Vegetarian Chicken Salad with Frozen Tofu

Here’s a great way to use frozen tofu. Vegetarian chicken salad is good in sandwiches, on crackers, or as a filling for stuffed tomatoes.

Makes 3 cups

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Looking for new ways to use frozen tofu? Here is a recipe that does not require you to cook the tofu.

Veggie Chicken Salad

If you like tofu, then this recipe is for you. Please keep in mind that the recipe calls for frozen tofu. By freezing your tofu ahead of time, you can cut down on the prep time considerably. Freezing tofu will take from 12 to 24 hours. For details on how to freeze tofu, please check out our recipe for frozen sliced tofu here.

If you are not a fan of tofu, then you may want to check out some of the recipes for vegetarian chicken salad at foodgawker.com located here. These recipes are made with chickpeas and not tofu.

If you would prefer a vegan version of this recipe, I give instructions for a vegan variety at the end of the recipe.

When writing this recipe I assumed that you know how to hard boil an egg. However, if that is not the case, then you can get excellent basic directions for a hard boiled egg here at simplyrecipes.com. If you cook the hard boiled egg at the same time you are preparing the tofu chicken salad, it should not increase the preparation time.

Ingredients for Tofu Chicken Salad:

1 lb. sliced frozen extra firm tofu (see recipe)
1 hard boiled egg, chilled
3/4 cup mayonnaise
1/3  cup sweet pickle relish
1/2 cup chopped celery
1/2 cup finely chopped red bell pepper
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon dried summer savory, crushed
1/2 teaspoon celery salt
1/8 teaspoon black pepper

Instructions:

1. Thaw the frozen extra firm tofu or defrost in the microwave oven. Place a slice of thawed tofu between your hands over the sink and press out as much water as possible. Repeat for all of the tofu.  For more detailed instructions on using frozen  tofu, refer to this recipe for frozen sliced tofu. Place four slices of pressed tofu on a cutting board and chop into small pieces. Repeat for  the remaining four pieces.
2. Dice and measure the celery and red bell pepper. You will need about one large stalk of celery and one-third of a large red bell pepper. I usually cut the celery lengthwise into thin strips and then chop across the strips into small pieces. Use the same procedure for the bell pepper.
3. Place the chopped tofu in a large bowl. Add the sweet relish and chopped hard boiled egg. Add the 1/2 cup chopped celery, 1/2 cup chopped bell pepper, 1 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon crushed dried summer savory, 1/2 teaspoon celery salt, and 1/8 teaspoon black pepper. 
4. Gently stir everything together until well blended. Taste and adjust seasonings if necessary. Keep in a covered container in the refrigerator until ready to use. This chicken salad should keep for at least four or five days in the refrigerator.
   

   1 - Thaw and press the water from the frozen tofu. Chop into small pieces.

   

   2 - Dice and measure the celery and red bell pepper. You will need about 1/2 cup of each.

   

   3 - Combine all of the ingredients in a large bowl.

   

   4 - Gently stir everything together until well blended.

Serving suggestions:

I prefer to use homemade bread for sandwiches. However, I used Oroweat 12 Grain Bread for these sandwiches because I was out of my own homemade bread. This chicken salad is also great on crackers and in stuffed tomatoes. Serving vegetarian chicken salad with tofu in a sandwich or on crackers is a no-brainer and does not need instructions. Here is how we make our stuffed tomatoes.

Tomato Stuffed with Vegetarian Chicken Salad:

Ingredients:

Fresh tomatoes
Vegetarian chicken salad from above
One lettuce leaf for each tomato
Grated cheddar cheese for garnish (optional)

Instructions for Stuffed Tomatoes

1. Fill a small saucepan about half full with water and bring to a boil. Add a tomato to the boiling water and simmer gently for exactly one minute. Remove with a slotted spoon and place in a bowl of cold water for one minute.
2. Place on a cutting board and remove the white center section of the tomato at the top (the core). You do no have to remove the entire center of the tomato. Remove the tomato peel.
3. Cut across the tomato, from the top almost to the bottom, three times to make six wedges. Do not cut all of the way through the tomato! You want it to stay together in one piece. Open the tomato wedges like the petals of a flower.
4. Place the tomato on a lettuce leaf on a plate. Fill the tomato with about 1/2 cup of vegetarian chicken salad. 
   

   1 - Place a tomato in boiling water for one minute and then put in a bowl for another minute.

   

   2 - Place on cutting board and remove white center section at top. Remove tomato peel.

   

   3 - Cut across the tomato, from the top almost to bottom, three times to make six wedges. Do not cut all of the way through the tomato!

   

   4 - Place the tomato on a lettuce leaf on a plate. Fill the tomato with about 1/2 cup of vegetarian chicken salad.

Sprinkle grated cheddar cheese (optional) over the top.

Vegan Chicken Salad:

To make this into a vegan dish, follow these two steps.

1. Omit the hard boiled egg.
2. Use vegan mayonnaise in place of the regular mayonnaise that contains eggs.

Notes:

• This recipe makes 3 cups or enough Vegetarian Chicken Salad for six sandwiches or stuffed tomatoes.
• You can tear the thawed tofu apart with your hands so that it looks more like chicken.
• If you would like your vegetarian chicken salad to be a little creamier, then you can add two more tablespoons of mayonnaise.

If you liked this recipe, you may also be interested in these other recipes for frozen tofu: