INGREDIENTS
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp chilli powder
1 tbsp garlic puree
1 tbsp tomato puree
1 tbsp red pepper paste
1 tbsp sesame oil
1/4 cup maple syrup
1/4 cup soy sauce
1 tbsp cornflour
1/4 tsp sea salt
1/4 tsp ground black pepper
2 cloves minced garlic
1 thumb of ginger, grated
2 green peppers
Cucumber, spring onion, sesame seeds
METHOD
2. Pre-heat the oven to 180 degrees celsius. For the Tofu 'Chickn', make another marinade combining the sesame oil, soy sauce and cornflour and again, whisk until well combined. Tear large chunks of the tofu into a large bowl, then pour in the sesame oil- soy sauce-cornflour marinade and turn it through the tofu pieces to evenly coat them. Tip the tofu out on a non-stick baking tray, spread them out evenly then place them in the oven to bake at 180 degrees celsius for around 25 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, heat some oil in a wok then peel and finely mince the garlic and add to the pan. Deseed and finely chop the green chilli, add it to the pan then grate in a thumb-sized piece of fresh ginger, and fry the garlic, chilli and ginger off for a couple of minutes.
4. Take the raw cashews and mix 1 tbsp of the Sticky Sauce through them, coating them evenly. Remove the tofu from the oven - it should be slightly golden in colour - shuffle the tofu pieces to one side of the tray, then spread out the coated cashews on the other half. Place that back in the oven for around another 10 minutes to finish off the tofu and toast the nuts.
5. Trim and roughly chop up green peppers into chunks, then added those into the wok and stir them through the garlic, chilli and ginger.
6. Onto the rice, rinse the grains well, then add to a large shallow pan with a tablespoon of oil, add in a good pinch of salt then pour in the can of coconut milk coconut milk, stir once then cover with a lid and leave to cook for around 9 minutes.*
7. Back to the Cashew Tofu 'Chickn', next remove the tofu pieces and cashews from the oven - at this point the tofu should have a lovely colour to it and the cashews should be nice and sticky - add both into the wok, then pour in the Sticky Sauce and mix it through everything well.
8. Serve up the creamy coconut rice with the Sticky Cashew Tofu 'Chicken' on top. Garnish with cucumber slices, finely sliced spring onion and a sprinkle of sesame seeds.
*Alternatively for my Creamy Coconut Rice, scoop the coconut cream out of the top of the coconut milk can and place separately in a bowl. Add what's left in the coconut milk can to the rinsed rice in the pan along with a pinch of salt and 1/3 cup boiling water. Once almost cooked, stir in the coconut cream and lightly fry until it becomes golden on the bottom and creamy in texture.