Have you ever visited a country and instantly fell in love" Yeah, that didn?t happen for me in Vietnam. We were scammed out of nearly our entire trip budget on a scooter tour of Ho Chi Minh City. Our ?beach bungalow? was so gross we immediately checked out and paid triple for nicer accommodations. The vegan food was mediocre at best. But, amidst the chaos of navigating a foreign country, I had some incredible experiences and can now say Vietnam is one of my favorite places. I?ve been there twice!While the vegan food in Vietnam was pretty subpar in my opinion, I?ve had some excellent Vietnamese food here in Los Angeles. This Banh Mi Bowl with Lemongrass Tofu smashes two of my favorite Vietnamese dishes into one and I could eat it every day. First, you?ve got your banh mi. It?s a sandwich served on a chewy, flaky baguette that?s split lengthwise, spread with pâté and mayonnaise, and stuffed with meat, pickled vegetables, cucumber, cilantro, and jalapeño. I used to live next to a Vietnamese bakery in Echo Park that makes a vegan banh mi with seitan and it’s fabulous. My mouth is watering just thinking about it.A vermicelli dish at another one of my favorite Vietnamese restaurants inspired the ?bowl? part of this recipe. Vermicelli noodles are
super thin rice noodles commonly used in Asian cooking. They?re light and not
too filling and stand in for the bread in this Banh Mi Bowl with Lemongrass
Tofu. Lemongrass is a plant in the grass family that is native to the ...