Roasted Cauliflower & Tofu with Festive Rice
From: Ian Seddon's Cookbook
🥘 Ingredients
- Tofu Cubes 1
- Extra
- Kosher
- potato starch or arrowroot powder 2 tbsp
- medium or large cauliflower 1.75-2.5 lb
- Medjool dates 4
- basmati rice 1 ¼ cup
- medium lemon 1
- roasted pistachios or almonds 0.33 cup
- flat-leaf parsley leaves and tender stems ½ cup
- fresh mint leaves ½ cup
- pomegranate seeds from ½ cup
- Cilantro Yogurt Sauce ¾ cup
I prefer potato starch or arrowroot powder in baked tofu, as cornstarch can leave a slightly chalky aftertaste. Pomegranate substitute: If you didn’t buy pomegranate, simply omit the pomegranate seeds here. Storage: Store the rice, tofu, and roasted cauliflower separately in the fridge for 3 to 4 days. If you have leftover Festive Rice, bring it to room temperature; if you have plain white rice, assemble it with the toppings as listed in step 5(d) before serving. Reheat the tofu in a frying pan with a touch of oil over medium heat for 2 to 3 minutes each side until crisp and hot (or serve at room temp). Reheat the cauliflower in the same pan until hot. Assemble the dish as listed in the last step before serving. Nutrition boost: Add a layer of soft salad greens to your platter before plating everything on top. For extra protein, make more baked tofu, or finish the dish with a generous sprinkle of hemp seeds. Shortcut: If you bought pre-baked tofu, simply chop it up and add it to the serving platter when assembling (or cube it, then briefly heat up in a frying pan). Shortcut: If you bought frozen or ready-to-heat rice, skip cooking the basmati rice.
-
1Gather: Tofu Cubes , Extra virgin olive oil, Kosher salt and freshly cracked black pepper, potato starch or arrowroot powder , medium or large cauliflower , Medjool dates . For the festive rice: basmati rice , medium lemon , roasted pistachios or almonds , flat-leaf parsley leaves and tender stems , fresh mint leaves , pomegranate seeds from , Cilantro Yogurt Sauce .
-
2Arrange a rack in the top third of the oven and another on the bottommost shelf, and preheat to 450ºF / 230ºC. Grab two rimmed sheet pans; line one with parchment paper.
-
3In a medium bowl, add the Tofu Cubes, 1 1/2 tbsp olive oil, 1 tsp kosher salt, and black pepper to taste. Toss gently with a silicone spatula to coat. Add the potato starch and, as gently as possible, toss to coat the tofu. Spread the tofu out on the lined pan so the pieces don’t touch.
-
4On the unlined pan, toss the cauliflower florets with 2 tbsp olive oil, rubbing it into the nooks and crannies. If it feels dry, add more oil. Season with 1 tsp kosher salt and lots of pepper. Spread out on the pan, flat sides facing down.
-
5Transfer the tofu to the top rack and the cauliflower to the bottom rack. Roast for 20 minutes .
-
6While they roast, prepare the Festive Rice and remaining ingredients. Cook the rice according to your preferred method (see Cooked White Rice for instructions). Allow the rice to cool a bit until warm (not hot). Pit the dates, then chop them into pieces or tear them into pieces using your hands. Juice 1 lemon. Chop the pistachios. Chop the parsley and mint. Make the Festive Rice: To the warm rice, stir in 2 tbsp lemon juice plus a few pinches of salt and pepper. Fold in pomegranate seeds, chopped pistachios, and most of the chopped herbs (reserve a bit for garnish). Taste, adding salt as desired. TIP: Make only as much Festive Rice as you can eat.
-
7After 20 minutes in the oven, remove the pans. Flip the tofu with a spatula or carefully turn over the pieces with your hands. Scatter the chopped dates onto the pan with the cauliflower.
-
8Roast for 5 to 10 more minutes, or until tofu is golden and crisp, the cauliflower is browned and tender, and the dates are chewy and a bit charred. If the florets are stuck to the pan, let them rest for a few minutes, then remove.
-
9Assemble: Schmear ½ cup (110g) Cilantro Yogurt Sauce onto a serving platter. Top with the Festive Rice, roasted cauliflower and dates, baked tofu, and reserved mint and parsley. Add a small dollop of Cilantro Yogurt Sauce on each serving.