Talk to me about tofu

[notsosmoothie]

Tips, recipes and advice, please –I really want to try it as I need to up my protein intake and would rather not go too heavy on meat and fish.

But I've only tried it a few times before and it always came out wet and tasteless.

I KNOW there are ways to do it well... anyone here a pro and willing to share their advice?

I drain and press the tofu by wrapping it in a tea towel and putting a heavy pan on top, then I cut it into cubes and toss it in some cornflour mixed with garlic powder, salt and Chinese five spice. Then I fry it and you get a crispy texture on the outside.

Ah great, so you don't have to soak it in anything to get some flavour in?

I was imagining having to sit it in marinades etc for ages...

Crispy sounds great!

Same recipe as above but you can also then put the crispy cubes with a dipping sauce like satay or in a stir fry sauce (chilli, garlic, soy, sesame etc)

Or in a Korean stew flavoured with gochugang

Yes, you need to press the water out otherwise it just falls apart when you cook it. I have a tofu press but I used to put it on a chopping board under a plate and pile of books.

The oil also needs to be really hot before frying it. I sometimes coat in cornflour but not always, and I tend to make the sauce separately and add the fried tofu at the end so that it stays crispy.

If you have an oriental shop nearby tofu puffs are nice - either fried or added to soup or curry.

I think my favourite tofu recipe is crispy chilli tofu.

Press water out as much as you can - kitchen towels and something heavy on top.

You can make it more chicken-y in texture by freezing it first!

Holland and Barrett do an amazing tin of Tofu, you open the tin and there's a sort of "coil" of Tofu that you uncoil and slice up and it's in the most delicious marinade.
Serve it with anything.

It's great for absorbing flavour.
I use silken tofu to make a creamy mushroom sauce for pasta or for a mushroom stroganoff type thing. Just soak some dried mushrooms in hot water for 30 mins and blitz the liquid with a few of the dried mushrooms with the silken tofu.

Slice v thin and dry in dark soya sauce till crispy , have in sandwich with avocado and tomato ..... mmmm

Buy the marinated cauldron stuff.

*fry

I get the lovely people at the Chinese take away to do mine for me. I've tried so many times. I don't think I'm brave enough to turn my heat up full blast. They have flames around their woks.

ottolenghi.co.uk/recipes/black-pepper-tofu-a

www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2017/oct/21/chilli-tofu-recipe-vegan-meera-sodha

Also - smoked tofu is delicious... especially the Taifan one with almonds & sesame

www.psychologies.co.uk/pan-dressed-noodles-crunchy-cabbage-and-crispy-tofu

I use the brand tofoo. It’s firm and not watery. No need to press to get the water out. It holds its shape perfectly.

We press until dry and then fry in a very little oil until golden. Less oil is better. And then chuck in stir fries / curries etc. But you need to make sure everything else gives flavour and the tofu gives texture. Done like this you should have a crispy outside and soft fluffy inside.

If you do want to marinade tofu, make sure there is no oil in your marinade. Oil seals the surface and prevents the flavours going into the tofu, so use water/soy sauce etc as the marinating liquid.

It absorbs flavour super quick, 20-30mins will do. You can also just chuck some pressed tofu in at the end of a stir fry to pick up the flavour. You have to be quite delicate with it, but a minutes cooking will stop it tasting of nothing.

I regularly buy Cauldron tofu, just drain it, press a bit to get rid of liquid, then cube and marinade in Teriyaki marinade. My younger son is pretty much a meat eater, but he requests teriyaki tofu every week. I chop a carrot and sweet pepper, fry them for about 5 minutes, add cubed tofu, sprinkle some sesame seeds, pour half a jar of Teriyaki sauce (Lee Kum Kee, though I use other brands as well), cook for a few more minutes and serve with plain basmati rice. My son always asks for seconds.

I would just say it’s a good idea to add it to your diet but only once a week. It is very processed. It is made from soya beans so to get from the bean to a white pressed block, is a very highly processed product. It’s not something to have everyday.
Dahl and curries from lentils and pulses are one of the best and easily digestible forms of vegetable proteins.

@cockneygirl

I would just say it’s a good idea to add it to your diet but only once a week. It is very processed. It is made from soya beans so to get from the bean to a white pressed block, is a very highly processed product. It’s not something to have everyday. Dahl and curries from lentils and pulses are one of the best and easily digestible forms of vegetable proteins.

Agree. Paneer as well is cooked almost exactly like tofu and has a similar texture.

I buy extra firm tofu as I cba pressing it. Cube, dry, cornflour with whatever spices you like, then fry. Drizzle sauce on after. Also great fried with a bit of miso.

I buy firm/extra firm, either fry in a bit of oil till crispy and add to other stuff or just chuck in a stir fry. Goes well with soy sauce and miso flavours.

I know lots of vegans have scrambled tofu in place of egg, with mushrooms etc. Not tried it myself as I love eggs too much!

yes to extra firm / pressed tofu for frying, the silken tofu is good for other dishes like scrambled tofu or soups / stews.

It is delicious uncooked (hiyayakko tofu) Japan-style with spring onion, ginger or sesame and soy dressings

www.justonecookbook.com/japanese-tofu-cold-tofu-hiyayakko/

I love tofu.

I crumb mine like schnitzels and pan fry. We do that very often.

Also you can get some vacuum packed hard flavoured tofu- smoked, or pesto which you can slice up and use in sandwiches.

Bake it! Chop it into chunks, season with whatever, I use bouillon, then stick on a tray in a low temp oven for a while till it dries out and goes chewy. Or the cauldron marinated stuff is good.

I had so much boring tofu years ago when it always seemed bland unless you marinaded it for hours. So much more choice now with some really nice flavours. I stick to cauldron or taifun.