spicy tofu bento bowl

thanks to vegetarian times, last night i made one of the *best* meals ever. my original thought in making it was so that the hubby could utilize the mae ploy thai sweet chili sauce (which was a christmas gift to him from yours truly). but the meal was so good, he didn't even use the sauce. truly yum.

make it tonight:

spicy tofu bento bowl

spicy tofu
1/4 c. soy sauce*
1/4 c. chile-garlic sauce**
2 tbs dark sesame oil (i used light)
14 oz extra firm dofu, drained and cubed
5 green onions, finely chopped (1/2 cup)
1/4 c. plain yogurt
2 tbs lemon jice

salad
1/4 c. soy sauce
2 tbs lemon juice
1 tbs mnced fresh ginger
1 tsp. chile-garlic sauce
2 c. cooked brown rice
4 1/2 c. mixed baby greens
2 carrots, peeled
1 cucumber, sliced (1 1/2 cups)
1 avocado, peeled and sliced
1 tbs. toasted sesame seeds***

1. to make spicy tofu: whisk together soy sauce, chile-garlic sauce, and sesame oil in bowl. heat skillet over medum heat. dip tofu in soy sauce mixture; place tofu in skillet and cook 10 minutes, or until browned. cool 10 minutes. add green onions, yogurt, and lemon juice to remaining chile mixture, toss with tofu.

2. to make salad: whisk together soy sauce, lemon juice, giner, and chile-garlic sauce in bowl. mound rice in serving bowls. top with greens. shave carrot strips over top with vegetable peeler. top with tofu, cucumber, and avocado. sprinkle with sesame seeds; serve with soy sauce mixture.


*surprisingly, this was the only ingredient i did not have in my kitchen. but i didn't realize it until i already started cooking. so i had to cut open all the little take-out packages of soy sauce that we had in the cupboard. guess we eat take-out chinese a lot because i had more than enough packets to make this recipe. (i used about 10 packets, if you find yourself in the same situation as me)

**i don't know if they had a specific chile-garlic sauce in mind, but i just happened to have kikkoman thai style chile sauce in the fridge and that worked great.

***i actually forgot the sesame seeds when i originally made this. i put them in the toaster, but forgot to turn it on and then totally forgot they were there until after dinner. it was just as good without the seeds, but i'm sure they would've made a tasty addition.