great healthy vegan and gluten free recipe.

Thai Basil Chilli Tofu

Its unfortunate that the reason why I am back to posting is because the world is in such a sad state of affairs. Thanks to cancelled shoots, self-quarantine and social distancing, I have got a lot of time to spend in the kitchen- bake, cook, experiment with recipes and style and shoot the food I am cooking just for personal reasons- exactly the way it used to be when I started the blog.

Today I am sharing this easy recipe for Thai Basil chili Tofu with brown rice. Its a great, easy to put together recipe, and does not require too many ingredients. For indians, who do not have a stock of tofu, you can substitute paneer. While I would recommend thai basil, in case you don’t have that regular basil works just fine.

You will need firm tofu for the recipe. Additionally I add a heavy weight on the tofu for 15-20 minutes to drain any excess water, so that its easier to fry and flavors are absorbed better. I used brown rice here, but jasmine rice/basmati rice will also work. This meal is vegan, vegetarian, gluten free, quick and a satisfying healthy meal to put together for the family. If you get to try it, please do let me know. Tag me in your photos on instagram, or facebook.

Thai basil Chili Tofu

Thai Basil Chilli Tofu with Brown Rice
 
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An easy vegan and gluten free weeknight meal. Pair this thai basil chili tofu with whatever grain you like best for a delicious meal!
Author:
Recipe type: dinner, lunch, quick, easy
Cuisine: Thai, Asian
Serves: 2-3
Ingredients
  • 500 grams firm tofu
  • 1 tbsp finely chopped ginger
  • 1 tbsp finely chopped garlic
  • ½ cup thai basil
  • 2 tsp, plus 2 tsp oil
For the sauce:
  • 2 tbsp schezwan sauce
  • 1 tsp honey
  • 1 tbsp sesame oil
  • 1 tsp dark soy sauce
  • 1 tbsp sriracha
  • ½ tsp cornstarch
  • 1 cup water
Instructions
  1. Press the tofu with a heavy object like a dutch oven/cast iron pan. I generally place a clean thin towel between the tofu and the pan, and place the tofu on a marble chopping board/plate. Keep the tofu pressed for 15-20 minutes. Chop the tofu into cubes.
  2. Heat oil in a non stick pan. Fry the tofu cubes until lightly brown on all sides, flipping them occasionally. Season the tofu, and transfer to bowl.
  3. In a bowl, whisk together the ingredients listed under sauce.
  4. In the same pan, add another 2 tsp oil. Add the ginger and garlic and saute till the ginger garlic start changing color.
  5. Add in the tofu and sauce toss them quickly until all the tofu is coated with sauce. Remove from heat and add in the thai basil, and mix well. Season with salt and pepper, if needed.
  6. Serve over brown rice or your choice of grain. Garnish with green onions.
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Homemade Falafel Recipe

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Recipe for crispy and perfectly flavored vegan, gluten free falafels made from scratch using dried chickpeas. Falafels make a great snack, and when stuffed in pita or flatbread along with pickled vegetables and tahini sauce, a satisfying meal.

Homemade Falafels Gluten free and vegan

It’s been a long time since I have posted on the blog, and I know each time I say this but I truly hope that going forward I post more regularly. There have been a lot of great recipes that I have tried in the past few days and I would love to share them here. One such recipe is of these from falafels that I made the other day for A and myself.

When I was in Dallas, I remember going to this falafel place that served the most delicious falafels I have ever eaten. It was like a subway shop but for mediterranean food, and their falafels (and fries) were super addictive. Ever since then I have wanted to try my hand making falafels.

The whole idea of making falafels at home has always intimidated me, mainly because the prospect of churning uncooked chickpeas made me feel that my blender would overheat and give up. While working on a styling gig for Hamilton Beach, I got to try their mixer grinder that they had been specifically designed for the indian market. I fell in love with the product and the ease with which I could make each recipe for the shoot, that I had to approach the brand for a collaboration. Since receiving the product, I have been so happy with their Juicer Mixer Grinder– making purees, soups, chutneys, masala powders and recently Falafels.

