Spicy Crispy Tofu Sandwich

With fresh spinach, tomatoes, sweet potato fries, and chipotle-sour cream sauce on toasted sprouted 7-grain bread

Ok, I’ll warn you, this is one messy sandwich, but oh so freakin’ tasteeee. See, I love sandwiches. Sandwiches for breakfast with egg and avocado. Sandwiches for lunch. Dinner sandwiches. I’m not too picky when it comes to sandwiches. As long as it isn’t too dry or too big. The husband, however, isn’t a fan of the sandwich. But, he’ll tell you that he likes the ones that I make. I try to make sure that there’s a good balance. Not too much stuff inside. Some crunchy, some soft. Plenty of veggies, but definitely not overpowered by a huge stack O’ meat. There’s nothing dominating in my sammies. All the layers get along really well and work as a team!

Each part of the sammich must be taken into account. The founding base of a good sammich is the bread. Get good bread. It should be dense and sturdy enough to hold up to the moist ingredients in this sandwich. I lightly toasted it so that it’s a little crunchy.

spicy crispy tofu. This tofu could be served for dinner over a nice salad or some pasta too.

The protein in this sandwich is Spicy Crispy Tofu. The crispness comes from panko, a flaky breadcrumb with a light, coarse texture. The spiciness comes from chili paste. I used chili-garlic sauce. You could also use Sriracha, aka Rooster Sauce. Lately I’ve been using an organic sprouted extra-firm tofu, and I love the texture and flavor that it has. If your store has some, give it a shot.

The spinach and tomato add some lightness, freshness, and flavor as well as some nutrition, and moisture.

As for the sweet potato fries, they rock! I used a packaged organic sweet potato fry, but you could make you own oven baked sweet potato fries. I followed the package directions of baking at 400° F for 20 minutes. They were crispy and crunchy, with a soft middle. And, I think that sweet potatoes go so well with spicy.

Instead of mayo as my bread-spread, I decided to use my chipotle-sour cream sauce. A little spicy, a little creamy. If you want to use mayo, that would work as well. I’m just not a mayo fan. I served some more sauce on the side for dipping or extra drizzling.

Sour Cream Chipotle Sauce served on the side for extra dipping

So, there’s a little bit of work and some assembly. But, you get yourself a rockin’ sammich!

Crispy Spicy Tofu
Adapted from Whole Living
Makes 4-6 servings

1 package extra-firm tofu, drained
1/3 cup spicy Asian chile sauce
½ cup panko
1 tablespoon olive oil, or oil of your choice

Cut the tofu into ½–inch slices. Layer your cutting board with a clean cotton towel and three layers of paper towels. Place tofu slices on top of the towels. Place a layer of three more paper towels on top of tofu, and cover with another cotton towel. Carefully place another cutting board or cookie sheet on top of the towels. Stack something heavy on top of the board, like a cast iron skillet, a large can of beans, heavy bowl or other weight to press down on tofu. Let sit for at least fifteen minutes, and up to one hour. Pressing the tofu will help it absorb more flavor.

Pour the chile sauce into a shallow bowl. Place the panko in another separate shallow bowl. Gently coat the each slice of tofu in the chile sauce and then the panko, patting it into each piece.

In a large, nonstick skillet, heat half the oil over medium heat. Gently place half the tofu in skillet. Pan-fry the tofu, turning once, until outsides are crisp and brown, about 3 minutes per side. Remove from heat. Repeat the process with remaining oil and tofu.

Spicy Crispy Tofu Sandwich

Meanwhile, cook sweet potato fries in the oven according to package directions.

Toast two slices of good dense bread. Spread each slice with some Chipotle-Sour Cream Sauce.

Layer spinach on top of first slice of bread. Top spinach with seared tofu. Place tomato slices on top of tofu. Next up, a small handful of sweet potato fries. Drizzle a little Chipotle-Sour Cream Sauce over the top of the fries, and cap it all off with the other slice of toasted bread.

Enjoy! But have napkins at the ready!