Korean tofu salad with honey soy chilli vinaigrette is cold tofu salad that actually tastes delicious and healthy. It is light, refreshing, and spiced up with Korean chilli flakes for authentic Korean flavour!
Many of my non-meat loving readers will be happy about today’s recipe. I’ve been sharing meaty dishes lately so, for a change, I’m sharing something that’s light, healthy but still delicious and full of flavour.
Enter. Korean Tofu Salad.
OK, I have to admit. Korean tofu salad sounds so boring even from its name. But wait! How about Korean tofu salad with honey soy chilli vinaigrette?
I don’t know about you, but to me, it sounds interesting, invigorating, and inviting!
This salad is so easy to make (less than 10 mins!) with your everyday ingredients.
If you go to some fancy Korean restaurants, some of them serve steamed silken tofu with soy chilli vinaigrette as an entree and they are the best and freshest tasting side dish on the table. It melts in your mouth like cheese without leaving any oily after taste.
Though, my recipe below uses cold tofu not steamed or boiled. But by all means, you can go with either way to your pleasure. 😉
For tofu salad, I used silken tofu (soft tofu) that’s commonly used in Sundubu Jjigae because I couldn’t find any non-broken regular (rectangular) silken tofu from a Korean grocery store. (The delivery guy should be more careful next time! You know, salad is all about visual presentation, just like a food blog is. 😉 )
That’s why my tofu looks like fresh mozzarella cheese on Caprese salad if you were wondering.
Now let’s talk about the dressing. Honey soy chilli vinaigrette. It’s a light, refreshing and fruity dressing. To give extra Korean flavour, a small dose of sesame oil and Korean chilli flakes are highly encouraged. 🙂
Though you will find that the dressing isn’t quite that spicy. Even my little girl didn’t mind that. That’s a good cue.
My final words. Try my Korean tofu salad with honey soy chilli vinaigrette! It adds a nice and healthy flavour to your main dish.
I particularly love the nutty aroma smell that comes out from the crushed sesame seeds and sesame oil. The whole thing, the greens, tofu and the vinaigrette make a wonderful combination!
Ingredients for 3 to 4 servings as a side dish
Main
- 350g/ ounces silken tofu, sliced (*see note)
- 25g snow pea sprouts (or garden salad mix), rinsed
- 5g alfalfa sprouts, rinsed
- 1 Tbsp roasted sesame seeds, crushed
Dressing (mix these well in a bowl)
- 1 Tbsp soy sauce
- 1 Tbsp apple vinegar (or rice vinegar)
- 1 Tbsp honey
- 1/2 Tbsp lemon juice, freshly squeezed
- 1 tsp Korean chilli flakes (gochugaru) – can be omitted or reduced per your preference. (Though I highly recommend you add them!)
- 1 tsp sesame oil
*1 Tbsp = 15 ml
**If you want to learn about Korean ingredients, check my 30 essential Korean cooking ingredients list!
How to Make Korean Tofu Salad
- Place your choice of sprouts or salad mix onto a serving plate. Gently place (sliced) tofu. Sprinkle around the sesame seeds. Drizzle the dressing over the tofu and greens as you need it. Serve. (To eat, you will want to use a spoon to scoop out the tofu slices, as they break easily.)
Note
-I used cold tofu for the recipe above but, instead, you can serve warm tofu by steaming or boiling it. In that case, keep the tofu in its original plastic container to keep it together.
-Tofu can be served as a large block or small blocks instead of being thinly sliced if you find slicing challenging.
-If you’re cutting, tofu should be cut just before you are about to serve. Otherwise, tofu will start releasing the water a few minutes later.
-Once the salad is assembled, it’s best to consume straight away or on the day of making it at least. If you have ingredients left over, store them individually and separately. Combine them together just before you’re about to eat at a later day.
Korean Tofu Salad with Honey Soy Chilli Vinaigrette
Ingredients
MAIN
- 350 g silken tofu - sliced (*see note)
- 25 g snow pea sprouts or garden salad mix (rinsed)
- 5 g alfalfa sprouts (rinsed)
- 1 Tbsp toasted sesame seeds (crushed)
DRESSING (MIX THESE WELL IN A BOWL)
- 1 Tbsp soy sauce
- 1 Tbsp apple cider vinegar or rice vinegar
- 1 Tbsp honey
- 1/2 Tbsp lemon juice freshly squeezed
- 1 tsp Korean chili flakes (gochugaru) – Can be omitted or reduced per your preference. Though I highly recommend you add them!
- 1 tsp sesame oil
Instructions
- Place your choice of sprouts or salad mix onto a serving plate. Gently place (sliced) tofu. Sprinkle around the sesame seeds. Drizzle the dressing over the tofu and greens as you need it. Serve. (To eat, you will want to use a spoon to scoop out the tofu slices, as they break easily.)
Notes
Nutrition Info (per serving)
The nutrition information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
