Today I grilled an avocado for the first time! Its natural shape is perfect for a little stuffing, so I went to work on charring a few more things for that component. Some marinated tofu, pungent broccoli and a sweet lemon and mildly curry-ish sauce for smothering. The curry part was an accident too, the little bag of it selected when I intended to reach for ground cumin. No need to cope with the error because it was great! Bright, warming, and lightly sweet. I found the whole dish a little strong/rich in terms of mouthfeel, so the sauce is in there to help along with some diced apricots that weren’t quite ripe. Just a touch of pucker to balance things.
I love the grilled but still tender texture of the tofu here. Folks that prefer a bit more crunch to this popular plant-based protein may want to try my crispy tofu in the air fryer.
I always feel compelled to dream up some kind of wholesome, feel-good grilled main for you this time of year. I know full well that the inclination is just rooted in what I want to eat since we’re creeping up on summer, ever so slowly. Hope you enjoy this one!
Charred Broccoli & Tofu-Stuffed Avocados with Lemon Curry Sauce
Ingredients
Charred Broccoli, Tofu & Avocados
- ¼ cup olive oil, plus extra
- 1 tbsp dijon or grainy mustard
- 1 clove garlic, peeled and thinly sliced
- 2 tbsp chopped chives + blossoms if you’ve got ’em
- big pinch chili flakes
- 5-6 sprigs of thyme, leaves chopped
- 2 tbsp lemon juice + zest
- sea salt and ground black pepper, to taste
- ground cumin to taste
- 1 package of extra firm tofu, cut into ½ inch slices
- 2 stalks of broccoli, stems removed
- 3 firm but ripe avocados
- 1-2 barely ripe apricots
Sweet Lemon Curry-Spiced Sauce
- 2 tbsp lemon juice
- 1 strip of lemon zest
- 1/2 tbsp dijon OR grainy mustard
- 1-2 tbsp maple syrup OR agave nectar
- 1/4 cup diced red onion
- fat pinch of mild curry powder
- small pinch of ground cumin
- splash of water (use more or less depending on desired consistency)
- sea salt and ground black pepper, to taste
- 1/2 tsp tamari soy sauce
- 3 tbsp-1/4 cup olive oil
Equipment
- Grill
Notes
- Some cooked grain in this mix would be yummy if you’ve got some around.
- Swapping tempeh for tofu could be delicious.
Instructions
- In a small bowl, whisk together the olive oil, mustard, garlic, chives, chili flakes, thyme, lemon juice, lemon zest, salt, pepper and cumin. Set aside.
- Lay the tofu slices in a large dish and cut the broccoli into florets. Add the broccoli to the dish with the tofu slices. Pour the marinade mix over the tofu and broccoli. Cover and refrigerate, allowing to marinate for at least 1/2 and hour.
- While the tofu and broccoli is marinating, make the sweet lemon curry sauce. Combine the lemon juice, lemon zest, mustard, maple syrup, red onion, curry powder, cumin powder, water, salt, pepper, tamari, and oil in a blender and blend on high until you have a completely smooth mixture. Check the sauce for seasoning and place in the fridge while you grill
- Preheat your grill to high. Cut the avocados in half, and remove all pits. brush the exposed surfaces with oil and season with salt + pepper. Set aside.
- Start laying the tofu and broccoli on the grill. Cook until char marks appear on all surfaces, carefully flipping pieces of tofu and broccoli over here and there for even cooking. Remove all tofu and broccoli once it’s sufficiently cooked/charred. Place avocado halves on the grill and cook until char marks appear. Remove and place on a serving platter.
- Chop up the tofu and broccoli into small pieces and toss together in a medium bowl. Dice up the apricots and add to the bowl as well. Toss with some more chopped chives or chive flowers if you want and spoon into the grilled avocado halves. Finish with drizzles of the sweet lemon curry sauce.
Nice dish, the sauce is important to cut through the creamy flavour of the avocado.
Actually, I added tahini to the curry sauce and I left out the oil, maple syrup, onion and mustard, so almost a different recipe, but totally delicious.
Amazing! I left out the tofu and added tahini to the curry sauce. I wonder if peanut butter in the curry sauce would be delish too.
This recipe is simply amazing. The lemon curry sauce alone is perfection. I didn’t know something so simple could have so many layers of flavors! This is on constant rotation in my home. Thank you!
One important thing to say is: when you going to bake an avocado, must be real quickly, otherwise they become terribly bitter.
I made this for dinner tonight, and it was incredibly delicious, and so creative!!!
But I think there’s a direction/ingredient error. Is there supposed to be avocado in the lemon curry sauce? I had assumed that was the case, looking at the photos, and noting that it lists the avocados twice in the ingredient list, but the directions don’t say to add avocado to the sauce. I added it anyway, and it was yummy …
Thanks for an amazing site – I discovered it about two weeks ago, and I’ve already made five of your recipes!
Hi Julia, I triple checked the recipe, and I’m pretty certain I only specified avocados once in the ingredients list. Although on a first pass, I saw “apricots” and mistook that for the avocados, so maybe that was it? Regardless, the lemon curry sauce doesn’t require avocado blended in it, but I can imagine that would be delicious. Glad you enjoyed it!
