Another heatwave, which means I break out my panini press—-because standing over a stove is not my idea of fun. Warm days are made for grilled corn, and in small space living my favorite hack is to grill on a panini press. You just load it up and let it do it’s thing. Made a ‘Tofu-na’ Al pastor style and Elote corn, a few quick short cuts to a flavorful meal.
Al Pastor Quick seasoning mix:
1 container of tofu, sliced medium thick
1 tablespoon garlic powder
1 tablespoon dried oregano
1 tablespoon cumin
salt, to taste
black pepper, to taste
About 1/2 tablespoon of ancho chili powder, if you have fresh anchos that you can blend up even better, but this was a quick version
Squeeze of lemon juice
1/3 cup pineapple juice (you can sub in orange juice)
A few tablespoons of oil, to make the mix into a paste
Elote ingredients:
4 ears of corn
2/3 cup Mexican creama or sour cream
2/3 cup mayo
1/4 cup Cotija cheese
3/4 teaspoon Tajin (you can sub in a bit of ancho powder and lime juice), more depending on how much you’re making
Cilantro
Lime juice
Combine first 9 ingredients, then marinate your tofu slices for a few minutes, ideally 30 minutes. Throw on your press or griddle. You can also do this in a pan, you just won’t have any charred bits.
You can grill the corn on a press or cast iron pan, just rotate every few minutes. Once corn is charred to your liking, shell the corn and mix with equal parts sour cream or crema, mayonnaise, about 1/4 cup cotija cheese, cilantro, and a squeeze of lemon juice.
Let me know if you try it.
