Recipe

July 4, 2017

Ask A Chef: Planta’s Tofu Scramble With Zucchini And Charred Tomatoes

Recipe: David Lee

Chef David Lee of Planta shares his recipe for Tofu Scramble With Zucchini And Charred Tomatoes.
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Q: I recently brunched at Planta, a new plant-based restaurant in Toronto. I’m not a vegan, but I would order their tofu scramble again in a heartbeat. If I can learn how to do that with tofu, I’d eat it all the time! — Kendra, Etobicoke, Ontario

A: Chef David Lee of Planta mixes a smooth zucchini sauce in with the tofu, creating a velvety texture. You’d never know his unctuous “cream sauce” is a vegetable purée containing no cream at all!

Ingredients

Zucchini Cream Sauce

  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 small clove garlic, sliced
  • 1⁄4 Spanish onion, chopped
  • 1 sprig rosemary
  • 1 zucchini, chopped
  • 1⁄4 cup water
  • Salt

Charred Tomatoes

  • 2 Roma tomatoes, halved

Tofu Scramble

  • 1 pkg. (approx. 400 g) of extra-firm organic tofu
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 2 thin slices garlic
  • 1 tbsp nutritional yeast
  • Salt and pepper
  • Fresh coriander (a few sprigs) Sautéed mushrooms, to garnish if desired
  • Spinach, to garnish if desired

Directions

Yield: Serves 2

Make Cream Sauce

1. Heat heavy-bottom frying pan over medium heat.

2. Add oil then garlic and sauté until garlic is golden and toasted, about 2 minutes. Add onion, rosemary and zucchini, and stir until coated. Cook 5 minutes uncovered.

3. Add 1⁄4 cup water and cover with lid. Cook, covered, 5 minutes until zucchini is translucent and vegetables are tender. Remove rosemary and discard.

4. Place vegetable mixture in blender and process until thick and creamy. Season with salt to taste.

Char Tomatoes

5. Preheat oven to broil.

6. Lay tomatoes in single layer on unlined baking tray. Place under broiler until dark and charred, about 5 minutes.

7. Flip and char on other sides. Remove from oven and let cool. Chop roughly.

Make Scramble

8. Pat tofu dry and crumble into loose bite-sized pieces.

9. Heat oil and garlic slices in frying pan over medium heat until golden and toasted. Add 1⁄4 cup of crumbled tofu per person and 1⁄4 cup zucchini cream and cook until heated through.

10. Stir in nutritional yeast and season with salt and pepper to taste.

Serve

11. Serve scramble topped with charred tomatoes and a few sprigs of fresh coriander. Garnish with sautéed mushrooms and spinach, if desired.

Photographer:

Steven Lee

Source:

House & Home April 2017