As a mum, there are few things as satisfying as knowing exactly what’s for lunch, which is why we love meal prep in our house! And this Vegan Poke Bowl with sesame crusted tofu is one of the best meal preps we’ve made (we’ve been eating it every week for the last month). This one takes only 45 minutes to prep for 4 days worth of food. And the best part about this is that it’s suitable from 12 months and you can mix and match it depending on what everyone likes. We served ours with easy sides like avocado slices, baby cucumber slices (make sure to cut the slices in half or quarters depending on your kids age), edamame (serve in halves for <18 months), and nori sheets cut into squares.

I’ve added all 5 recipe elements below in the order we made them, as everything seems to cook around the time it takes to make the brown rice, and then the time left while the rice steams is when you cook the tofu.

VEGAN POKE BOWL WITH SESAME CRUSTED TOFU

Print Pin

PERFECT BROWN RICE

Cook Time 30

Steaming 10

Fluffy, non soggy, perfect rice!

Ingredients

2 cups of brown rice
9 cups of boiling water
Optional to season: 1 tsp of sesame oil and 1/2 tsp of sea salt.

Instructions

In a large pot, bring the water to a boil.
Rinse the rice well, then add it to the boiling water and boil for 30 minutes uncovered (tip: if it looks like it is overflowing reduce the heat slightly but keep the boil - this gives perfect rice!)
After 30 minutes, drain the rice, then quickly add it back to the pot and cover for 10-15 minutes to steam.
Season, fluff, and serve.

Notes

Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days, or freeze for up to 2 months.

POKE SAUCE

Prep Time 2

Ingredients

1/4 cup/60ml of soy sauce (low salt for kids)
1/2 tsp of sesame oil
1/2 tsp of sriracha (optional)
 1/2 tsp
of rice vinegar
1 Tbsp of maple syrup
1 Tbsp of water
Juice of 1/2 a lime
1/2 tsp of garlic powder
1/2 tsp of ginger powder

Instructions

Stir together all of the ingredients in a glass container.

Notes

Cover and store in the fridge for up to 5 days.

NOTE: *double if you want to use some to marinate the tofu

If you aren’t marinating the tofu, move making the tofu to the last step; otherwise, marinate here following the instructions for crumbing later:

SESAME CRUSTED TOFU

Ingredients

For the Tofu:

1 x 400g block of firm tofu
1 portion of the Poke sauce (if you want to marinate it)
Olive oil spray to cook

For the Batter:

1/3 cup/45g of flour (we used spelt, you can use plain, wholemeal, buckwheat)
1/3 cup/80ml of plant milk

For the Crumb:

1 cup of breadcrumbs (any you like; we used two sourdough crusts toasted and blended to a crumb)
1/2 cup /75g of sesame seeds ((we used 1/4 cup each of white and black))
1/4 cup/15g of nutritional yeast (optional)

Instructions

Prep the tofu by cutting the block in half in to two squares. Then cut each square diagonally into 2 triangles (there will now be 4 large triangle blocks). Turn each triangle onto its side and cut into 4 slices, so each triangle is around 0.5-1cm in thickness. Optional: marinate for 15-30 minutes (the longer, the better) with extra poke sauce.
Stir together the batter ingredients in a bowl and the crumb ingredients on a plate.
To crumb, dip the tofu into the batter, then place in the crumb, rolling to and pressing to cover all sides.
To cook the tofu: heat a large pan or griddle over medium-high heat and spray with olive oil. Add the tofu slices in batches (this took 2 rounds for us, 8 triangles per round) and cook for 3-4 minutes. Spray the uncooked side with olive oil, then flip gently and cook for a further 3-4 minutes until golden.

Notes

Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days or freeze for up to 2 months.

OIL-FREE TOFU MAYO

Ingredients

300 g of silken tofu
Juice of 1 lemon (reduce to 1/2 a lemon if you don’t want it too tangy)
1 Tbsp of maple syrup
1 tsp of dijon mustard
1/2 tsp of sea salt

Instructions

Add all of the ingredients to a large jar, and use an immersion blender for around 30 seconds to blend together.

Notes

Cover and store in the fridge for up to 5 days.

QUICK PICKLED CARROTS

Ingredients

2 medium carrots/1 large carrot

For the Brine:

2/3 cup/160ml of white vinegar (or apple cider vinegar)
2/3 cup/160ml of water
1/2 tsp of sea salt
1 Tbsp of sugar (we used raw, but white also works)

Instructions

Place all the brine ingredients into a pot and bring to a simmer over medium heat until the sugar fully dissolves.
Peel the carrots into thin strips and add to a glass jar, cover with the brine and allow to cool before placing the lid on fully.