Homemade Falafels Gluten free and vegan

While slightly expensive (at the moment of this post going live, there is a INR 2000 disocunt on the MRP on amazon),  because of the great quality and its ability to withstand heavy duty use, I would highly recommend the product. I do wish they would have a smaller dry grinder, for times when I do not have too many whole spices to grind, but besides that I have had no complaints and am making the most of the juicer mixer grinder.

Coming to the falafels recipe. These homemade falafels are so flavorful and most of the work is done by the mixer, so super easy to put together. They are also perfectly crisp on the outside, without being mushy on the inside. Remember to use soaked uncooked chickpeas, and not chickpeas from the can. You will not get the same results if you change that. Also, make sure that you do not overprocess the chickpeas. I used the manual setting on the Hamilton Beach JMG, on the lowest speed, and once saw the mixture coming together, switched to pulse mode.

The recipe for these homemade falafels is adapted from here.  I served the falafels in pita as a wrap with lettuce, some veggies and tahini sauce. It was the perfect meal. These falafels would be great as a snack as well, served with some homemade hummus. I am constantly looking for more vegetarian, gluten free healthy meal options and these falafels definitely make the cut. Hope you get to try them out and in case you do please tag me on my instagram here.

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Chocolate Zucchini Cake

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A delicious, rich and moist chocolate zucchini cake made even more healthy with whole wheat and applesauce. No one will guess it has vegetables in it!

Chocolate Zucchini Cake

I bought some zucchini the other day to use in a side of grilled vegetables, but instead I ended up ordering in, leaving the zucchini sitting in the refrigerator. I had been itching to bake a cake and decided to re-strategize and used the zucchini to make a chocolate zucchini cake instead, and I am glad I did.

I know I have been super silent here. My last post was last year July, which says a lot. From posting 2-3 times a week, to posting 8-10 times a year is a giant step down. When I started this blog, it was a place for me to share my recipes along with snippets of my life. Since a lot was happening in my life that I particularly did not want to share on a public platform, the blog mostly became a space for my recipes. When I took up photography professionally, time in the kitchen testing recipes was replaced by time tending to client work, and hence the hiatus the blog. I tried to still post 2-3 times a month but last couple of months have been super busy. I have now moved to Delhi, and between shoots and edits don’t get much time to do personal blog stuff. I keep saying I want to change that but as a freelancer its tough to say no to new job opportunities, which leaves no time for a hobby (in this case, testing recipes, writing about them on the blog). I am grateful for the opportunities that come, but I feel sad that the thing that started it all- this blog, has now become a neglected space.

I do miss my time in the kitchen experimenting, learning from failures and then rejoicing at successes. One such success is this Chocolate Zucchini Cake and since I posted it on my instagram and facebook, I have had lots of requests for the recipe. With some free time on hand, decided its high time I get myself out of the hiatus and here I am with the recipe for this Chocolate Zucchini cake.

The recipe is adapted from allrecipes.com . My variations included subbing half the all purpose flour with whole wheat flour, cutting the sugar by half, and replacing half the oil called for with apple butter. I would like to make a note of the apple butter here- it was homemade and I think it is the secret ingredient here. The apple butter recipe is a slow cooker recipe that I adapted from here. I added less sugar than the original recipe, instead I added some red wine to the apple butter, and a star anise which really did bring a nice liquorish taste to the apple sauce. You could use any homemade apple butter, or you could just use oil. If using only oil, I would suggest use a total of 1 1/4 cup. It should be enough for the recipe.

I served the chocolate zucchini cake with a drizzle of caramel sauce. The cake is seriously addictive, and it got over in no time. No one will ever be able to guess it has a vegetable in it!

I hope you get to try this chocolate zucchini cake recipe  and if you do please do share your results with me on instagram or facebook or leave a comment here. 

Chocolate Zucchini Cake

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