Saturday, September 10, 2011

Tofu Gyros


I want to share a few recipes that I love. We've started to eat less meat about a year ago, so I am always trying to find new ways of incorporating tofu into our diets, while still curing our cravings. I love Gyros. I love lamb. Nothing can beat a lamb gyro. Period. But this post is about Tofu Gyro's. And they're mighty tasty. As with any gyro recipe, it's all about the marinating, so it's a bit time consuming.

1 package extra firm tofu
Slice into 1/3 inch...slices. Get some paper towels and put the slices on there. Then put more paper towels on top. Soak up the tofu juice.
In a dish/container/pan/whatever device that will hold a bunch of tofu & marinade, whisk together:
the juice of 1/2 a lemon, 1/4 cup red wine vinegar, a couple tablespoons of balsamic vinegar,  1/4 cup olive oil, a pinch of salt, some black pepper, 1-2 tablespoons oregano (2 teaspoons if it's dried oregano), 2 teaspoons garlic powder (I use powder because fresh garlic will burn while it's baking), 1 tablespoon Greek seasoning. Lay the tofu slices in the marinade, baste it, (you can stack it if your container isn't big enough to lay it all flat). Let it soak up the marinade for at least an hour, basting it here & there.

In the meantime, you can make the Tzatziki:
1 cup Greek yogurt
Zest of 1 lemon
Juice of 1/2 a lemon
1 tsp dill
2-5 cloves of minced garlic (depending on how garlicky you like it)
1/2 cup shredded cucumber (I grate it into the bowl so the juice is in the sauce)
1 tsp dried oregano, or 1 tablespoon freshly chopped
a pinch of salt and some fresh ground pepper (or to taste).
mix it all up and store in the fridge for later. This makes a great veggie dip, too.



Back to the tofu...
There are a couple methods to cook the marinated tofu. You can bake it on 300 for 1-2 hours (basting it every 15 minutes or so) until it has a more firm texture. Or you can fry it in a skillet. If you want more of a crispy coating, take the marinated tofu and lightly dredge it in some cornstarch, then pan-fry it in a little bit of canola oil.





Serve the gyro tofu on some warm pita, naan or flat bread with slices of tomato, red onion, and cucumber and lot's of the tzatziki sauce!



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