Vegan Cobb Salad

Juicy tomatoes, creamy avocado slices, hearty chickpeas, smoky coconut bacon, and savory tofu chunks are arranged atop crispy greens to make this flavor-packed and super satisfying vegan cobb salad.

Has it been a while since I shared a salad recipe? It sure feels like it, and in any event the time is right, with us being just one day into summer. I suppose I can manage the long journey to fall if the food is at least good.

I love salad, but if I'm making a meal of it, it better be a seriously good salad. I love remakes of classics (check out my taco salad and Caesar salad recipes if you do too!). So I decided it was time to veganize the classic Cobb salad. Good decision!

This salad is way better than the sum of its parts. I mean, I love coconut bacon, and crispy tofu, and avocados, chickpeas, and veggies. And the dressing was delicious upon taste-testing. But all of these things together turned out to be more amazingly delicious than I would've ever anticipated.

The dressing is a basic vegan Dijon vinaigrette. Dijon mustard, red wine vinegar, shallots and olive oil. Most Dijon vinaigrette recipes call for a ton of oil, but I replaced about half the amount of oil I'd normally use with water in order to lighten things up. (<-- Tip: This works for most oil-heavy DIY salad dressings.)

In place of the bacon you'd find in a traditional Cobb salad, I used coconut bacon. It's an awesome salad topper and gives just the right amount of crunch. Chickpeas replace chicken. And instead of eggs, I seasoned up some tofu to make it look and taste like eggs. Turmeric gives the tofu a bright yellow color, and kala namak, a.k.a. black salt, makes it taste eggy.

You'll dice up the tofu and pan-fry it in a bit of oil. Then, when it's just starting to crisp, sprinkle it with a dash of lemon juice and your seasonings.

I skipped the blue cheese because (1) vegan blue cheese is something I've yet to figure out, and (2) this salad already has so much going on, I didn't feel like it was needed. If you really want to, go right ahead and add in some of your favorite vegan store-bought cheese.

I assembled my salad in one big bowl, but you could also arrange it in individual bowls for serving.

Dress and dig in.

Tips for Making the Perfect Vegan Cobb Salad

• If making this ahead, prep all of the ingredients except the avocado (which will turn brown shortly after being cut), and store them separately. You can slice the avocado and assemble the salad right before serving. This way things don't get soggy!
• The eggy tofu calls for kala namak. This type of salt has a high sulfur content, so it's great for making things taste like eggs! You can find it in most Indian grocery stores or online.
• To choose a perfectly ripe avocado, apply some gentle pressure with your fingers. It should give, but just a bit. Underripe avocados will be super firm, and overripe ones will squish. You can also try using the stem test.

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📖 Recipe

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5 from 4 votes

Vegan Cobb Salad

Juicy tomatoes, creamy avocado slices, hearty chickpeas, smoky coconut bacon, and savory tofu chunks are arranged atop crispy greens to make this flavor-packed and super satisfying vegan cobb salad. 

Course Entree, Salad

Cuisine American

Prep Time 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time 10 minutes minutes

Total Time 25 minutes minutes

Servings 4

Calories 534kcal

Author Alissa Saenz

Ingredients

For the Dressing

• 2 tablespoons minced shallot (about 1 small shallot)
• ¼ cup olive oil
• ¼ cup red wine vinegar
• ¼ cup water
• 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
• 2 teaspoons maple syrup
• ½ teaspoon salt, or to taste
• ¼ teaspoon black pepper, or to taste

For the Eggy Tofu

• ¼ teaspoon turmeric
• ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
• ¼ teaspoon kala namak
• ¼ teaspoon black pepper
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• ½ pound extra-firm tofu, drained, pressed and cut into ½ inch cubes
• 2 teaspoons lemon juice

For the Salad

• 1 small head romaine lettuce, cleaned and chopped
• 1 small head bibb lettuce, cleaned and chopped
• 1 large tomato diced
• 1 cup cooked chickpeas
• 1 avocado sliced
• 1 cup coconut bacon
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh chives

Instructions

• Begin by whisking all of the dressing ingredients together in a small bowl or jar. Allow it to sit while you prepare the rest of the salad.
• To make the eggy tofu, first stir the turmeric, garlic powder, kala namak and pepper together in a small bowl.
• Coat the bottom of a medium skillet with olive oil and place it over medium heat.
• When the oil is hot, add the tofu and cook for about 10 minutes, flipping once or twice to achieve browning on multiple sides.
• Sprinkle the tofu with the lemon juice and flip a few times to coat.
• Sprinkle the turmeric mixture over the tofu and toss a few times to coat.
• Remove the skillet from the heat and transfer the tofu to a plate.
• Fill a large salad bowl with the lettuce (or divide it among 4 individual bowls).
• Arrange the toppings over the lettuce, then sprinkle with salt, pepper and chives.
• Drizzle with dressing and serve.

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Nutrition

Calories: 534kcal | Carbohydrates: 36.3g | Protein: 12.8g | Fat: 43.9g | Saturated Fat: 11.7g | Sodium: 795mg | Potassium: 1070mg | Fiber: 10.1g | Sugar: 7.6g | Calcium: 120mg | Iron: 2.7mg