Spicy Shredded "Chicken" Tofu Tacos w/ Chipotle Crema and Mezcal Lime Corn

Oh yeah. It's taco time. It's TACO TIME. 

And you thought vegans didn't have fun. Today, we are going to be working on a rendition of a chicken tacos...made out of tofu. Does it taste like chicken? Not really sure. I don't eat chicken. But does it taste FUCKING AWESOME?!

Yep!

The key to working with tofu is draining, drying it out, and getting it into spices or a marinade (sound familiar). Tofu holds other flavors quite well and has a muted flavor so it tends to taste like whatever you cook it with, which is what makes it so great to work with as a vegan. 

Draining + drying. When working with tofu, you will always have a better result if you drain the tofu from the water, wrap in a thin towel, and set something heavy on it like a cast iron pan or some books. The idea is to drain the water out of the tofu. Why? When its too wet it can burn as well as make it harder to cook with. Imagine taking chicken or veggies or anything and putting them into pan. Then add 1/4 cup water...soggy food that won't cook the way you want.

In the case of this recipe, we are pan cooking them and want them to crisp on the edges with a fine sear. All that excess water would ruin that process. 

Enough about tofu! Additionally, we are going to be adding some delicious other ingredients to this. Chipotle crema, guac, and mezcal lime corn. What taco isn't better with those three things! Chipotles are one of my favorite ingredients and will be a mainstay in a lot of recipes here. Why? They add a smoky, spicy element with an amazing flavor blast especially when they are soaked in adobo sauce. You can find them tinned in any international food aisle at your local grocery store from multiple brands. The tin is about 1/2 the size of a regular can. 

Lime corn with mezcal. Enough said. 

Haha this dish origanted with my father. He would buy these large batches of frozen corn from Market Day. Cook them with Country Crock butter (some reason that brand sticks with me) and tons of lime juice. It was awesome. When I decided to become a vegan, though, I needed to find a way to cook this without the butter as well as added mezcal over tequila to give it a really unique complex flavor. I swear - your friends, your family, your girlfriends or boyfriends or anyones...will love you for making this. It is one of my fiancee's favorite dishes and think it helps keep her around :)

Let's get to it and make some badass tacos. If you want to impress someone, here's a dish that can't steer you wrong.

Spicy Shredded "Chicken" Tofu Tacos w/ Chipotle Crema and Mezcal Lime Corn

Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 25 minutes
Servings: 8 tacos

Ingredients:

Shredded Tofu

- 14 oz block of extra firm tofu, drained and pressed in towel under pan/weight for 10-15 minutes
- 1/2 medium yellow onion, chopped small
- 1 tbl of avocado oil (olive or grapeseed work)
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1/2 tsp chipotle chili powder
- 1/2 tsp coriander
- 1/2 tsp ginger ground
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1-2 tbl of garlic chili paste (depending on heat level)
- salt + pepper to taste

Mezcal Lime Corn

- 2 corn cobs, kernels cut off
- 1 tbl of avocado oil
- 1 lime, juiced
- 1 tbl of mezcal (more never hurt...)
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp Old Bay or cajun seasoning
- salt + pepper to taste

Chipotle Crema

- 2 chipotles in adobo sauce (minced) + 2 tbl of adobo sauce
- 1/2 cup of vegan mayo
- 1 lemon, juiced
- pinch or two of pepper

Other

- Corn tortillas to serve
- handful of cilantro, chopped
- lime wedges
- guacamole (recipe: https://www.thevegancaveman.com/blog/2017/7/25/ultimate-vegan-nachos)

Cooking Instructions:

1. Once your tofu is dried out and drained, chop it into very thin strips about 1/8 inch thick across either the wide side or short side. Flip and cut the whole block in 1/2. You should have quite a lot of pieces resembling thin small pieces of chicken. If not small enough, halve them again. 

2. Place the tofu pieces into a large mixing bowl, mix with oil, spices, garlic, and chili paste. Stir until tofu is well coated. Add salt + pepper to taste. Can add more spices if you'd like. 

3. Get two pans, one large and one medium, hot over medium heat for corn and tofu. Once warmed put the tofu in the large pan and oil in the medium pan. Add corn to medium pan, once the oil is hot. Let the corn cook for 3-4 minutes, add lime juice, mezcal and seasonings, reduce to medium low heat and cook until liquid has drained and corn is starting to brown/blacken. Let the tofu cook on each side for a few minutes. Continue to stir until it has browned and has a crisp edge. Set corn and tofu aside.

4. Mix together chipotles, adobo sauce, mayo, lemon juice, salt, and pepper. Add more chipotles for spicier, adobo for smokier, mayo if its too hot, lemon if you like it more tart.

5. Ready to serve. Warm corn tortillas in the microwave or if you have more time on a low setting in your oven. I like a double corn tortilla for these so I can load them up and not worry about them breaking. Build each taco with 1/8 of tofu, 1/8 corn, 1/8 crema, 1/8 cilantro, 1/8 guac. EAAAAT.

Lastly and most importantly, enjoy the hell out of it! Great work chef!

Nutritional Information (One Taco, All Ingredients):

Calories: 265
Carbs: 31g
Fat: 13g
Sodium: 334mg
Cholesterol: 0g
Protein: 8g

Compare that to 14-oz of Chicken Tacos with Non-Vegan Chipotle Cream:

Calories: 360
Carbs: 29g
Fat: 22g
Sodium: 301mg
Cholesterol: 5g
Protein: 17g

It tastes better, and its better for you.