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The Guardian
02-08-2025
- Lifestyle
- The Guardian
Meera Sodha's vegan recipe for a summer crispy rice salad with tofu, lime and herbs
It's been a salad kind of summer so far. Hot days spent camping with friends, impromptu picnics in the park, afternoons watching the tennis, reading in the garden with Test Match Special on in the background. Food has had to fit around summer life and, of all the meals, this has been one of the best. It has summer etched into the heart of it in that it's fresh, flavourful and good for feeding a crowd. It's a (very) wild take on Laotian crispy rice salad and is abundant with herbs, garden vegetables and, crucially, there's barely any 'cooking' involved at all. If you want to get ahead, cook the rice earlier or even the day before, and refrigerate. Not all vegan fish sauces are equal: Thai Taste makes a good one. Prep 15 minCook 1 hr Serves 4, or 6 as a side 350g jasmine rice, or 1kg leftover cooked rice5 tbsp rapeseed oil 280g extra-firm tofu, drained2-3 red bird's eye chillies, to taste, stalks discarded, flesh finely sliced7½ tbsp vegan fish sauce 7½ tbsp lime juice (from 4-5 limes)1½ tbsp light muscovado sugar 1 large cucumber (300g), halved lengthways, seeds scooped out and flesh cut into julienne strips3 round shallots, peeled, halved and cut into very thin half-moons300g cherry tomatoes, halved40g coriander, roughly chopped40g mint, leaves picked50g roasted salted peanuts, chopped If you're cooking the rice from scratch, put it in a sieve and rinse under the cold tap until the water runs clear. Tip the rice into a pan, add 600ml just-boiled water and bring back to a boil. Cover, turn down the heat to a whisper and leave to cook for 10 minutes. Turn off the heat and leave the rice to steam, still with the lid on, for another five minutes. Spread the rice on your largest oven tray and leave to cool completely. Heat the oven to 220C (200C fan)/425F/gas 7. Stir three tablespoons of oil through the cooled rice, then bake, turning occasionally, for 45 minutes, until golden and crisp at the edges. Put the drained tofu on a board and crumble it with your fingers (or use the back of a knife to break it up). Tip on to a second oven tray, drizzle over the remaining two tablespoons of oil and bake for the last 20 minutes of the rice cooking time. Take out the rice and tofu trays and leave to cool slightly. In a bowl, whisk the chilli, fish sauce, lime juice and sugar until the sugar dissolves. In a large bowl, combine the cucumber, shallot, tomatoes, herbs, tofu and peanuts, add the crisp rice, then pour the dressing over the top. Toss gently to coat everything evenly, then serve.
The Guardian
02-08-2025
- Lifestyle
- The Guardian
Meera Sodha's vegan recipe for a summer crispy rice salad with tofu, lime and herbs
It's been a salad kind of summer so far. Hot days spent camping with friends, impromptu picnics in the park, afternoons watching the tennis, reading in the garden with Test Match Special on in the background. Food has had to fit around summer life and, of all the meals, this has been one of the best. It has summer etched into the heart of it in that it's fresh, flavourful and good for feeding a crowd. It's a (very) wild take on Laotian crispy rice salad and is abundant with herbs, garden vegetables and, crucially, there's barely any 'cooking' involved at all. If you want to get ahead, cook the rice earlier or even the day before, and refrigerate. Not all vegan fish sauces are equal: Thai Taste makes a good one. Prep 15 minCook 1 hr Serves 4, or 6 as a side 350g jasmine rice, or 1kg leftover cooked rice5 tbsp rapeseed oil 280g extra-firm tofu, drained2-3 red bird's eye chillies, to taste, stalks discarded, flesh finely sliced7½ tbsp vegan fish sauce 7½ tbsp lime juice (from 4-5 limes)1½ tbsp light muscovado sugar 1 large cucumber (300g), halved lengthways, seeds scooped out and flesh cut into julienne strips3 round shallots, peeled, halved and cut into very thin