Layers of tofu and vegetable dumpling filling between won tons with a sweet and salty flavor.
When I saw the viral dumpling lasagna, and knew I had a pack of won ton wrappers that I needed to use in my refrigerator, obviously I had to give this viral recipe a try. A vegan try, of course. I knew I could use tofu, but since the recipe calls for raw pork, layered in, I went back and forth on the best way to go about this. Do I look for faux pork/sausage like Impossible or Beyond or just commit to the tofu? Well, tofu it was.
The main ingredients I used were won ton wrappers, a block of super firm tofu, green cabbage, carrots, mushrooms, green onion, sauces and spices.
Loosely following a non-vegan recipe, I decided to cook everything all together, minus the wonton wrappers. So, to a frying pan, I added a small bit of oil, the sliced green cabbage, diced mushrooms, and shredded carrots. I cooked those down until they were sautéed and soft, I then added in the block of tofu. It mixes better if you break it into small bits, sort of in like a ground meat style. After I stirred that for a minute or so, I added the soy sauce, vegan fish sauce, maple syrup, rice vinegar, minced ginger, garlic powder, and a bit of water.
This cooked with occasional stirring until everything was nicely combined and browned. I’m not a fan of mushy tofu, so my plan from the get go was to get it relatively browned. You could probably do the layers with the tofu still a bit soft, but it’s personal preference.
Next, I started the layers. I sprayed a small bit of oil on the bottom of by 9″x13″ baking dish. I started with the layer of won ton wrappers, then did a layer of the tofu mixture. It most likely will not fit perfectly, but I just layered each time until mostly the layer below was covered. Each layer of won tons was about 12. The very last layer were my final won ton wrappers.
I took about a cup of water and poured it slowly over the top of all the layers. Because I cooked everything down, I didn’t want the wonton layers to get crunchy. Because the amount of water might depend on the liquid level of your filling, start with just small pours until the top layers are wet. You might not need a whole cup of water.
I covered the dish with tinfoil and stuck it in the oven at 350F for about 40-50 minutes. I checked it after 40 minutes, but it still looked like it needed a little more time. Depending on your oven, you might not need to leave it in as long. The top doesn’t brown, but the won tons start to get wrinkled.
After it was done in the oven, I took it out and sprinkled chopped green onion and some drizzles of chili crisp oil on top. Both of those are optional, but they really do help! Also, my husband is a HUGE chili crisp fan, so he is always supportive of me putting it on anything I make.
Let it cool, cut into squares, and enjoy! It was also great with a little extra soy sauce. But you can definitely eat it with your favorite dumpling sauce of choice!
