Tofu inspiration

[Dilbertian]

Dh bought some tofu the other day. "I thought you might be able to do something interesting with it." OK - challenge accepted!

So, any suggestions? Not stir-fry, please. I do not enjoy making stir-fries and am never satisfied with the results.

[MrsPnut]

It isn't a stir fry really but I would make Salt and Pepper tofu with it.

www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/salt-pepper-tofu

[everythingstaken123]

I love scrambled tofu with harissa. Fry an onion, add tofu and harissa and mash. Done.

[DonPablo]

We coat ours in cripsy fried chicken coating and fry it. Chicken and chips! We have creamed corn and Southern style gravy with it.

[everythingstaken123]

That sounds amazing!

[ByGrabtharsHammerWhatASavings]

You want to bake it. Cut it into cubes, cover it with seasoned oil (I like sesame oil with smoked paprika, salt and pepper, or curry spices I'd you're making a curry) then you bake it in the oven until its crisp on the outside and soft on the inside (give it 10 mins on 180 then mix it up to stop it sticking and cook for 5 more mins). It's so tasty and you can add it to anything - curry's, Mexican dishes like fahitas/enchiladas, serve with rice and vegetables "budda bowl" style, or eat on its own with a dipping sauce. You can also blend or mash it up with fried onions, garlic, and mushroom, add seasonings and flour and make it into burger patties. Fry or bake and eat as normal in a bun. Or make tofu scramble - mash it with a fork until it resembles scrambled egg, add salt, pepper, a bit of turmeric for colour, and black salt (probably not too easy to get this right now as it's usually in health food stores) then pan fry and eat on toast. I love tofu.

[NannyR]

I do a really nice dish with tofu, aubergine, red peppers and spring onion in black bean sauce, like a stir fry but not stir fried as I think the veg has a nicer taste and texture roasted.
I press the tofu well to get as much moisture out as possible then cut it into small cubes and toss in a mixture of cornflour, five spice powder, garlic powder and some salt, then fry it over a medium heat till it's nice and crispy. Meanwhile I chop the aubergine, pepper and spring onions and toss them in a bit of oil then roast in a hot oven. When the veg and tofu are cooked I mix them together with some black bean paste (I get this from the Chinese supermarket as I find other brands like sharwoods are too sweet), soy sauce and sesame oil and serve it with rice.

[Ricekrispie22]

Jamie Oliver’s tofu curry is delicious.

[magimedi]

TOFU SATAY

500g tofu
1/2 tablespoons cornflour.


For the sauce:

3 tbsp crunchy peanut butter - try to use a good one, with no added sugar.
1 tbsp chilli bean paste - I use Lee Kum Kee Chilli Bean sauce - widely available. (I got mine in Waitrose, ).
1 or 2 cloves finely grated/minced garlic
2 tsp peanut oil
2tbsp cider vinegar
2tbsp soy sauce
freshly ground pepper
2tbsp sugar syrup - dissolve 2 tsp sugar in 2 tbsp hot water.

Mix all these up - and add extra of any according to taste. You may want to add more warm water to thin it out. Taste as you go - you may want to add less chilli, specially if it's a new jar!

For the tofu - you want firm tofu - freeze it. Get it out the night before you want to use it. Open the tofu over the sink - squeeze out as much liquid as possible with your hands. On a chopping board squeeze out more water using kitchen towel as a blotter.

Cut the tofu into bite sized pieces. Gently mix these with 1 or 2 tbsp corn flour till all the pieces are coated.

In a frying pan, heat some oil ( not olive, peanut or sunflower best as they are tasteless)- fry the tofu until most sides are golden and crisp, put into a bowl and cover with about a third of the sauce (reserve some of the sauce for serving). Let it sit for at least 1 hour.

Then put tofu and sauce into a frying pan - cook for 5-10 mins until crispy - serve!

The sauce quantities are for 500g of tofu.


This is lovely served with some rice & some sort of green shredded stir fry veg.

[lastqueenofscotland]

Cauldron on their website have a great recipe for Pengang Tofu

I also make a jerk tofu with rice and peas but it’s very much a made up as I go a long each time

Mapo tofu is also lovely but really you need silken tofu rather than that firmer stuff

[theneverendinglaundry]

Whatever you make, be sure to press the tofu for at least 30 mins. It makes it so much nicer!

Special Fried Rice from the Bosh! book is ace.

www.ruthjaneyoga.com/eat-plants-recipes/2018/12/29/bosh-special-fried-rice

[Zhx3]

This would be my favourite, OP. It's a brilliant blog, by the way.

Salt and Pepper Tofu

[Dilbertian]

Spoilt for choice!

Are there also sweet dishes with tofu?

[PurpleDaisies]

Baked in lemon and herbs is my favourite.
The vegan “feta” from here.

www.dailyvegan.recipes/2019/02/21/borek-with-spinach-and-feta-stuffing/

[perhapstomorrow]

I make thai tofu cakes. Think of a fishcake but with tofu instead. I mash up the tofu, add an egg, thai red curry paste, soy sauce, veggie fish sauce, about 10 green beans finely sliced, finely sliced lime leaves and enough self raising to make a thick batter. You then shallow fry for a few mins each side. Served with a peanut and cucumber dipping sauce they are delicious.

[Titsywoo]

Cut tofu into 1cm slices, coat in cornflour and fry in oil. Serve with teriyaki sauce. Delish!

[mysteryfairy]

Ottolenghi black pepper tofu is lovely

Very easy option is to use it in a Thai curry with veg (thinly sliced pepper, onion, mushroom, carrot, whatever you have), can of coconut milk and a paste pot ...no recipe required

[mysteryfairy]

Btw open it, sandwich between kitchen roll and put a few recipe books on top for a few hours to get it dry before use

[OhioOhioOhio]

They sound great.

[Dilbertian]

I thought baked or scrambled sounded easy and tasty. Unfortunately my dc disagreed with the second part of that statement.

So I've been adding cubes of the stuff to leftovers without bothering about any prep pressing or frying it.

I added it to some mushrooms stewed with soured cream and tarragon, and let it sit overnight. Soooo good!

I added it to a pineapple and sweet potato satay. Perfect - exactly what the dish needed.

I'm a convert, even if my dc aren't

[Dilbertian]

And it's also really good tossed with salsa and leftover greens.

[LordEmsworth]

The black pepper Ottolenghi recipe above is the 100% best thing to do with tofu.

Chilli tofu is also lush

If you get silken tofu, rather than the firm kind, you can make desserts like these chocolate pots which are delicious.

[Deathraystare]

John Torode apparently really likes Tofu. He has recently been to Japan and Korea (well, at least the programmes have recently aired) so may be some ideas there. He was on the food channel (41).

[TKAAHUARTG]

I love tofu! I just cube it in salads or fry until crunchy and eat with Sriracha. I also make bacon with it for my veggie daughter. It is just sliced really thinly and marinaded with Chili, tomato, liquid smoke, herbs and nooch, then fried until crispy. It is very nice.