Allyson Kramer’s Drenched Pad Thai Salad Recipe

I got really excited by the idea of putting pineapple and mango in dinner!

I wasn’t disappointed, the fruit with the fresh zucchini noodles and peanut sauce was spectacular.

Allyson suggests grilling the pineapple, but since I had a wonderful fresh one I just couldn’t bear to grill it.

The great thing about pineapple is that it has an enzyme called bromelain that helps you digest your food, especially proteins.

The only trouble I had was that the noodles were so drenched it was hard not to dribble down my chin.

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Drenched Pad Thai Salad

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup (175 ml) pineapple juice
• 3 scallions (or green onions or chives), thinly sliced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 3 Tbsp (45mL) wheat-free tamari (soy sauce)
• 1 tsp Chinese 5-spice powder
• 1 teaspoon peanut oil or olive oil (I left this out)
• 2 Tbsp (30 ml) lime juice
• 4 heaping Tbsp (64 g) peanut butter (or almond, or any other nut/seed butter)
• 2-3 zucchini (depending on size)
• 1 package (16 oz, or 455g) extra-firm tofu, well drained and pressed (I left this out)
• 1 can (15 ounces, or 420 g) pineapple slices in pineapple juice (I used fresh)
• 1 mango, cut into bite-size pieces
• 1/2 cup (110 g) roasted peanuts, crushed
• Chopped fresh cilantro or parsley (optional)
• Favorite hot sauce (optional)

Directions

1. Slice the pressed tofu block in half, making two rectangles about 1/2-inch (1.3 cm) thick, and then cut into bite-size triangles. Arrange the tofu in single layer in a medium-size baking dish.
2. To make the marinade: Whisk all the tofu marinade ingredients together and then pour the marinade over the tofu. Let marinate for at least 2 hours, flipping the tofu halfway through. Remove the tofu from the dish, reserving the leftover marinade.
3. To cook the tofu, place on an electric indoor grill (or mesh grill pan placed on an outdoor grill) and cook until golden brown on both sides, 10 to 15 minutes, flipping if necessary. While grilling your tofu, also grill the pineapple rings.
4. To make the Zucchini Noodles: Remove the ends from the zucchini and peel if desired. Using a vegetable spiralizer or vegetable peeler, cut the zucchini into long noodle-like strips, chopping into shorter “noodles” if necessary, and place in a large bowl.
5. To make the dressing: Whisk together all the dressing ingredients until smooth. The dressing will be quite soupy. Add a touch more tamari to taste, if desired. Pour the dressing over the zucchini noodles and mix together until well coated, allowing the excess to remain at the bottom of the bowl.
6. To assemble the salad: Divide the drenched zucchini noodles among separate bowls, also transferring some dressing to each bowl. Top with the grilled tofu, mango, grilled pineapples, crushed peanuts, cilantro, and hot sauce. Serve.

Nutritional Analysis Per serving: 430 calories; 25 g fat; 23 g protein; 35 g carbohydrate; 8 g dietary fiber; 0 mg cholesterol.

I hope you enjoy Allyson’s drenched pad thai salad recipe, and check out some more of her gluten-free healthy vegan recipes in her new book, Great Gluten-Free Vegan Eats, and on her site ManifestVegan.com.