Vietnamese pancakes with curried crispy tofu & chilli almond dipping sauce

By The Hopsack’s Head Chef, Nicky Halliday.

This colourful, mouthwatering dish has many nutritional benefits:

• It is high in fibre, good fats, antioxidants & anti-inflammatories.
• Tofu, almonds & eggs are all high in tryptophan, an essential amino acid, which can help lift your mood, reduce anxiety and aid sleep.
• The brown rice flour helps the tryptophan to be absorbed.

Ingredients

• You’ll need a frying pan, whisk and some large bowls.
• ​Takes 30-45 mins to prepare.
• Serves 4 (appx. 8 pancakes).

Chilli almond Dipping sauce

• 125g almond butter
• 20g ginger
• 1 clove garlic, peeled and roughly chopped
• 1 small red chilli
• 2 tbs tamari
• 1 tbs maple syrup
• Juice of 1 small lime
• 1 tbs water

 Vegetables

• 1 carrot, peeled
• ​4 spring onions
• ​½ red pepper
• ½ yellow pepper
• 20g coriander
• 20g basil (Thai if available)
• ​20g mint

Crispy tofu

• 200g Tofu Natur
• ​2 tbs tapioca
• 1 tbs medium curry powder
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tbs coconut oil

Pancakes

• 200g brown rice flour
• ​2 eggs
• ½ tsp salt
• 1 tsp ground turmeric
• 1 tin coconut milk
• ​1 tsp Coconut oil

Method

Chilli almond Dipping sauce

• Blend all ingredients in a blender until smooth and set aside.

Vegetables

• Julienne the vegetables, pick the herb leaves and set aside.

Pancake

1. Put the flour, egg, salt & turmeric in to a bowl.
2. Slowly add the coconut milk, whisking to avoid lumps.
3. Heat a small frying pan on medium-high heat and add the coconut oil.
4. Pour in enough of the batter in to thinly coat the bottom of the pan.
5. Flip the pancake after about 2-3 minutes.
6. Cook for a further minute, then slide out of the pan.
7. Set aside and repeat until all the batter is used up (appx. 8-10 pancakes).

Crispy tofu

1. Cut the tofu into 8 long pieces.
2. Mix the dry ingredients together, then roll the tofu in the flour mix to coat.
3. Heat the coconut oil in a frying pan and fry the tofu on medium heat until crispy (appx. 5 mins) turning halfway through.

To serve

Add one piece of the crispy tofu, some vegetables and herbs to each pancake.
Roll and dip in the sauce… yum!!!