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If you’re looking for a healthy, light meal you’ll love these vegan tofu firecracker lettuce wraps. This recipe starts with the pan-fried tofu, which is then, quickly stir-fried with half of the sauce. Served inside two leaves of butter lettuce, along with brown rice, green onions, sesame seeds and a little more of that firecracker sauce.
These vegan tofu lettuce wraps are…
- perfect for weeknight dinners during summer.
- a fun way to get in your greens!
- packed with so much flavor.
Ingredients for vegan tofu firecracker lettuce wraps
- Tofu: the main ingredient is just a regular block of tofu, that will need to be pressed for at least 30-40 minutes to remove all that extra moisture.
- Lettuce: I used butter lettuce, but you can use whatever lettuce you want. Just make sure they’re sturdy (and big) enough to hold the firecracker tofu and the brown rice!
- Oil: just a tablespoon or two for shallow frying the tofu.
- Soy sauce: you can also coconut aminos.
- Maple sauce: most firecracker recipes call for brown sugar, but I wanted to keep things a little bit more healthy, so I used pure maple syrup!
- Cornstarch: coating the tofu cubes with cornstarch before frying will help achieve a crispy exterior.
- Chilli flakes: although this is a firecracker recipe, feel free to omit if you’re not a fan of spicy food and just stick to the hot sauce alone.
- Sriracha: this hot sauce is the base of this firecracker sauce, and yes, it’s vegan!
- Garlic: just two cloves, grated. Or 1/2 tsp garlic powder.
- Salt: if needed! I used a low sodium soy sauce, so I definitely needed it.
- Sesame: to take this recipe to another level, you’ll need a dash of sesame oil and sesame seeds.
- Onions: green onions aka spring onions for my UK peeps!
- Rice: a cup of pre-cooked brown rice or white rice.
All about the tofu…
Starting with the tofu, remove it from its packaging, drain the water and then wrap it with a kitchen towel. Some people like to also use paper towels, but I prefer using something more sustainable. Place on a plate, and then place some books or even pans on top. This will help remove all the excess water from the tofu, making it a little firmer. Set aside for at least 40 mins.
After the 40 minutes is up, cut the tofu into small cubes and toss with corn starch. Add a little oil into a nonstick skillet and heat over medium heat. Once the oil is ready, add in the tofu and shallow fry until crispy and lightly golden brown. I like to shallow fry for at least 20 minutes.
Making the spicy firecracker sauce…
Combine sriracha, maple syrup, soy sauce, sesame oil, grated garlic, chilli flakes and salt. Use a jar, or even a small blender if you don’t feel like grating the garlic cloves. If you choose to use a food processor, add all the sauce ingredients, apart from the chilli flakes. Stir in the chilli flakes at the end! Everyone’s taste buds are a little different, so add more chilli flakes or salt if needed.
Pour half of the sauce over the crispy tofu bits and stir fry over medium-high heat for 3-4 minutes or until the sauce browns and starts to cling to the small pieces of tofu. Keep the other half of the remaining sauce for drizzling over before serving!
Assembling the healthy vegan lettuce wraps…
I like to layer two lettuce leaves together, this way the wraps become sturdier AND you get to sneak in a little more greens. Carefully add brown rice to the delicate lettuce leaves, top with the tofu mixture, sesame seeds, sliced green onions and a drizzle of more firecracker sauce. I sometimes even like to drizzle over a little peanut butter too! Enjoy warm!
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Ingredients
- 396 g block of tofu
- 1/4 cup cornstarch
- 1–3 tbsp oil ( for shallow frying)
Firecracker Sauce
- 1/2 cup sriracha
- 3–4 tbsp maple syrup
- 3 tbsp soy sauce
- 1–2 tbsp sesame oil
- 2 grated garlic cloves
- 1 tsp chilli flakes (or to taste)
- salt (to taste )
Other
- butter lettuce
- 1–2 cups cooked brown rice
- white sesame seeds
- sliced green onions
Instructions
- Tofu: Grab your block of tofu, drain the water and press for at least 30 minutes. Cut tofu into small cubes and toss with the cornstarch. Heat pan with oil, then add in the tofu cubes and shallow fry for 15-20 minutes or until crispy.
- Firecracker sauce: Combine all the sauce ingredients. Pour half of the mixture into the pan, and cook for 2-3 minutes on high or until it clings onto the tofu and becomes a little sticky.
- Assembly: Layer two lettuce leaves, then add rice, tofu firecracker, green onions and white sesame seeds. Drizzle with a little more of that firecracker sauce and enjoy!
Nutrition
- Calories: 648
