Coconut Quinoa, Tofu and Veggie Bowl with Spicy Peanut Sauce

This super satisfying bowl is a riot of textures and flavours that will give you a good run at your five-a-day as well as plenty of healthy protein and fibre! You are going to love the contrast of the sweet and creamy coconut quinoa with golden crispy tofu, crunchy peppers and broccoli and sweet, caramelised leeks, all topped off with a tangy peanut sauce. Mmmmm…just describing it is making me hungry! It’s perfect for dinner and the leftovers are just as good for lunch the next day.

Serves 4

INGREDIENTS

• 200g quinoa
• 300ml coconut milk
• 1 lime
• 1 head of broccoli, divided into florets
• 2 red peppers, chopped
• 2 leeks, finely sliced
• 1 block of extra firm tofu (not silken)
• 3 Tbsp of cornflour
• ¼ cup peanut butter
• 1 Tbsp tamari
• 1 red jalapeno, finely chopped
• 2cm piece of ginger
• handful of sesame seeds
• handful of fresh coriander, roughly chopped
• oil of your choice (I recommend avocado oil but olive or melted coconut oil work too)

METHOD

1. First press your tofu. Drain the water from the packet and wrap the tofu block in a clean tea towel. Place it between two chopping boards and weigh down the top one (I use several cookbooks). Leave for at least 20 minutes.
2. Make the peanut sauce: mix the peanut butter with 6 Tbsp of water, the tamari, chopped jalapeno and 1 Tbsp of lime juice in a large jam jar. Finely grate the ginger and squeeze the juice from it into the jar as well. Shake the jar to combine the ingredients and add salt and pepper to taste. Set aside.
3. Rinse the quinoa and place in a saucepan with the coconut milk and 300ml water. Bring to the boil and then simmer, covered for 20 minutes. After cooking, stir in 1 Tbsp of lime juice and lime zest.
4. Meanwhile, add some oil and the leeks to a frying pan on a low heat and slowly cook, covered until the edges are golden.
5. As the quinoa and leeks near the end of cooking (about 5-10 minutes), you can cook the tofu and other veg. Set the red pepper under a grill until lightly cooked. Set the broccoli on the steamer. If anything finishes cooking, simply set aside, covered.
6. Cut the pressed tofu into triangles and combine in a bowl with the cornflour, making sure each triangle is well coated.
7. Heat a generous amount of oil in a frying pan to a medium-high heat and add the tofu, turning to make sure each side is crispy.
8. Divide the quinoa, veg and tofu between 4 bowls and drizzle with the peanut sauce. Sprinkle with the sesame seeds and coriander and serve with any extra peanut sauce on the side.