This was a fun project to tackle. I was looking for a dish for my vegan friend and got the idea to cut the tofu round like a scallop and sear it the same way. Since tofu is fairly bland, I marinated the "scallops" in ginger, lime, cilantro and sugar for a couple of hours. Soba noodles are fairly straight forward to cook and I just tossed them in soy, sesame oil and rice wine vinegar when they were done. The leeks were braised in olive oil and water until they were nice and soft. Then I tossed in the tomatoes and let them stew in the leek juice for a few minutes. The end result was a nice dish with really vibrant flavors that just melted into each other when combined. The picture was the first run that I tried and then ended up enjoying. The actual dish I gave my friend was finished with a jicama and chayote slaw. Sadly she didn't get to try it when it was nice and hot but she said it was just as enjoyable after warming it later.
