This Vegan Crispy Cajun Fried Tofu Salad with Maple Mustard Dressing is the ultimate salad! It’s topped with a vegan version of Honey Mustard Dressing and SO crave-worthy!
I know, this title is a mouthful. Vegan Crispy Cajun Fried Tofu Salad with Maple Mustard Dressing. Let me explain. Back in college, before turning vegetarian then vegan, my favourite salad in the whole world was the Crispy Cajun-Fried Chicken Salad with Honey Mustard Dressing from TGI Fridays.
Okay, maybe not in the whole world, but definitely my part of the world and the salad that was most available to me. It was made up of lots of lettuce, red cabbage, carrots, tomatoes, eggs, Monterey-Jack cheese and fried chicken strips on top. Now, while I’ve made a whole barrage of beautiful and interesting salads on JITK over the years, I’ve never recreated this one. Good grief, one day last month the craving for it hit me like a brick.
So recreate I did.
I’ve made this three times in the last two weeks. I honestly can’t stop devouring that entire salad over and over. Vegan Crispy Cajun Fried Tofu Salad with Maple Mustard Dressing. WOW. I used tofu to replace the chicken, and of course, you could use seitan if you wanted something muchhh closer in texture. But all I really wanted was some really well-pressed tofu. The less water, the more of a chew it gets, like chicken. Breaded in flour, vegan buttermilk, and then panko breadcrumbs, it pan fries in a bit of oil to crisp up. Then comes the salad. I used grape tomatoes instead of the huge tomatoes I used to get, I didn’t even try to replace the eggs, I shredded red cabbage and carrots. Honestly, the first time I made this I didn’t use the red cabbage or carrots. It makes a DIFFERENCE. Trust me.
I know what you’re probably thinking at this point. “Honey mustard dressing?!” Okay, I’ll admit, there’s no honey. However I wanted to keep this recipe super consistent to the original and it’s made with honey mustard dressing, and this vegan version tastes just like honey mustard dressing . I mean seriously – Gavin and I are starting to wonder if they ever did use actual honey in the original? Because it’s an exact match taste for taste. Anyway, this creamy dressing is made up on vegan mayonnaise, maple syrup and mustard. It makes the perfect creamy topping for this salad.
Happiness. That’s what I felt eating this. Knowing I was having loads of greens, but also some indulgence with the crisp cajun fried tofu topping. There’s something about hitting a nostalgic feeling right on the head that brings the ultimate kind of happiness.
I hope my story inspires you to try this salad friends! P.S. weirdly enough, the leftover are even better that the original! I reheated the tofu strips in my toaster oven the next day (I made extra) and they tasted even more like the original salad. So, if you’re making extra of this, you certainly can!
Eat up and enjoy, friends!
Ingredients
Vegan Honey Mustard Dressing
- 2 tablespoons vegan mayonnaise
- ¾ tablespoon maple syrup
- 1 tablespoon mustard
Vegan Fried Chicken Tofu
- ¼ cup soy milk or almond milk + 1 tablespoon vinegar
- ½ cup of panko breadcrumbs , gluten free if necessary* + 2 teaspoons Cajun seasoning
- ¼ cup flour , gluten free if necessary**
- ¼ block of extra firm tofu , pressed
- 2 tablespoons cajun seasoning
- 2 tablespoons coconut oil or peanut oil or safflower oil , or other oil, not olive oil
Salad
- 3 cups lettuce , washed and rinsed, chopped or shredded
- 1 cup chopped grape tomatoes
- ½ carrot , shredded
- ¼ cup shredded red cabbage
- ¼ shredded vegan cheese
Instructions
Vegan Honey Mustard Dressing
- Mix all the ingredients together, stirring well. Taste and adjust to your taste. Place in the fridge until you need it.
Vegan Fried Chicken Tofu
- Cut the tofu in 1 inch by 3 inch strips. Some more water will come out, so wrap gently in paper towel to soak up the extra water while you prep the dredging stations.
- Place the flour in a plate/bowl, then the vegan buttermilk (the milk with vinegar) in a bowl, and the panko breadcrumbs in another plate/bowl. Line them up next to each other for a dredging station. Mix 1 tablespoon cajun seasoning into the flour, and the other tablespoon into the breadcrumbs along with the sea salt and black pepper.
- Dip one piece of tofu into the flour, then the buttermilk, shaking off the excess and then roll into the panko breadcrumbs, ensuring to press these in. Be gentle – you don’t want to break the tofu!
- Heat up the oil in a pan until at high heat. Place a strip of tofu in and fry for about 1-2 minutes on each side, until golden brown. Remove from oil and place on a paper towel to absorb any oil.
Salad
- Toss all the salad ingredients together. Top with the vegan fried chicken tofu, and drizzle the vegan honey mustard dressing on top. Enjoy!
Notes
This Vegan Crispy Cajun Fried Tofu Salad with Maple Mustard Dressing is the ultimate salad! It’s topped with a vegan version of Honey Mustard Dressing and SO crave-worthy!
I know, this title is a mouthful. Vegan Crispy Cajun Fried Tofu Salad with Maple Mustard Dressing. Let me explain. Back in college, before turning vegetarian then vegan, my favourite salad in the whole world was the Crispy Cajun-Fried Chicken Salad with Honey Mustard Dressing from TGI Fridays.
Okay, maybe not in the whole world, but definitely my part of the world and the salad that was most available to me. It was made up of lots of lettuce, red cabbage, carrots, tomatoes, eggs, Monterey-Jack cheese and fried chicken strips on top. Now, while I’ve made a whole barrage of beautiful and interesting salads on JITK over the years, I’ve never recreated this one. Good grief, one day last month the craving for it hit me like a brick.
So recreate I did.
I’ve made this three times in the last two weeks. I honestly can’t stop devouring that entire salad over and over. Vegan Crispy Cajun Fried Tofu Salad with Maple Mustard Dressing. WOW. I used tofu to replace the chicken, and of course, you could use seitan if you wanted something muchhh closer in texture. But all I really wanted was some really well-pressed tofu. The less water, the more of a chew it gets, like chicken. Breaded in flour, vegan buttermilk, and then panko breadcrumbs, it pan fries in a bit of oil to crisp up. Then comes the salad. I used grape tomatoes instead of the huge tomatoes I used to get, I didn’t even try to replace the eggs, I shredded red cabbage and carrots. Honestly, the first time I made this I didn’t use the red cabbage or carrots. It makes a DIFFERENCE. Trust me.
I know what you’re probably thinking at this point. “Honey mustard dressing?!” Okay, I’ll admit, there’s no honey. However I wanted to keep this recipe super consistent to the original and it’s made with honey mustard dressing, and this vegan version tastes just like honey mustard dressing . I mean seriously – Gavin and I are starting to wonder if they ever did use actual honey in the original? Because it’s an exact match taste for taste. Anyway, this creamy dressing is made up on vegan mayonnaise, maple syrup and mustard. It makes the perfect creamy topping for this salad.
Happiness. That’s what I felt eating this. Knowing I was having loads of greens, but also some indulgence with the crisp cajun fried tofu topping. There’s something about hitting a nostalgic feeling right on the head that brings the ultimate kind of happiness.
I hope my story inspires you to try this salad friends! P.S. weirdly enough, the leftover are even better that the original! I reheated the tofu strips in my toaster oven the next day (I made extra) and they tasted even more like the original salad. So, if you’re making extra of this, you certainly can!
Eat up and enjoy, friends!
Ingredients
Vegan Honey Mustard Dressing
- 2 tablespoons vegan mayonnaise
- ¾ tablespoon maple syrup
- 1 tablespoon mustard
Vegan Fried Chicken Tofu
- ¼ cup soy milk or almond milk + 1 tablespoon vinegar
- ½ cup of panko breadcrumbs , gluten free if necessary* + 2 teaspoons Cajun seasoning
- ¼ cup flour , gluten free if necessary**
- ¼ block of extra firm tofu , pressed
- 2 tablespoons cajun seasoning
- 2 tablespoons coconut oil or peanut oil or safflower oil , or other oil, not olive oil
Salad
- 3 cups lettuce , washed and rinsed, chopped or shredded
- 1 cup chopped grape tomatoes
- ½ carrot , shredded
- ¼ cup shredded red cabbage
- ¼ shredded vegan cheese
Instructions
Vegan Honey Mustard Dressing
- Mix all the ingredients together, stirring well. Taste and adjust to your taste. Place in the fridge until you need it.
Vegan Fried Chicken Tofu
- Cut the tofu in 1 inch by 3 inch strips. Some more water will come out, so wrap gently in paper towel to soak up the extra water while you prep the dredging stations.
- Place the flour in a plate/bowl, then the vegan buttermilk (the milk with vinegar) in a bowl, and the panko breadcrumbs in another plate/bowl. Line them up next to each other for a dredging station. Mix 1 tablespoon cajun seasoning into the flour, and the other tablespoon into the breadcrumbs along with the sea salt and black pepper.
- Dip one piece of tofu into the flour, then the buttermilk, shaking off the excess and then roll into the panko breadcrumbs, ensuring to press these in. Be gentle – you don’t want to break the tofu!
- Heat up the oil in a pan until at high heat. Place a strip of tofu in and fry for about 1-2 minutes on each side, until golden brown. Remove from oil and place on a paper towel to absorb any oil.
