Deliciously fragrant, vibrant & nutritious!

I love Thai food & after the blog interest in my Thai beef salad, I wanted to make a satisfying vegan version. I have added firm tofu slices, but these can be omitted if you are not a fan.

Why at tofu?

Tofu is made from soybean curds & is naturally gluten-free, low-calorie & cholestrol-free, making it a fantastic source of iron & protein-especially for vegans & vegetarians. This Thai salad will also appeal to those wanting to have a raw food diet, since it does not require cooking. (It also makes it very quick to whip up!).

I love this Thai salad as it combines flavours (zing from the lime, warmth from the ginger, fragrance from the fresh coriander & spring onion, with the comforting backdrop of creamy coconut milk) with lovely crunchy textures (crunchy vegetables, cashews) & vibrant colour.

It also makes use of your spiraliser! You can get a cheap pencil sharpener style spiraliser

or desktop one with a lifetime guarantee on Amazon! If you do not have a spiraliser, you can use a peeler to make strip-like peelings instead.

Now who said salads were boring?!

Serves: 2 hungry people or 3 people as a main meal

Preparation time: 10-15 mins

Ingredients:

Salad:

2 medium carrots, spiralised

2 large courgettes, spiralised

120g beansprouts

1 1/2 large red peppers or 2 if medium, sliced into thin strips

4 spring onions, sliced diagonally, reserve some for decoration

Dressing:

2 plump garlic cloves, peeled & crushed

25g fresh root ginger, finely chopped

Juice from 1 lime

28g packet of fresh coriander, finely chopped

1 plump red chilli, finely chopped (seeds in if you want it hotter!)

120ml coconut milk

2 tsp honey or agave

2tbsp  Tamari or vegan soy sauce

60g raw cashews

Ground black pepper

To serve: some sliced spring onion & a sprinkling of ground flaxseeds

Optional: Firm tofu slices (ready to eat)

Method: Make the salad.

In a large bowl mix together the spiralised carrot, courgettes with the beansprouts, sliced red pepper & most of the spring onion (reserving some back for a garnish).

Make the dressing: In a small bowl mix together the crushed garlic, finely chopped root ginger, lime juice, finely chopped coriander, chopped red chilli, coconut milk, honey. Season with plenty of ground black pepper.

Pour 3/4 of the dressing onto the salad mix, along with raw cashews & combine (reserve a little of the dressing to decorate). Plate up: put some of this dressed salad on each plate. I like to sprinkle a little ground flaxseed on top to add to the nutritive value.

Then if using: slice up tofu into slices. Arrange on top of the salad. Drizzle over with some of the dressing. Garnish with raw cashews & spring onion slices.

Pretty as a picture!

Delicious without the tofu too

Great for packed lunches or as a dinner party starter too!

Don’t forget you can find my favourite recipes in my FREE eBook here.

Vegetarian Pad Thai

By adding buckwheat noodles to the Thai salad, you can make this dish also another favourite dish of mine: into Pad Thai! Garnish with a few toasted black sesame seeds (as shown in photo).

Great for your lunch box too!

Great served with a wedge of lime!

Don’t forget you can find my favourite recipes in my FREE eBook here.