Glazed Tofu Nourish Bowl
This one is genuinely one of our favourite things to make when we want something that feels impressive but also just really, really good for you. Glazed tofu with that sticky, savoury coating, pickled cabbage with a proper zingy punch, toasted almonds for crunch; it all comes together in a way that makes you feel like you've nailed it. We keep coming back to this because every element earns its place in the bowl. Nothing is just filler. It takes a bit of time, we won't lie, but every single minute is worth it. Make this tonight and you'll genuinely feel smug about your dinner.
Before You Start
- Preheat oven to 180°C
- Baking tray
- Powerful blender
- Large frying pan
- Small bowl
- Sieve
- Container for pickling cabbage
Ingredients
- 1 280 g block of firm tofu
- 2 tbsp vegetable oil
- 1 tbsp gochujang paste
- 2 tbsp soy sauce
- 1 tbsp maple syrup
- 1 tbsp sesame seeds
- 2 tbsp rice vinegar
- 1 lemon
- 1 tbsp caster sugar
- ½ tbsp salt
- ¼ red cabbage
- 2 portions of rice
- 100g almonds
- 1 clove of garlic
- 10g fresh ginger
- 1 ½ tbsp soy sauce
- 1 tbsp maple syrup
- 100ml almond milk
- 1 lime
- 150g mangetout
- 40g frozen edamame beans
- kimchi
Method
Roast the Almonds and Pickle the Cabbage
- Pour the almonds onto a baking tray and roast in the oven for about 8 minutes until golden and fragrant. Remove from the oven and allow to cool
- In the container that you will store your cabbage in, add the rice vinegar, juice from the lemon, sugar and salt and stir to dissolve
- Finely shred the cabbage and put the cabbage in a sieve and set over a sink. Pour over water from a freshly boiled kettle and let it drain away. This will soften the cabbage
- Add the cabbage into the liquid, cover and shake well. Set aside for at least an hour. Any leftover cabbage will keep well in the fridge for a month
For the Rice and Almond Sauce
- Cook the rice as per instructions on the packet
- Peel the skin from the garlic and ginger and place them in a powerful blender along with the roasted almonds, soy sauce, maple syrup, almond milk and the juice from a lime. Blend until smooth and creamy, adding a dash more almond milk if needed. Set aside
For the tofu
- Cut the tofu into even sized pieces
- Heat 2 tbsp oil in a large pan over medium to high heat. Add the tofu to the pan and cook on each side until golden brown, you may need to do this in batches
- Whilst the tofu is cooking, combine the gochujang, soy sauce and maple syrup in a small bowl. Stir well to combine
- Once the tofu is evenly golden, turn the heat to low. Fold through the gochujang mixture and let it cook until nice and sticky, about 4 minutes. Sprinkle with sesame seeds and keep warm until ready to serve
For the veggies
- Bring a pan of salted water to the boil over high heat. Add the mangetout and frozen edamame beans and cook for 2 minutes until just tender, then drain
Assemble the bowl
- Spoon the rice into two bowls. Top with the glazed tofu, edamame, mangetout, pickled cabbage, kimchi and a generous drizzle of the almond sauce
Tips & Variations
- Press your tofu well: We know it's tempting to skip this but trust us, the drier your tofu before it goes in the pan, the better that glaze is going to stick and caramelise. Even 15 minutes under something heavy makes a real difference.
- Swap the nuts: Henry loves this with cashews instead of almonds for a slightly creamier crunch. Just toast them the same way and you're good to go.
- Make the pickle ahead: The pickled cabbage genuinely gets better the longer it sits, so if you can make it the morning before or even the night before, you'll get an even punchier result.
Why This Works
The trick here is in the quick-pickled cabbage. Pouring boiling water over it before adding the vinegar and lemon softens it just enough so it absorbs the pickling liquid fast without going soggy. That contrast of the tangy cabbage against the sweet, sticky glazed tofu is what makes this bowl sing. Toast those almonds properly until they're golden and fragrant; it makes a bigger difference than you'd think.