Oxeye Daisy Greens & Baked Temple Tofu

Oxeye Daisy Temple Tofu

This plant-based Oxeye daisy greens recipe is a variation of a dish you might find being sold by Vietnamese street food hawkers.

A variation might be a bit of a push, it’s more like inspired by really. But who cares.

The fact is it cooks tofu in a way that makes it delicious. No longer do you have to deep fry the death out of it, and eat the equivalent of insipid rubber bands!

I don’t like deep frying, and my boil and bake method works a treat!

Common name: Oxeye Daisy
Scientific name: Leucanthemum vulgare
Family: Asteraceae

Ingredients

  • 800g of firm organic tofu (equivalent to roughly two packs)
  • 1 tablespoon of lemon juice or vinegar
  • 3 garlic cloves (crushed)
  • 300g fresh tomatoes (diced)
  • 100g oxeye daisy greens (chopped)
  • 2 tablespoons of ‘gia vi’ (2 tsp sugar, 1 tsp sea salt, 1 tsp ground black pepper, 1 tsp dried onion pieces)
  • 2 lemongrass sticks
  • 4 tablespoons of Clearspring organic tamari
  • 1 tablespoon of Clearspring organic sesame oil
  • ½ teaspoon of chipotle chilli flakes
  • 100ml of water

Instructions

  1. Bring a pan of water to the boil (500ml), add the cubed tofu and lemon juice and simmer for 10 minutes. Drain the tofu and pat dry with kitchen paper.
  2. While the tofu is simmering turn on your oven to 200°C – 400°F – Fan 180°C – Gas 6.
  3. When cool cube the tofu, and place on baking paper on a baking tray and bake in the oven for 20 minutes.
  4. Pour 2 tablespoons of oil into a heavy bottomed pan and gently fry the crushed garlic, keep stirring making sure it doesn’t burn. About 30 seconds. Then add the diced tomatoes, baked tofu and stir well.
  5. Do this to make the ‘Gia vi’. In a herb/coffee grinder or a mortar and pestle, add 2 tsp sugar, 1 tsp sea salt, 1 tsp ground black pepper, 1 tsp dried onion pieces and grind until a powder.
  6. Add 2 tablespoons of the mixture to the saucepan, along with ¼ teaspoon of chipotle chilli flakes and mix in.
  7. Bash/bruise the lemongrass until it starts ‘splintering’ then add to the saucepan along with the chopped oxeye daisy greens.
  8. Pour in 100ml of water, stir and simmer for about 15 minutes until the sauce becomes thick. Once off the heat, add one tablespoon of organic sesame oil, and serve on top of millet or rice.

Serves: 2 as a main dish