A vegan riff on Huevos Rancheros, this was a pretty satisfying meal. It’s a bit of a fancier take on a Mexican meal without being overly difficult or time consuming. If you’re a talented enough multitasker, you can have all three components going at once and finish fairly quickly.
The tostada-like crispy tortilla adds a nice textural
component and doesn’t get soggy like a fresh tortilla would. If you’d rather
skip it you could use a bed of tortilla chips instead but it wouldn’t be quite
the same.
The ranchero sauce is hearty but fairly mild; you can spice
it up with some red pepper flakes or ground cayenne if you want to, or just use
a spicier salsa.
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| Scrambled Tofu Rancheros on a Crispy Baked Tortilla |
Scrambled Tofu Rancheros
Scrambled Tofu with mushrooms:
1 Tbsp oil
8 oz sliced mushrooms
1 Tbsp minced garlic
1 14 oz package firm or extra firm tofu, crumbled
1 tsp cumin
½ tsp mustard powder
½ tsp turmeric
½ tsp onion powder
2 Tbsp nutritional yeast
salt and pepper to taste
Ranchero Sauce:
1 Tbsp oil
½ cup diced onions
1 14 oz can diced tomatoes with juice
1 15 oz can black beans, rinsed and drained
¼ cup salsa (mild or spicy according to your taste)
½ cup canned hominy
¼ tsp cumin
¼ tsp curry powder
½ tsp oregano
1 tsp veggie broth powder
¼ tsp smoked paprika
salt and pepper to taste
Crispy tortillas:
4 6-8 inch tortillas (flour or corn)
approx. 1 Tbsp lime or lemon juice
a few dashes of garlic salt
Directions:
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| Mushroom Scrambled Tofu |
First, make the scrambled tofu: sauté the garlic in the oil
until fragrant and very lightly browned. Add the mushrooms. Keep cooking until
the mushrooms release their liquid, the liquid evaporates, and the mushrooms
begin to brown. Pull about half the mushrooms out of the pan and set aside to
add to the sauce.
Add the tofu to the pan with the remaining mushrooms. Add
spices and remaining scramble ingredients. Saute until the tofu is fairly dry
and somewhat browned.
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| Ranchero Sauce |
Meanwhile, make the ranchero sauce: In a separate pan, saute
the onions in the oil until transparent. Add the tomatoes and their liquid,
then the beans and the rest of the sauce ingredients, including the reserved
sautéed mushrooms. Let the sauce simmer until it’s thick and everything else is
ready, at least 10 minutes. Taste and adjust salt and pepper.
To make the crispy tortillas: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F
and spray two cookie sheets with cooking spray. Place 4 tortillas on the cookie
sheets with as little overlap as possible. Brush the tops lightly with lime or
lemon juice then sprinkle evenly with garlic salt. Bake for 8-10 minutes until
crispy (watch out for burning!).
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| Sauce on crispy tortilla |
To assemble: Take a crispy tortilla and spoon sauce around
the edge in a thick ring. Pile scrambled tofu in the middle. Top with guacamole
or vegan sour cream if you wish, and serve immediately.
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| Tofu in the middle |
Variations:
The sauce can be simplified down to just salsa if you wish,
or fancied up further with extra sauteed veggies (bell pepper might be nice)
and/or a vegan ground meat substitute.
The scrambled tofu and ranchero sauce could be assembled breakfast
burrito style as well.
