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Nisha Vora, known for her YouTube channel Rainbow Plant Life, recently shared a video in which she explains how to make a delicious, vegan, crispy tofu sandwich that her boyfriend is obsessed with. She serves up not just one, but two variations of the same base sandwich, and both are packed with flavor, texture, and plant-based brilliance.
Vora, a Harvard grad and former corporate lawyer turned full-time vegan content creator, has built a reputation for her spectacular, foolproof recipes and approachable cooking style. This sandwich showcases exactly that: crispy tofu, thoughtfully chosen toppings, and two very different but equally tempting flavor profiles. And yes, her boyfriend Max joins at the end to declare his winner.
Read more: Jamie Oliver Highlights ‘Important Connection’ Between Tofu And Longevity
The secret to that golden crunch
The foundation of both sandwiches is the same: ultra-crispy tofu slices that mimic the savory bite of fried halloumi. Vora uses extra-firm tofu, cuts it into half-inch slabs, and presses it to prevent breakage during cooking.
To coat the tofu, she adds it to a Ziploc bag with a dry batter of cornstarch, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, and pepper. “Just flip it upside down several times,” she says, showing how evenly the tofu gets coated without a mess.
Instead of a nonstick skillet, Vora cooks the tofu in a carbon steel pan. “It kind of looks like fried halloumi,” she says, flipping a golden slice. She rests each piece on a wire rack between batches to maintain that crisp texture. The result is beautifully browned slabs with no sticking and no oil-soaked sogginess in sight.
Sandwich #1: Pesto slaw with heirloom tomatoes
The first variation is a summer-ready sandwich with a punchy homemade pistachio pesto and a crunchy cabbage slaw.
To make the pesto, Vora swaps classic pine nuts for roasted pistachios and uses nutritional yeast in place of Parmesan. She also adds lemon juice and salt. “That is so good, oh wow,” she says after tasting the finished sauce. “Pistachio pesto, just as good as the classic. And we didn’t have to toast the pine nuts in a frying pan.”
To balance the richness, she whips up a vinaigrette-style slaw with red cabbage, which she slices really thinly, shredded carrot, and jalapeño. No heavy mayo here – just lemon juice, vinegar, mustard, and olive oil.
Assembling the sandwich involves a toasted ciabatta roll layered with pesto, lettuce, crispy tofu, heirloom tomato slices, avocado, and slaw. Optional basil leaves round it out. It’s a tower of texture and freshness.
Sandwich #2: Gochujang mayo for a weeknight win
The second version takes a faster route with a three-ingredient spread made of vegan mayo, gochujang, and lime juice. “It’s salty, it’s spicy, it’s tangy, it’s umami, it’s sweet,” Vora says. “And it goes so far in adding so much flavor.”
The toppings stay minimal for ease: avocado, cucumber slabs, carrot ribbons, and a few cilantro leaves. It’s ideal for a quick weeknight meal once the tofu is prepped. “This one looks easier to eat,” she jokes before promptly getting gochujang all over her face.
Pesto is the besto
So, which one wins?
Max joins Vora at the end of the video to weigh in. While he praises both, he admits that although he’d likely make the gochujang version himself for ease, “The one that I like more is the pesto.”
Vora grins. “The pesto is the besto.”
Both sandwiches are linked in the video description, and viewers are encouraged to try them both. Whether you go bold with gochujang or fresh with pesto, you’re in for a sandwich that satisfies – even the Max in your life.
Watch both version of the sandwich come to life on Nisha Vora’s YouTube channel.
Read more: ‘I Tried Every Way To Make Crispy Tofu – This Is The Best One’