Salad
- Toss all the salad ingredients together. Top with the vegan fried chicken tofu, and drizzle the vegan honey mustard dressing on top. Enjoy!
Notes
Vegan Crispy Cajun Fried Tofu Salad with Maple Mustard Dressing
Ingredients
Vegan Honey Mustard Dressing
- 2 tablespoons vegan mayonnaise
- ¾ tablespoon maple syrup
- 1 tablespoon mustard
Vegan Fried Chicken Tofu
- ¼ cup soy milk or almond milk + 1 tablespoon vinegar
- ½ cup of panko breadcrumbs gluten free if necessary* + 2 teaspoons Cajun seasoning
- ¼ cup flour gluten free if necessary**
- ¼ block of extra firm tofu pressed
- 2 tablespoons cajun seasoning
- 2 tablespoons coconut oil or peanut oil or safflower oil or other oil, not olive oil
Salad
- 3 cups lettuce washed and rinsed, chopped or shredded
- 1 cup chopped grape tomatoes
- ½ carrot shredded
- ¼ cup shredded red cabbage
- ¼ shredded vegan cheese
Instructions
Vegan Honey Mustard Dressing
- Mix all the ingredients together, stirring well. Taste and adjust to your taste. Place in the fridge until you need it.
Vegan Fried Chicken Tofu
- Cut the tofu in 1 inch by 3 inch strips. Some more water will come out, so wrap gently in paper towel to soak up the extra water while you prep the dredging stations.
- Place the flour in a plate/bowl, then the vegan buttermilk (the milk with vinegar) in a bowl, and the panko breadcrumbs in another plate/bowl. Line them up next to each other for a dredging station. Mix 1 tablespoon cajun seasoning into the flour, and the other tablespoon into the breadcrumbs along with the sea salt and black pepper.
- Dip one piece of tofu into the flour, then the buttermilk, shaking off the excess and then roll into the panko breadcrumbs, ensuring to press these in. Be gentle - you don’t want to break the tofu!
- Heat up the oil in a pan until at high heat. Place a strip of tofu in and fry for about 1-2 minutes on each side, until golden brown. Remove from oil and place on a paper towel to absorb any oil.
Salad
- Toss all the salad ingredients together. Top with the vegan fried chicken tofu, and drizzle the vegan honey mustard dressing on top. Enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
Vegan Crispy Cajun Fried Tofu Salad with Maple Mustard Dressing https://jessicainthekitchen.com/vegan-crispy-cajun-fried-chicken-salad-with-honey-mustard-dressing/ April 11, 2018
There are two types of recipes I get asked to make the most: breakfast recipes and dinner recipes. I think we’ve gotten the dinner recipes down pat – from curries to stews to tacos pastas to vegan fish sticks. It’s pretty much all been covered and of course many more to come! Now the vegan breakfast recipes? It’s not until I wanted to share my favourites with you that I realise that I need to do way more vegan breakfast recipes for you!! Let’s start with these 10 favourites right now, and I’ll definitely be sharing way more! If there’s a recipe you know you want to see, let me know!
My 10 Favourite Vegan Breakfast Recipes
Vegan Strawberry Pancakes – fluffy, fruity and meal preppable!
Easy Southwestern Tofu Scramble Breakfast Tacos – I’ve had this once a week since making it on the blog. It’s soooo good and hits the spot, especially if you’re craving eggs or a savoury breakfast! P.S. I heard you using black salt gives it a really sulfur-like taste!
Peanut Butter Banana Overnight Oats – I love a great overnight oats. This one adds in protein and fibre and is the perfect texture.
Jalapeńo Cornbread Waffles with Roasted Garlic and Rosemary – these are my favourite savoury waffles ever! We’ve even made them into mini waffles for a brunch!
Rainbow Fruit Salad with Maple Lime Dressing – if you want the ultimate fruit salad of your life, this is it. It’s not even just the fruits, it’s that sweet like dressing. Feel free to adjust this based on where you live to keep some local fruits in it.
No Bake Mango Coconut Chia Pudding – chia pudding for the win! The mango and coconut adds a really tropical flair to it and it’ll keep you full for hours.
Vegan Yogurt Parfait Breakfast Popsicles – beautifully impressive, great for kids and so delicious!! Great for those hot mornings.
Baked Banana Bread Oatmeal Cups – these oatmeal cups are SO amazing for meal prep! I’ve made them so many times, and I love the flavours in it!
Vegan Carrot Cake Pancakes with Maple Cream Cheese Drizzle – I mean, these are a total stunner and already have so many reviews. The maple cream cheese drizzle is the star of the show!
No Bake Brownie Energy Bites – last not but least, these bites are if you’re craving dessert for breakfast!