-L
These pictures are so gorgeous! Making food into art (and delicious! definitely going to try the next time avocados go on sale) Thanks!
This was seriously good. Had to make a couple modifications as I had some treats from my CSA to use but the dressing and marinade I kept the same. The smokiness of the veg/tofu meeting the creaminess of the avocado was delicious. Thanks for an awesome recipe!
Holy moly! This recipe looks wonderful. Thanks for sharing – adding this to my BBQ bucket list!
This is the first of your recipes that I’ve made and I just had to comment to say it is so good! Particularly the sweet lemon curry sauce, YUM. A perfect dressing for other salads, too, if you’re like me and tired of the same old balsamic vinaigrette. I don’t have a grill, so I ended up roasting the marinated broccoli and tofu, and it came out great. I’ll definitely be trying more of your recipes!
Wow, this looks amazingly delicious.
This all looks scrumptious – may I ask you where you got your lovely tableware from? I’ve been searching for weeks for bowls and plates like that!
Hi Danny, I picked up the enamelware plates from a local antique shop.
-L
This meal is absolutely stunning, improvised or not. I hear you—I’ve been feeling like a recipe factory lately and took a much-needed weekend break from my phone and my computer and cooking. I want to hang that sliced tofu photo on my wall. :)
These look so delicious! I can’t wait to try it out. You have never steered me wrong, so I know it will be fabulous. And, your photography is always so stunning it makes me gasp out loud..at my desk. (I’m sure my coworkers think I’m nuts, but it’s worth it!)
Thanks for being a continued source of inspiration.
Thanks for this timely post. Love all of your images and recipes. Keep up the good work!
This loos SO GOOD! The photo of the seasoned tofu needs to be hung on the wall as a piece of framed art.
I love everything about this post. The sun is shining and I’m off to fire up the grill!
These photos are simply stunning – I am completely blown away.
You are a very talented lady, Laura.
‘but I’ve always been more interested in growth and how we get to there as a community, even if the “there” changes and moves along. How we work together and relate to pull ourselves out of a difficult spot or a challenge, I’m into that.’ Yes. Most my life I focused on end points and was always trying to arrive at some perfect place, or state. But it’s just all about the process, and one I figured that out, life became a much more beautiful place.
I appreciate your musings and thoughtfulness so much. And I never got to hug you goodbye! But that just means we have to see each other soon, right?xx
ps. grilled avocados? amazing.
This just looks SOOOOO gooood!!!!!! I’m in love with tofu and have recently started cooking a lot with this magic ingredient! I love the charred look on the broccoli and that curry sauce is like the best thing ever!!!!!!!
I thought doze purdy purple flowers were fireworks in the dark picture. Mad decent.
Laura: Hi Nicole!
Wow, I don’t think I’ve ever seen tofu looking so beautiful! It must have been difficult to remove it from the marinade.. beautiful blog and photos.
This looks so delicious and summer perfect! I can’t wait to try it. And beautiful photos, as usual!
Yum, this looks amazing! Thank you so much for your honest words, Laura. Sometimes I need to be remined that trying my hardest and learning along the way is the best accomplishment of all.
Wow. That photo of the tofu and garlic chives looks like a flower garden. Lovely (and I can’t wait to make this!)
Holy wow. This looks and sounds so phenomenal, Laura. If this isn’t super-pretty-health-fun-wow-tasty, I don’t know what is.
Also, it was so crazy awesome to meet you last week! You are every bit as chilled-out rad and fabulous that I imagined you to be.
Well deserved time away from this beautiful blog.
Your photos and recipe are deliciously amazing. A perfect meal for a summertime BBQ, enjoyed with friends.
Wow! Wherever you went for two weeks, can I go there?? Profound writing. Out of the box recipe. You go girl! Total awesomeness.
These photos are gorgeous, this recipe looks amazing, and I have those same flats! :) Therefore, this post is awesome.
This looks out of this world! I don’t even have words. Just WOW.
Grilled avocado? And if that’s not enough, filling that damn delicious looking grilled avocado? Girl, you’re a genius! Can’t wait to get into some summer grilling at our summer cottage. Will definitely make this recipe. Also, that second photo just blew my mind. Nature’s beauty which you’ve captured so perfectly.
Gorgeous post as usual and those charred avocados look super tasty!
This looks amahzing!! :)
Indeed, if your blog was a conveyer-belt of recipes and photos, it would be a bad thing. Spontaneity and people writing after they have lived something in the real world, it’s what it’s all about.
Thanks for your words and for a great recipe.
Your photos make me really hungry!!! :D I’ll try this recipe, my boyfriend ate grilled avocado some years ago in Spain and sometimes it asked to make it for him – I’ve never tried it yet!
Um, yes. Yum. What a great recipe to come back with.
Being a vegetarian, BBQs in the summer months have been lingering in the back of my mind – how will others cope with my dietary requirements?!
I might throw my own ‘veggie’ BBQ party. Show non-veggies that BBQs sans meat can be exciting and fun too.