Thai-inspired baked peanut tofu is baked up and stuffed into rolls with spicy sriracha spiked mayo to create these mouthwatering vegan sandwiches.
The younger of my two cats (this guy) is obsessed with peanut butter. He must have gotten ahold of some peanut butter that fell on the floor or something, because at some point he started freaking out every time my husband or I cracked open a jar of peanut butter. I'm convinced he's even attuned his ears to the sound of a peanut butter jar opening, he because shows up lightning fast every time that happens. We checked with the vet, who said it would be just fine to give him peanut butter as a treat, but that just created a whole new slew of problems. He wasn't interested in his regular food, and instead of eating would stand in front of his bowl staring us down, as if to say, I know you've got something better around here. Also, any time we gave him a little peanut butter snack, we'd later catch him cruising the counter, presumably looking for more.
I can't say I blame him, and honestly, I feel like a bit of a jerk denying him peanut butter, because I'd be seriously annoyed if I lived with someone who ate peanut butter on a daily basis and wouldn't share.
I knew I must be on to something with these sandwiches when he showed up in the kitchen and started raising some kitty cat hell about halfway through baking. I mean, I make peanut butter baked goods all the time, but this was a first.
He definitely knew what was up, because these suckers were delicious! If you're a fan of Thai peanut sauce, then it's a safe bet that you'll dig these. The tofu is essentially slathered in just that, so it's rich, sweet, savory and full of peanutty goodness, but when you bake it up the sauce gets all crusty and browned. The sriracha mayo rounds everything out with a nice kick, but feel free to skip it and go with just plain old vegan mayo if you aren't into heat or are feeding these to kids.
Baked Peanut Tofu Sandwiches with Sriracha Mayo
Ingredients
For the Baked Peanut Tofu
- 3 tbsp. creamy natural peanut butter
- 3 tbsp. maple syrup
- 1 ½ tbsp. soy sauce
- 1 ½ tbsp. lime juice
- 1 tsp. sesame oil
- 1 tsp. freshly grated ginger
- 1 large garlic clove, minced
- about ¼ cup water
- 1 lb. extra firm tofu, drained, pressed and sliced into 8 slabs
For the Sriracha Mayo
- ¼ cup vegan mayo
- 1 tbsp. sriracha sauce, or to taste
For Serving
- 4 6 inch sandwich rolls, sliced open
- 4 big lettuce leaves, or a few handfuls of your favorite sandwich greens
- 1 large tomato, sliced open
Instructions
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Preheat oven to 400° and line a baking sheet with parchment. Whisk peanut butter, maple syrup, soy sauce, lime juice, sesame oil, ginger, and garlic together in a small bowl. Thin with water, adding about a tablespoon at a time until the mixture has a nice smooth consistency, but isn't yet runny.
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Slather both sides of each of your tofu slabs with peanut sauce, reserving any excess sauce. Arrange tofu on your parchment-lined baking sheet. Bake 15 minutes, gently flip, and bake 15 minutes more, until peanut sauce becomes crusty and lightly browned.
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Stir vegan mayo and sriracha together in a small bowl.
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Slather insides of rolls with sriracha mayo and stuff with peanut tofu, lettuce leaves and tomato slices. Drizzle with any reserved peanut sauce. Serve.
What is your super-cute peanut butter loving kitty's name? I can't blame your kitty for wanting some of this tofu - I know I do.
Haha! Thanks Chrissy. My kitty's name is Tizzy. :)
I just found this article right after reading your post- maybe peanut butter is just super nutritious and has that sweet fat to protein ratio that the article mentions:
http://nymag.com/scienceofus/2016/06/it-seems-that-cats-are-very-into-nutrition.html
Wow, that's crazy! That might be the case, because he's always been into weird table foods that I wouldn't expect of a cat. The beginning made me laugh too, because both of my cats are so finicky! They're both on different prescription cat foods, and they both hate their designated food - they always try to switch bowls.
You are hilarious! Love your kitty story - brought a smile to my face. I can totally picture it!
P.S. Recipe sounds delicious - gonna make it this weekend!
Not sure what happened - I flipped the slices half-way through and all of the sauce stuck in a clump to the parchment. I didn't flip the last two and even so, the sauce that was on the parchment adhered to the paper instead of my tofu. I drained and pressed the tofu, too - what happened? Should I have sprayed the parchment with non-stick spray?
The sauce is delicious! I just wish it were still on the tofu!
Hi Morgan! Sorry that happened! I don't think you should need to spray the parchment, since peanut butter has plenty of oil in it already. You could try thinning the sauce with a bit more water - I could see it not sticking to the tofu really well if it's too thick, and you could get some variation in thickness with different brands of peanut butter.
This was SO delicious, Alissa––my family was lucky I could exercise just enough restraint to resist gobbling down the tofu even before it was baked. Thank you for another great recipe!
Haha! I always know I'm onto something when I start picking at the food before it makes it to the plate. :) Glad you enjoyed them!