This easy Spicy vegan rojak salad recipe is refreshing and perfect for a summer lunch.
The spicy Asian flavors combined with fruit, turnip, tofu, calamansi limes, and tamarind are so satisfying!
About the Rojak Salad
Rojak salad is a refreshing mix of fruits and vegetables in Singapore’s vibrant food scene, from restaurants to hawker centers.
Its name, meaning “eclectic mix” in Malay, perfectly describes the delicious blend of flavors it offers.
Vegan Adaptation and Ingredient Choices
While traditional versions include Belacan, a shrimp paste, I’ve created a vegan variant that tastes lighter and equally delightful.
Seedless guava adds a refreshing touch, complemented by local turnips that enhance the salad’s freshness.
Changes to the Original Recipe
In my adaptation, I’ve swapped tau pok for baked firm tofu, achieving a lighter texture without sacrificing crunchiness.
I’ve omitted Char Kuay to avoid heaviness, opting for fresh chili and Shichimi tōgarashi for a balanced spice profile.
Tips for making this vegan Rojak Salad
- Cut all the ingredients into medium-sized chunks. If you cut them too small, they will absorb too much sauce and become bland. Also, store them in the refrigerator while preparing the salad to avoid oxidation.
- Don’t chop the peanuts too small — small pieces will lose their crunchiness as they become too soft with the sauce.
- Remove the seeds and veins of the red chili pepper—this part of the pepper can be too spicy and ruin your sauce. If you want the sauce to be more spicy, add some chili flakes or Shichimi tōgarashi.
More about the ingredients for the Rojak Salad
- Calamansi limes—This Southeast Asian citrus variety is small and contains many tiny seeds. However, despite being so small, they have a lot of juice and are less acidic than limes. Their color is greenish orange, and they have a delicious orange perfume.
- Molasses —A paste obtained from sugar cane; it is dark in color and has a dense consistency like syrup. In this recipe, I use (Blackstrap molasses) its taste is not so sweet, and it is a little bit bitter.
- Tamarind sauce — I prefer to use diluted and seedless tamarind sauce; check the percentage of tamarind in the container; the higher the rate of tamarind, the better.
- Ensure it does not contain additives other than salt and water. Sometimes, they put in a lot of sugar. I have seen some sauces that contain even garlic! And we don’t want that in our salad.
- Firm Tofu is perfect for this recipe; drain all the liquid before using it to obtain crunchy pieces of baked Tofu.
- Guava — Guava contains a lot of seeds, but fortunately, you can find seedless Guava in the supermarkets!
- Peanuts — It can be challenging to find unsalted roasted peanuts, but don’t worry; you can also use salted roasted peanuts and rinse them with water to remove the salt.
Serving Suggestions and Culinary Pairings
Enjoy vegan Rojak salad as a refreshing summer lunch or a light dinner. Serve it alongside grilled vegetables or tofu skewers for added protein, and pair it with a chilled drink like iced lemongrass tea or citrus-infused sparkling water to complement its vibrant flavors.
I hope you love it as much as we do. Who knows, it might become one of your favorite exotic salads!
VEGAN ROJAK SALAD
Ingredients
- 200 gr Japanese cucumber (substitute – any type of cucumber).
- 200 gr Red apple
- 200 gr Pineapple
- 200 gr Guava
- 200 gr Firm tofu
- 200 gr Turnip (substitute – radish).
- 1 tablespoon Cornstarch.
- 1 tablespoon Soy sauce.
For the crunchy touch:
- 20 gr Peanuts (unsalted and roasted).
- Sesame seeds
For the sauce:
- 6 Calamansi limes (substitute – 2 limes).
- 1 Red chili pepper (remove the seeds).
- 30 gr Tamarind paste or tamarind sauce.
- 20 ml Molasses (substitute – brown sugar).
- 1 tablespoon Brown sugar (if you are already using brown sugar instead of molasses, you don’t need to add this).
- 3 tablespoon Water.
- Shichimi tōgarashi (substitue – powder).
Instructions
- Cut all the fruit and vegetables into cubes and store them in the refrigerator.
- Soak the tofu chunks with a little bit of soy sauce and add some corn starch; place the tofu chunks over an oven tray with a piece of parchment paper and bake them for 20 minutes at 200 celcius degrees, it is not necessary to add oil.
- Chop the peanuts.
- Let’s start making the sauce: Use a food grinder or blender. Pour the Calamansi limes juice (without the seeds), fresh chili pepper, molasses, tamarind, water, and sugar. Blend all the ingredients well until you get a smooth paste. Check the spiciness and add Shichimi tōgarashi to taste. Blend again.
- Mix the salad with the sauce: Add the sauce to the fruit and the tofu chunks and add half of the chopped peanuts. Mix well with a spoon to incorporate the sauce. Serve the salad immediately, adding the rest of the peanuts and some sesame seeds on top of it.