Although I don’t mind going meatless for occasional meals, I’ve never eaten a full vegan meal before. I don’t think my vegan biscuit quite counts as a full meal.
Knowing that my friend Shelly is a vegetarian, I reached out to her to be my go-to person to introduce me to Ethos Vegan Kitchen in Ivanhoe Village. I heard the food was good, and I was excited to try something new and different.
First of all, the restaurant is a great space. They have a spacious covered outdoor dining area and upon walking inside, it almost feels like you’re walking into someone’s house. It’s very warm and cozy. They have daily specials and a bakery.
I ordered the coconut curry wrap, which was tofu in a curry sauce with celery, raisins, walnuts, coconut and lettuce in a gluten-free spinach tortilla. For my side, I selected the cole slaw.
Shelly ordered their special of the day: hard shell tacos.
Shelly also ordered a double chocolate chip cookie for us to share.
My wrap was delicious, and the serving size was more than generous. I’m always slightly sad when I eat tofu out because it tastes so much better than when I make it at home. How do they get it so crispy? The sauce was really good with a subtle spice, and the raisins perfectly balanced the curry taste. I wasn’t a huge fan of the cole slaw. I thought it was a little bland and the cabbage was drowning in sauce.
The cookie was amazing. It actually tasted more like a brownie and was the perfect sweet ending to the meal. I’m excited to return to try their black bean burgers and brunch menu.
Any tips for cooking tofu? What’s your favorite vegetarian or vegan dish?
It bothers me, too, that I can’t make tofu taste as good at home as it does out at restaurants! I keep driving by Ethos lately; I need to stop in and try it one of these days.
Thanks for going to dinner with me! We need to find a dummy proof way to cook tofu!
Here is how I do it with good success, I’ve been able to achieve that “restaurant” crispiness with X-tra Firm, Firm and even soft tofu that comes packed in water. Take it out of the container, wrap in paper towels and then a dish cloth. Set something flat like a cutting board or a plate on top of the flat side of the tofu and weigh it down with something semi-heavy, like a large can of tomatoes or something. Let the towels absorb a lot of the moisture out of it while you prep your other ingredients (chop your veggies and make your sauce for Pad Thai!) Unwrap it, slice it into whatever shape you prefer (I usually just do blocks, but triangles are cool too…whatever) Heat some peanut, canola or olive oil in a non-stick skillet over medium to medium-high heat. Slide in the tofu pieces and shake the pan around to coat most of the bottome surface with the oil. (You may want to use a splash guard because the moisture remaining in the tofu will inevitibly splatter) Be patient and cook for several minutes without disturbing it. When it starts to brown, shake the pan and try to flip the pieces over to the other side and brown. Drain on paper towels and add back to your other ingredients when you have everything else cooked to your liking. Hope this helps! Enjoy~