Pra Ram

Miso and I had a variation of this dish at a local vegan restaurant and fell in love with it. We decided to try making it at home and put a new spin on it by adding sauteed mushrooms. We like to think we made it better, but even without the mushrooms, the peanut sauce is the real star in this dish. Wowsa!

firm tofu uncooked, cubed
cucumber peeled, sliced thick
red onion half sliced, half chopped
cashews
fresh spinach a large amount (when cooked spinach will reduce to about 1/4 of the fresh amount)
mushrooms, quartered
fresh garlic about 1 clove
sesame oil
canola oil
soy sauce

Peanut Sauce
2 2/3 TBS soy sauce
2 2/3 TBS rice vinegar
1/4 cup cold water
1 TBS powdered sugar
1/4 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp minced ginger
1 tsp minced garlic
1/4 cup peanuts
1 1/2 TBS canola oil
2 TBS sesame oil
Serrano chili minced to taste
cook rice of choice

1. Place tofu, cucumber, sliced red onion in serving dishes and set aside.
2. Prepare Peanut Sauce by putting all ingredients in food processor and blend till smooth.
3. Heat 1 part canola oil and 1 part sesame oil in a large fry pan on low heat. Add chopped onions and cook until translucent.
4. Add mushrooms and handful of cashews to onions in fry pan. Bump heat up to high and cook until mushrooms are about half the size. Add a dash of soy sauce.
5. Add spinach to mushroom mix . Continually stir mixture until spinach has just wilted about half way. Remove from heat. Drain.
6. Dish out the mush/spinach mix over your raw tofu/cucumber mix. Generously drizzle peanut sauce on top. Serve immediately on bed of rice.