half-moons300g cherry tomatoes, halved40g coriander, roughly chopped40g mint, leaves picked50g roasted salted peanuts, chopped If you're cooking the rice from scratch, put it in a sieve and rinse under the cold tap until the water runs clear. Tip the rice into a pan, add 600ml just-boiled water and bring back to a boil. Cover, turn down the heat to a whisper and leave to cook for 10 minutes. Turn off the heat and leave the rice to steam, still with the lid on, for another five minutes. Spread the rice on your largest oven tray and leave to cool completely. Heat the oven to 220C (200C fan)/425F/gas 7. Stir three tablespoons of oil through the cooled rice, then bake, turning occasionally, for 45 minutes, until golden and crisp at the edges. Put the drained tofu on a board and crumble it with your fingers (or use the back of a knife to break it up). Tip on to a second oven tray, drizzle over the remaining two tablespoons of oil and bake for the last 20 minutes of the rice cooking time. Take out the rice and tofu trays and leave to cool slightly. In a bowl, whisk the chilli, fish sauce, lime juice and sugar until the sugar dissolves. In a large bowl, combine the cucumber, shallot, tomatoes, herbs, tofu and peanuts, add the crisp rice, then pour the dressing over the top. Toss gently to coat everything evenly, then serve.
The Guardian
05-04-2025
- General
- The Guardian
Meera Sodha's vegan recipe for butternut squash with noodles
This is probably a middle-aged thing, but it only takes something small to make my day. Usually, that's bumping into a friend on the school run, spotting a cheeky green parakeet in the tree-tops or lighting a few candles at dinner in the evening. When it comes to food and today's recipe, however, I rather childishly like to say the words 'noodle soup' out loud, as if my mouth is pursing in anticipation of the noodles. I love using a whole butternut squash in a dish – that is where a cook's satisfaction lies. And, for my sins, I adore slurping the noodles out of the bowl. Feel free to tone down the chillies, if you prefer. You can buy fresh makrut lime leaves from most big UK supermarkets or cheaper, frozen ones from Chinese and south-east Asian specialists. Thai Taste makes the best vegan fish sauce. You'll need a blender for this dish. Prep 15 min Cook 1 hr Serves 4 1 medium butternut squash (1kg), halved, deseeded, peeled and cut into 2cm pieces2 tbsp rapeseed oil 6 garlic cloves, peeled and chopped6 fresh makrut lime leaves (or frozen and defrosted), deveined and chopped2 lemongrass stalks, bottoms only, chopped1 small onion, peeled and chopped3 green finger chillies, chopped3 tbsp sun-dried tomato paste1¾ tsp fine sea salt, or to taste400ml tin coconut milk 2 tbsp agave syrup 2½ tbsp vegan fish sauce, or to taste To finish250g ramen noodles 25g Thai basil, leaves picked1 lime, quartered Heat the oven to 240C (220C fan)/475F/gas 9. Put the squash chunks on a large oven tray lined with reusable baking paper, drizzle over the oil and toss to coat. Spread out into a single layer, then roast for 25 minutes. Set aside about 20 pieces of the roast squash, and tip the rest into a blender with 800ml water. Blitz smooth, then pour into a jug. Without rinsing the blender, drop in the garlic, lime leaves, lemongrass, onion, chillies, sun-dried tomato paste and salt with about 150ml of the coconut milk and blitz to a smooth paste. Put a large saucepan on a medium heat and, once it's hot, add the paste and cook, stirring regularly, for 10 minutes. Add the liquidised squash, the remaining 250ml coconut milk and the agave syrup, then bring to a brief boil. Add the fish sauce to taste – I used two and a half tablespoons – then take off the heat. Cook the noodles according to the packet instructions, then drain and rinse. Reheat the coconut soup, if need be, then distribute between four bowls. Divide the noodles between the bowls, top with the reserved chunks of squash and a small handful each of picked Thai basil, spritz the lime over the top and serve.
