Baked Tofu & Quinoa with Chickpeas & Spinach

If you fancy a change from meat or just want to try something new then this baked tofu & quinoa recipe will be a good place to start. It’s full of protein and provides a delicious vegan meal that you’ll want to have again.

INGREDIENTS

For the Baked Tofu

• 1 block of firm tofu, pressed and dried
  
• 70g all purpose flour
  
• 40g sauce (This can be Teriyaki, Korean BBQ, etc)
  

For the Quinoa with Chickpeas & Spinach

• 180g quinoa
  
• 1 can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
  
• 1 onion, chopped
  
• 1-2 tbsp olive oil
  
• 1 clove of garlic, minced
  
• 100g spinach
  
• pinch of salt
  
• pinch of black pepper

Yields 3 servings

DIRECTIONS

For the Baked Tofu

Heat oven to 160c

• Grease a baking sheet with cooking spray or lay a piece of aluminium foil over the baking sheet and grease that with cooking spray (the aluminium foil keeps your baking sheet nice and clean).
  
• Cut tofu into 1 cm pieces (approximately 10 pieces).
  
• Coat each slice of tofu in flour. *Tip: use a medium sized bowl, fill it with flour and roll the tofu in it
  
• Dip each slice of floured tofu in a bowl holding the Asian sauce. Make sure each slice is completely covered (sometimes the flour will try to create a barrier, just keep pouring that sauce on). *Tip: similar to the flour, I use a medium sized bowl, poured my sauce in it and dip the tofu in that.
  
• Lay tofu slices in rows along the greased baking sheet.
  
• Bake for 30 minutes and serve. If you are waiting on your quinoa to cook, cover tofu with aluminium and set aside.
  

For the Quinoa with Chickpeas & Spinach

• Clean your quinoa using a fine strainer by pouring the quinoa into the strainer and running water over the it until the water comes out clear.
  
• Pour the cleaned quinoa into a rice cooker along with the chickpeas and add enough water as if you were cooking rice on the “mixed” setting (So for 1 1/2 cups quinoa I added water between the 1 and 2 lines in the cooker). Turn the cooker on and let sit.
  
• While the quinoa cooks, heat a medium sauté pan to medium-high. Add 1 tablespoon olive oil and let sit until the oil glistens. Add chopped onion to the pan and sauté for 4-5 minutes until onion turns translucent. Add garlic and continue to cook for 1 minute and then add spinach. Add another tablespoon of olive oil if needed and let spinach cook down, 3-5 minutes. Once cooked, remove from heat and cover.
  
• Once your quinoa is cooked and your rice cooker beeps, add cooked spinach mixture to the quinoa. Add salt and pepper, stir and close the rice cooker. Let sit for 3-5 minutes. (This allows the flavours to mix before serving).
  
• Serve and enjoy!