A hearty Banh Mi style spicy sweet Gochujang sandwich! A perfect summer lunch! It has an amazing flavor from the gochujang baked tofu, sweet mango, cilantro and zesty pickled cucumber carrots jalapeño.

Recipe Snapshot

  • Prep time: 20 minutes
  • Cook time: 20 minutes
  • Total time: 55 minutes
  • Yield: 4
  • Category: lunch, Sandwich
  • Cuisine: Korean, Vietnamese

Ingredients

For the marinade:

  • 3 tablespoons soy sauce (or tamari for gluten-free)
  • 2 tablespoons gochujang
  • 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1 teaspoon sesame oil
  • 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon maple syrup

For the tofu:

  • 14 ounces firm or extra firm tofu (pressed for at least 15 minutes, then sliced into 1 1/2-2 inch squares or 1/2" cubes or any other size that you like)

For the vegetables:

  • 1/2 of a cucumber (thinly sliced, you can peel it a little bit and then slice, as well.)
  • 1/2 cup thinly sliced onion
  • 1/2 cup julienned carrots

For marinating the veggies:

  • remaining marinade from above
  • 1 tablespoon white vinegar or rice vinegar
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon sugar
  • 2-3 tablespoons of water

For the sandwich:

  • 4 ciabatta rolls (or soft rolls)
  • lettuce (chopped, as needed)
  • 1 ripe mango (peeled and sliced)
  • 1/4 cup or more chopped cilantro
  • 1 jalapeño (thinly sliced, optional)

Method

  1. Preheat the oven to 400° F Fahrenheit (205° C).

Make the gochujang tofu:

  1. Add all of the ingredients listed under marinade to a large, shallow bowl and mix really well. Add a tablespoon of water if the marinade. You might need another tbsp water depending on your gochujang sauce consistency so that the marinade is not too thick. Then add your sliced tofu to the marinade, tossing gently to coat all the sides of all the slices. Let it sit for at least 15 minutes, then transfer the tofu to a parchment lined baking sheet and bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or until crisp and dry to preference.

Marinate the veggies:

  1. There will be some marinade left in your bowl. If there isn't enough marinade, you can add in another tablespoon of soy sauce and gochujang. Add the vinegar, salt, sugar and 2-3 tablespoons of water to the bowl to make enough marinade mixture to coat the veggies. Add all of the sliced and julienned veggies to this bowl and toss to coat. Let the veggies sit to marinate for 5-10 minutes while the tofu is baking.

Assemble the sandwich:

  1. Prep your bread by slicing it. You can toast the bread if you like. then add a layer of lettuce to the bread. Remove the tofu from the oven, and use as many slices as can fit on your sandwich over the lettuce. Add a layer of mango or any other fruit that you like.
  2. Add the marinated vegetable mixture on top. Pile it really well, because you want the sandwich to be nice and juicy. Then top it with with jalapeño and cilantro and the other bread slice and serve. Serve with any remaining marinade on the side for dipping.

Kiyaan Singh’s Kitchen Note

Keep this recipe as a working base: cook once as written, then adjust spice, texture, and serving style for your own table.