I have been a huge fan of peanut butter for my whole life. I’m not ashamed to say that in college, my supremely unhealthy years, I once ate six jars of peanut butter in one academic year. It was probably some sort of record, albeit not one to be too proud of…

Most of my peanut butter consumption revolved around combining it with jelly or with bananas. Thus, I remember the first time I was introduced to the peanut sauce recipe from the Moosewood Cookbook. It blew my mind. You can eat peanut butter with vegetables?! I have since found any excuse to eat peanut sauce on pasta, quinoa, stir fry, you name it. (I’ve experimented with other, simpler peanut sauce recipes than the Moosewood one, but I still think it’s is the best one out there.)

Anyway, after years of this being my go-to sauce, I decided to try branching out to other nut butter sauces, if such things existed. Turns out they do, and they are delicious! Inspired by the blog Hummusapien, here is my version of Vegetable Stir Fry with Almond Butter Sauce. Seriously, I couldn’t get enough of it.

 

Recipe: Vegetable Stir Fry with Almond Butter Sauce
Prep time: 40 minutes
Inspired By: Hummusapien
  • 1 cup brown rice
  • 1 block tofu, extra firm
  • 4 T olive oil
  • 1 zucchini, thinly sliced
  • 1/2 large onion, sliced
  • 1 red pepper, thinly sliced
  • 1/2 bunch kale, torn into bite-sized pieces
  • salt and pepper, to taste
  • 2 T almond butter
  • 2 T soy sauce
  • 1 T water
  • 1.5 t ginger
  • 1 t garlic
Start the rice by adding rice to 2 cups water, and letting it come to a boil. When it boils, turn down the heat and let simmer for 40-50 minutes.
Then drain the tofu. You’re supposed to let it drain for a long time, but I usually forget and just press paper towel all over it until some of the water is soaked up. Slice tofu into bite-sized cubes, and saute in 2 tablespoons olive oil until both sides are browned and slightly tough (depending on how you like your tofu, you could keep sauteing it).
Remove tofu from pan and set aside. Add rest of olive oil to pan, and saute sliced onion, pepper, and zucchini until slightly soft. Add kale, plus a pinch or two of salt. Saute until kale is bright green and wilted.
Meanwhile, add last five ingredients to a small jar, and shake vigorously. Taste the sauce to see if it needs more almond butter or soy sauce.
When the rice is done, combine with tofu, vegetables, and pour sauce on top. Mix and enjoy!