Meatless Monday! Kung Pao Tofu with Coconut Rice

This recipe is from Cooking Light Magazine. I substituted the chicken with tofu (drained and pressed). It was really super good. A good Chinese Food flavor, but with healthy ingredients. I made it with a whole teaspoon of the crushed red pepper and it turned out too spicy for me. When I reheated the leftovers, I added a splash of rice wine vinegar which tamed it back perfectly.

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons dark sesame oil
• 1 cup chopped onion
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 block of tofu drained and pressed
  
• 3/4 cup water
• 3 tablespoons lower-sodium soy sauce
• 2 teaspoons cornstarch
• 1 teaspoon brown sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon bottled minced ginger
• 1 to 1 1/2 teaspoons crushed red pepper
• 1 cup thinly sliced red bell pepper (about 1 large pepper)
• 1 cup snow peas, trimmed
• 2 tablespoons chopped unsalted, dry-roasted peanuts

Preparation

1. Heat sesame oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion to pan; sauté 3 minutes or until softened. Add garlic; sauté 30 seconds, stirring constantly. Add chicken tofu; sauté 3 minutes or until it begins to brown.

2. Combine 3/4 cup water and the next 5 ingredients (through crushed red pepper), stirring with a whisk until sugar dissolves. Add water mixture to pan; bring to a boil. Add bell pepper and snow peas to pan; cook for 2 minutes or until vegetables are crisp-tender and sauce thickens. Sprinkle with nuts.

I served it with Coconut Jasmine Rice. Simply cook 1 cup rice with 1 1/4 c. water, 1/2 cup light coconut milk, and a pinch of salt. Delicious!

And I had a lot of the coconut milk left over. So, I froze it in ice cube trays. Last night I made more rice, so I popped in a couple of the ice cubes and easily had more coconut rice.

Visit Meatless Monday.com for more ideas and help with going meatless at least once a week.