The First Recipe of a Protein Series

It's a mouthful: Seared Tofu with Sizzled Dates, Jammy Onions, and Fresh Pea Sauce

Hello everyone and happy new year. For the next 6 weeks I’m going to feature recipes with protein front of mind. This is something I think about in my day-to-day cooking, and know that many of you do, too.

I’ve been reluctant to talk too explicitly about nutrition, because in life and work I really put a priority on food as pleasure, culture, and a site for gathering, and I’m not a nutritionist. But more importantly I don’t want nutrition to get mixed up with weight-loss discourse, which is not where I’m coming from.

But for me, protein has been a helpful way to guide my everyday eating. If I lead with protein, and then have plenty of vegetables and fiber in the picture, it ensures that I feel good, am properly energized, and know that I’m investing in my long-term health. I don’t have to worry too much otherwise.

Also a motivating factor here is

Annie Fenn, MD

’s overview of why protein is such an important part of aging well and keeping your brain healthy. And in her rundown of the best sources of protein in food, 70% of her top picks are plant-based! (You might remember I did a Q&A with her last year.)

Hitting protein goals with plant-based meals isn’t that difficult but it does still seem to stir up concern. I think the challenge that newcomers face is that it’s a little more work than if you’re trying to do a similar thing on a carnivorous diet — more ingredients and prep work. But this applies to eating more vegetables generally, and you just need to get confident with your chef’s knife — there’s a quick learning curve.

I typically start with an ingredient I know to be protein dense (in today’s case an easy one, tofu) and build from there, pairing it with sauces, grains, accents, and vegetables that taste good and help to up the number. And for inspiration, I often go to cookbook authors who are better versed in nutrition than I am — these are two that check the boxes of being both a) full of new ideas and b) deliciousness-first:

• Power Plates by Gena Hemshaw {Bookshop, Amazon affiliate links}

• The Vegetarian Reset by

  Vasudha Viswanath
  {Bookshop, Amazon affiliate links}

Do you have any favorite books, or tactics for vegetable-centric meals with protein in mind?

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But this recipe: It has some overlap with the Figs & Halloumi I sent out in the fall, in that there’s a sweet-savory thing happening thanks to sizzled dates and jammy onions. But tofu leads here instead of cheese, and there’s also a creamy pea sauce, fresh and sweet, that brings it all together.

From a protein perspective, we’ve got:

• Tofu, one of my go-to’s. Seitan and tempeh would also work, and are even higher in protein than tofu, but less versatile flavor-wise. As I’ve mentioned before, I really love the Hodo Soy Extra-Firm Tofu in recipes like this — it has a dense, cheesy texture and fresh flavor.

• Accents in the form of a bright, hummus-ey pea sauce, made from cheap frozen peas (which have 8 grams of protein per cup) and liberal sprinkling of sunflower seeds (about 2 grams per tablespoon), which I think are underrated in the nut/seed family. Almonds, cashews, pumpkin seeds, or whatever you most enjoy can be swapped in.

• A little scoop of farro, which has a similarly satisfying chew as short-grain brown rice but a toastier flavor and higher protein count, about 8 grams per cup. But if you didn’t want to serve this over grains, you could also serve it over salad greens, or a combination of salad greens and grain.

I have few other favorite tofu recipes, too…

• Spicy-Honey Sheet Pan Tofu

• Crispy Smoked Tofu with Black Polish Sauce

• Pineapple Tomato (“Hawaiian Pizza”) Tofu

• Crispy Artichoke Hearts with Caper-Tofu Sauce

• Tomato Tofu

I’ll be sending out one recipe per week in this series for paid subscribers — consider upgrading your subscription if you’d like to follow along.

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Seared Tofu with Sizzled Dates, Jammy Onions, and Fresh Pea Sauce

• Quickly thaw frozen peas by putting them in a colander and running warm tap water over them.

• If you buy the pre-cooked type of farro that only takes 10 minutes (from Trader Joe’s or Whole Foods), just start it before you begin the rest of the recipe and it’ll be ready with time to spare. But I recently learned that the rice cooker does a beautiful job with it, too. Follow the measurements and settings for brown rice, and be sure to use the regular type of farro, not the 10-minute kind mentioned above.

• Protein: 34 grams per serving.

Yield Serves 3 | Prep & Cook time 30 minutes

1 block firm or semi-firm tofu
Salt
3 tablespoons raw sunflower seeds
1 to 2 tablespoons olive oil or avocado oil
½ red onion, cut into strips
2 dates, slivered
1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
2 cups cooked farro, brown rice, or other grain, for serving

Fresh Pea Sauce
1 cup (150 g) frozen peas, thawed
Handful parsley leaves
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 tablespoon tahini
2 teaspoons olive oil
¼ teaspoon fine sea salt
3 to 4 tablespoons warm water

1. To make the pea sauce: Combine the thawed peas, parsley, lemon juice, oil, tahini, and salt in a blender and puree until combined. With the  motor running, add warm water a tablespoon at a time, until a very smooth, relatively light sauce forms. 

2. Cut the tofu into 8 or 12 evenly sized squares or rectangles. Blot them dry with a clean towel then sprinkle evenly with salt all over. 

3. Set your widest skillet over medium heat, and once it’s hot, add the sunflower seeds. Toast them, swirling the pan often, until evenly browned, 3 to 5 minutes. Transfer to a plate or bowl, and return the skillet to the heat.

4. Swirl a thin film of olive oil into the preheated skillet, then arrange the tofu pieces in an even layer. Sear them, applying a bit of pressure every now and then with a spatula, until evenly golden and crisp on the bottom, 4 to 6 minutes. Flip and repeat. Transfer them to a paper towel to drain, and add the onions and dates to the skillet. Cook until the onions are soft and lightly seared, 10 to 12 minutes, then stir in the vinegar. Return the tofu to the pan, turning it over in the juices and onions.   

5. To serve, divide the tofu mixture among 3 or 4 plates, over scoops of farro or rice, and add a generous spoonful of the pea sauce on the side. Sprinkle with the toasted sunflower seeds.

Recipe: Seared Tofu with Fresh Pea Sauce - from Family Friend By Lukas Volger

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