Tofu Pita with Peanut Sauce

If you don't have an outdoor grill, prepare the tofu and bell pepper for these yummy sandwiches on an indoor grill pan. It's a hearty recipe for your next vegan cookout.  You can use either firm or extra-firm tofu for this recipe, but I chose the former.

Ingredients:
For the sauce:

• 1/4 cup light coconut milk*
• 2 tablespoons creamy peanut butter
• 1 tablespoon water
• 2 teaspoons vegan brown sugar
• 2 teaspoons fresh-squeezed lime juice
• 1 teaspoon low-sodium soy sauce
• 1/2 teaspoon curry powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
• 1 minced garlic clove

For the tofu:

• 1 pound firm tofu
• 1 tablespoon low-sodium soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon sesame oil
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 red bell pepper
• Cooking spray
• 3 cups trimmed watercress
• 1 large cucumber
• 3 (6-inch) pitas

1. To prepare the sauce, whisk together all ingredients listed under 'Sauce' above, whisking until combined.  Set aside.

2. To prepare the tofu, drain and cut into 3 slices lengthwise.  Cut each tofu slice in half vertically.  Place the tofu pieces on several layers of paper towels and cover with additional paper towels; let stand for 30 minutes, pressing down occasionally.

3. Whisk together 1 tablespoon soy sauce, the sesame oil, and 1/4 teaspoon salt.  Brush evenly over the tofu slices.

4. Cut the bell pepper into 1-inch strips.  Add the bell pepper and tofu to an outdoor grill or indoor grill pan coated with cooking spray, and grill for 4 minutes on each side - the tofu should be golden.

5. Halve the cucumber lengthwise, seed, and chop.  Combine the cucumber, watercress, bell pepper strips, and peanut sauce in a large bowl, tossing to coat.

6. Cut each pita in half, and fill each half with about 1/2 cup cucumber mixture and 1 tofu slice.

Note: To streamline preparation, you can prepare the sauce ahead of time, as well as chop and prep all the veggies. That leaves just the grilling and assembling until the very end.

*You'll have nearly a whole can of coconut milk leftover; transfer any remaining coconut milk to an airtight container and store in the fridge up to a few days. It's great for cooking couscous:

or rice:

using coconut milk in place of water for some or all of the liquid. 

Nutrition Info:
6 servings (1 pita half), Calories 204

Tasting Notes:
The flavors here are excellent, so my changes next time would be about presentation. No matter how soon before serving you stuff the pita halves, the pita bread becomes soggy the moment it touches the peanut sauce. It made these very difficult (and quite messy) to eat. Instead, I recommend preparing exactly as stated above, except serving over rice.  With that housekeeping out of the way, the light sesame flavor on the tofu is wonderful, and the grilled tofu could easily stand on its own as a main dish. The sauce had a creamy texture and great blend of peanut and coconut flavors, with just a hint of spice from the crushed red pepper.  The cucumber and watercress helped keep the overall flavor light and fresh. So a winner all around, if it weren't for that darn soggy pita bread.

Rating:
3.5