This Greek-inspired vegan ‘halloumi’ salad recipe is rich in energy-boosting vitamin B12

From stylist.co.uk

If you’re trying to cut down on dairy and miss your regular hit of halloumi, try this healthy, delicious alternative from the Bosh! guys

If there’s one ingredient that really says ‘summer’, it’s halloumi. It’s deliciously salty, squeaky and reminiscent of holidays spent in the sun… even if you’re eating it on a rainy autumn evening. 

While vegan cheeses have massively improved in recent years (even Waitrose now stocks smoked and blue cashew cheeze from La Fauxmagerie), plant-based halloumi still tends to be a bit questionable. This recipe, however, is a brilliant, healthy, vegan alternative to the Cypriot cheese. 

It’s made with protein-rich tofu and is coated in nooch, aka nutritional yeast. Nooch has a nutty, cheesy flavour (kind of like parmesan) and tends to be rich in vitamin B12, a nutrient many plant-based eaters tend to be low in. It’s a crucial vitamin for mental and physical health, and symptoms of B12 deficiency can include tiredness, mouth ulcers, anxiety, depression and memory difficulties. 

The salad alone boasts seven different plants, helping you well on your way to your 30-plants-a-week goal. Good gut health, here we come.

Ingredients

Serves 4

For the halloumi

1 x 325g block firm tofu

3 lemons

3 tbsp olive oil

3 tbsp nooch (nutritional yeast)

2 tsp dried mint

½ tsp garlic powder

salt

For the salad

2 red onions

Drizzle of olive oil

2 vegetable stock pots

600ml boiling water

2 red peppers

250g cherry tomatoes

200g pearl barley

Handful of fresh mint leaves

1 bag mixed leaves

1 lemon

Sea salt

Image: Lizzie Mayson

Method

First, prepare the halloumi

1. Press the tofu to drain off any liquid.

2. Cut the lemon in half and squeeze the juice into a container, catching any pips in your free hand.

3. Add the olive oil, nooch, dried mint, garlic powder and a pinch of salt and stir to form a smoothe paste.

4. Cut the tofu into 8 strips. 

5. Put the tofu strips in the container and coat in the marinade. Leave to marinate in the fridge for at least 2 hours. 

6. Preheat your oven to 180°C after 2 hours’ marinating time.

7. Then, remove the halloumi from the marinade and bake on a lined baking sheet for 25 minutes.

Then, sort the salad

8. While the halloumi is baking, make the salad. 

9. Peel the red onions and slice thickly.

10. Place a large saucepan over a medium heat and add a drizzle of olive oil.

11. Once warm, add the onion slices and a pinch of salt. Mix well and cook for 10 minutes until the onion softens. 

12. Mix the veg stock with the boiling water in a heatproof jug.

13. Trim, halve and core the red peppers, cut into small cubes and halve the tomatoes. 

14. Add the peppers to the onions and cook for another 5 minutes before adding the pearl barley and hot veg stock.

15. Cook the pearl barley according to the packet instructions, until the barley has absorbed all the water and becomes soft. 

Now, build the dish

16. Warm a griddle pan over a medium-high heat and lay the baked tofu strips on the pain and sear for 2 minutes on each side to create those classic dark griddle lines.

17. Transfer the halloumi to a plate and season with salt. 

18. Lastly, remove the pearl barley from the heat, slice the mint leaves and mix through the barley along with the mixed leaves and tomatoes. 

19. Half the lemon and squeeze both halves. 

20. Spoon the salad onto a large serving plate and then top with the halloumi slices. 

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Recipe from Bosh! Meat by Henry Firth & Ian Theasby (HarperCollins, £20.90), out now. Images: Lizzie Mayson

https://www.stylist.co.uk/fitness-health/food/greek-inspired-vegan-halloumi-salad/809596