Description
This vegan Greek salad has everything you’d expect! Cucumbers, bell peppers, tomatoes, olives, onion, and crumbled chunks of punchy, flavourful tofu feta marinated in a simple Greek salad vinaigrette.
Ingredients
Greek Salad Dressing:
- 1 tbsp (15 ml) *coarse sea salt
- ½ tbsp (7.5 ml) garlic powder or garlic salt
- ½ tbsp (7.5 ml) onion powder
- ½ tbsp (7.5 ml) sugar
- ½ tbsp (7.5 ml) dried oregano
- ½ tsp (2.5 ml) cracked black pepper
- ¾ cup (175 ml) canola oil
- ⅓ cup (80 ml) white vinegar
- 3 tbsp (45 ml) vegan mayo (optional)
- 3 tbsp (45 ml) water
Tofu Feta:
- 1 (1lb/454g) block medium or firm tofu
- 3 tbsp (12 grams) nutritional yeast flakes
- Half of the prepared Greek salad dressing (above)
Greek Salad:
- 2 cucumbers, quartered and chopped
- 2 cups grape or cherry tomatoes, halved or whole
- 1 green pepper, chopped
- ½ of a small red onion, sliced
- ½ cup Kalamata olives, whole, halved, or sliced
- Prepared tofu feta and marinade (above)
- Remaining Greek salad dressing (above)
Instructions
Greek Salad Dressing:
- In a jar with a lid (or a medium-sized bowl) combine sea salt, garlic salt, onion powder, sugar, oregano, and black pepper. Add canola oil, vinegar, mayo, and water. Shake or whisk well.
Tofu Feta:
- Cut tofu into rectangles.
- Press the tofu between layered kitchen towels and top with a heavy, flat-bottomed object. Leave tofu to press until it appears dry and some pieces just begin to crumble (about 30 minutes to 1 hour).
(You may need to swap in fresh, dry kitchen towels if they become saturated before the tofu is finished pressing.) - Use your hands to tear the pressed tofu into small, irregular sized chunks - do not crumble.
In a food storage container with a lid (or a medium-sized bowl) gently mix tofu with nutritional yeast. Shake or mix Greek salad dressing before pouring ½ of it over the tofu (or enough to fully submerge the tofu). - Marinate overnight, or even longer (up to 72 hours). Taste test as needed to check for desired flavour and firmness.
Greek Salad:
- Prepare vegetables. Optional: halve tomatoes and halve or slice olives. Transfer vegetables into a large bowl.
- Just before serving, add the tofu and marinade to the salad. Crumble some of the tofu if desired. Add extra Greek dressing to taste. Serve immediately.
Notes
* Be sure to use coarse sea salt. If using fine sea salt, start with a 1½ tsp. Taste and adjust the dressing with more salt as needed. The dressing should still taste strong and salty because it's seasoning a lot of raw vegetables.
Storage: Store tofu feta and dressing separate from vegetables. Once the dressing is mixed with the vegetables they begin to break down and lose their crisp texture.
Preparing individual servings: Dish up desired portion of undressed salad and add tofu feta and Greek dressing to taste.
If you’re preparing the salad in advance for a potluck or gathering, you can cut the vegetables larger and leave the tomatoes and olives whole for more longevity. Add the dressing and feta to the vegetables shortly before serving.
Keywords: vegan Greek salad, tofu feta, vegan feta