If you know me well, you’ll know that I love Japanese food. (Who doesn’t?!)
It’s just so…umami. I don’t even know how to explain it! Well, many East Asian food is pretty umami-tasting but Japanese food has this…refined quality about it, y’know? There’s a special place for it in my heart <3
Sadly, Japanese food is often time consuming. But does that mean you have to (1) pay a shitload of cash for it at a restaurant or (2) slog away in the kitchen when you have a craving for it?! (Hint: the answer is no.) Well, good news for you, this lazy-ass broccoli right here is here to save the day 😉
Since I’m a brutally honest person, I’ll admit that this Teriyaki Tofu Rice Bowl isn’t authentic Japanese food at all – I use brown jasmine rice instead of the white short-grained Japanese rice, and I think the spinach stir-fry is more of a Chinese thing. And the roasted peanuts? Since when did Japanese people eat peanuts with rice? (Hint: the answer is never.) I was actually inspired by the Hakka dish, Thunder Tea Rice, and the local Singapore/Malaysian dish, Nasi Lemak, which both has peanuts as an accompaniment to rice.
Seriously. Peanuts goes with rice SO WELL I DON’T UNDERSTAND WHY IT ISN’T AS POPULAR AS IT SHOULD BE!
ANYWAY, despite the not so authentic changes I’ve made ahem, it satisfies my Japanese cravings as the Teriyaki Tofu is the star of the dish. As for the other stuff…my Chinese brain came up with it, okay?
I know if you scroll down, the recipe looks intimidating, since you have to prepare the spinach and the teriyaki tofu. But I promise, it’s not really difficult at all! I can make this in 30 minutes. Yep. That’s right. Everything. From cooking the rice, to the tofu, to the spinach, to the assembling. Start to finish. Thirty minutes.
If you’ve noticed, I’ve done the Spinach Stir-Fry With Garlic And Sesame Oil and Teriyaki Tofu recipes in previous posts, so click those links there for more information and instructions (or my kickass writing?). You can make them while the rice is cooking to save time. It’s not hard, I promise 🙂
If you’re extra lazy (no shame in that!), you can change the spinach stir-fry to something even easier. You can just do the basic stir-fry – oil, vegetables of your choice, and salt/soy sauce. Done :p The teriyaki tofu, peanuts and seaweed carries the dish pretty well already, so you don’t have to sweat so much over the veggies. Also, I use already roasted peanuts and nori seaweed, which really helps to save some effort in the kitchen!
Please feel free to ask any questions if you’re not sure! This makes for a great lunch by the way; it’s healthy and well-balanced. You’ve got your protein (from both the tofu and the roasted peanuts – double power! actually, triple power if you include the spinach!), your veggies, and some healthy carbs. Extra minerals points from the roasted nori seaweed too 😉
Give it a try and let me know how it goes!
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Vegan + Gluten-Free
Vegan Teriyaki Tofu Rice Bowl
Ingredients
- 1 cup brown rice
- 2 cups water
- 1 sheet nori roasted/toasted
- 1/2 cup roasted peanuts or toasted/baked
- 6-8 slices teriyaki tofu
- 2 cups spinach stir-fry
- sesame seeds optional
Instructions
- Cook 1 cup of brown rice with about 2 cups of water. If using white rice you can use slightly less water.
- While the rice is cooking, prepare the teriyaki tofu and spinach stir-fry dishes. They are both quick dishes so it shouldn't take long.
- Now we prepare the nori. If it's already toasted/roasted, then skip this step. Otherwise, to toast it, turn on the stove at the lowest flame, and then briefly toast the nori right above the flame on both sides.
- If you're lazy, you can just rip nori into small pieces by hand. For a more professional-looking dish, use the kitchen scissors for this. Cut nori lengthwise into 4 rectangle strips. Stack them up and then use the kitchen scissors to cut it (parallel to the short side of the rectangle) as thinly as possible. You'll probably get more shredded nori than you need but you can keep the excess in a airtight container for quite some time.
- Assembling the dish is the easiest part. Split rice evenly into two bowls, and then in each bowl, place 1/4 cup roasted (or baked/toasted) peanuts, 1 serving spinach stir-fry (about 1 cup), 3 to 4 slices of teriyaki tofu, and top it off with some shredded nori. Garnish with some sesame seeds if you have them.
Notes