I know, salads…BOOOOORING? Right? WRONG! “I won’t take any slander on salads”, -said the man who’s only made salads thrice in his life, but out of those three, this is the best one. I’ve recently started to work out a little bit, and now half of my entire day goes into counting grams of protein in things. Not a very exciting life, I must say. However, if you live like me, you’d probably have the same issue. Fear not, this pasta salad has 30 gms of protein in it and is completely vegetarian and devoid of awful protein powders.
I don’t have any tips for this recipe because it’s fairly simple. My only warning is that you make sure that all elements of the salad are cold or somewhat warm before mixing. Especially, the pasta. It has to be rinsed in cold water until it’s cooled down completely. Also, try to use fresh herbs in the salad dressing like basil, parsley, coriander or mint. If not, dried ones work fine too. I used de-seeded tomatoes in the recipe as opposed to cherry tomatoes, which are perfect for salads. Not everyone has access to these, and my goal is to make something that everyone would be able to recreate in their homes. You’re welcome!
Ingredients
- 50 gms of Fusilli Pasta (or similar short-shaped pasta)
- 4-5 tbsp of Olive oil
- 100 gms of small diced Tofu
- I no Garlic (peeled)
- 1/2 no Cucumber (halved & sliced)
- 2 no Tomatoes (de-seeded & diced)
- 1 tsp of fresh Mint leaves
- (Optional) A sprinkle of dried herbs
- 100 gms of Greek Yogurt (Alt options: Hung curd, sour cream + mayo)
- 35 gms of Paneer (or use Feta cheese, if available)
- 1 no Lemon
- Salt & Pepper to taste
Procedure
- In a saucepan with salted boiling water, add your pasta and cook for 8 mins.
- Dice tofu into small cubes, and add to a hot frying pan with some olive oil & season to taste. Let it brown slightly. Keep tossing it in between.
- Peel a clove of garlic, halve and thinly slice the cucumber, and de-seed and dice the tomatoes. Tear up some mint leaves. Leave some for garnish.
- In a bowl, add the Greek yoghurt. Season with salt, pepper, dried herbs, mint leaves, olive oil, and lemon juice. Grate the garlic, and mix to combine. Let the tofu cool slightly once browned.
- Add the vegetables and the tofu to the dressing. Crumble the paneer into the mixture. Leave some for garnish.
- Drain the pasta, and rinse till completely cooled down. Add it to the salad mix and combine till coated evenly.
- Serve it on a plate with olive oil drizzled on top, some fresh mint leaves, and crumbled paneer.