Banh Mi Rice

A sandwich favorite turned into a cool, easy rice salad for summer? Yes, please! Make it mayo-free, and it is the perfect on the go meal, great for bringing to barbecues, parties, on picnics, or less fun places like work.

I love a good banh mi sandwich, pretty much any day of the week. I really enjoy the crisp veggies, the spice and the cilantro. With a bunch of random ingredients on hand, and inspired by Myers + Chang tofu banh mi, I decided to make a salad.

I started by cooking about a cup and a half of basmati rice according to the package directions.

While the rice was bubbling, I grabbed some pre-cut veggie slaw, a mix of broccoli, carrots, and cabbage, and marinated it all in a mix of rice vinegar, cilantro paste, and sriracha for intense flavors.

Once the rice was done, I mixed it right in with the veggies. I wanted them to get slightly softer from the rice, and I wanted the warm rice to absorb the vinegar mix.

While all of this was going on, I was also baking up some tofu chips to top the rice with. I sliced a block of Nasoya  extra firm tofu into very thin slices and quickly dusted them with cayenne and black pepper. I initially put them in the oven at 375 and after about 15 minutes lowered it until 320. I left the oven at 320 for 20 minutes and then shut it off, leaving the tofu in the oven to dry out.

The end result was tasty but not pretty! These crunchy chips made a great topping for the banh mi salad though. I used vegetable scissors to cut them into strips and tossed them in with the rice and vegetables.

I will definitely be making this salad again. Even though I have mentioned that I don’t love rice, I think it is more than I don’t love it on its own. Add in lots of vegetables and protein, and I am a fan!

Have you ever taken inspiration from one favorite dish and turned it into something else?