Hey…so…these are really good, and you should probably think about making them. Need a Meatless Monday recipe? Here it is. Need to stretch those dollars with cheap recipes? Tofu is cheaper than meat! Don’t like tofu? No problem, roasting it and letting it bask in the love that is barbecue sauce hides a multitude of sins. These sliders are earth friendly, sweet and tangy.

NOTES: Make the salad ahead of time and let it sit for a bit to get the juice flowing.  To create a crispy tofu crust, you will need to roast it at two different temps before adding the BBQ sauce. Bonus: No need to press the tofu in this recipe! Vegan Option: Omit the fried egg and mayonnaise.

Ingredients for the sliders

• 1 package of firm tofu
• 2 ciabatta sandwich rolls
• handful of microgreens or sprouts
• mayonnaise
• favorite brand of BBQ sauce (about 1/2 cup)
• olive oil, salt & pepper for roasting
• 1-2 fried eggs (optional)

Ingredients for the salad

• 1 can black beans, drained
• 1 can sweet corn, drained
• 1 halved and sliced cucumber
• 1/4 of a thinly sliced red onion
• 3-4 chopped green onions
• 1/2 cup shredded purple cabbage
• juice from 1/2 a lemon
• 2 glugs of olive oil
• salt & pepper to taste

Directions

Make the black bean salad first. Toss all the ingredients together and put in the refrigerator for 30 minutes to an hour.

Preheat oven to 350F.

Drain the water from the tofu and try to gently squeeze any excess water out of the block. Cut through the middle, then in half. You should have 4 slabs of thickish tofu.

Place on a baking sheet with baking paper and sprinkle with olive oil, salt and pepper. Place in an oven for about thirty minutes. Then, turn the oven up to about 400F, keep an eye on it and wait for it to start crisping. Takes about 10-15 minutes. After it is nice and brown, add your BBQ sauce and leave for another 5 minutes or so. The end result should be crispy outside, soft inside tofu slabs.

Slice and toast your buns. Add mayo and more BBQ sauce, microgreens, and tofu. Fry up an egg or two to make a nice, runny sauce for the top.