Pressed Sliced Tofu Salad
This refreshing, flavorful Chinese salad is made with a combination of crunchy vegetables and chewy pressed tofu noodles, all tossed in a vinegary, garlicky, spicy dressing. Known as liángbàn doufu si or liángbàn gāndòufusī in Mandarin, it’s particularly popular in warm weather and often sold as a prepared food or salad-bar offering in Beijing and throughout China. Not to be confused with tofu shirataki noodles, pressed tofu noodles (doufusi or dou fu si in Mandarin) are made from thin layers of pliable tofu and usually come vacuum-sealed either in thin sheets or already sliced into noodles. Look for them at Chinese markets in the refrigerated tofu section. This salad can be eaten alongside other dishes or simply on its own as a light plant-based meal.
Papaya Salad (Som Tum Thai)
Green papayas are readily available at Asian and Latin markets. They are the same long papayas eaten ripe, just picked green and young. If they are tough to find, you can sub in a julienned fruit or vegetable blend, including carrots, apples and cabbage—all work great for this recipe. Thai salted shrimp are little, orange, bay-sized shrimp that have been salted and dried. They add amazing umami and salty flavor to this and any dish.
