P.F. Chang's Ma Po Tofu?

[voluptuous (NB: banned)]

Those of you who have had P.F. Chang's Ma Po Tofu - do you know how they get it so crispy on the outside and so silky soft on the inside? I've wasted at least five blocks of tofu trying to duplicate it at home and can't get it to be crispy....

:confused:

[bryzee86]

i'd suggest smixing some ground flax with water, dipping the tofu in that eggy mixture, then dip in cornflour before frying until crispy

[voluptuous (NB: banned)]

Thanks, man! But they do it without corn meal! It's just straight up tofu! It's always so busy when I go I don't get to ask a manager (I don't think they'd tell me anyway!) But I'll try your suggestion for a New Orleans style po' boy I have in mind!

[Poison Ivy]

Not corn meal, cornflour (or cornstarch in the US):)

[voluptuous (NB: banned)]

OK - that makes way more sense! I knew I didn't taste (or feel) corn meal on it! You guys across the pond can confuse me sometimes...what with your corn flour, grams and whatnot (god - where's my conversion calculator??)!! :p

And I just LOVE how you guys describe food as "lovely" when it's good! I'm addicted to BBC America. "How Clean is Your House" is my FAVORITE!! And You Are What You Eat isn't bad, either...

[cobweb]

he-he, i love those 2 programmes, vv! :)

[Astrid]

I love them too! :D

[cobweb]

astrid it's a pity we can't spend an evening chilling out together watching those programmes and drinking cocoa from your lovely moomin cups!. I'm not too far from Norway!.

[Astrid]

Oh, yes, that would've been lovely. :)

[Animosity]

I belive it's coated with cornstarch, What's it binded with though? Egg?

[bryzee86]

Like I said above, I use flax eggs, but you could wet it with anything really. just something gloopy sticks better.

[Mahk]

They have (almost) full ingredient disclosure at their web site (http://www.pfchangs.com/cuisine/menu_main.aspx) if you select a dish and click "show info" [which rocks!:cool:]

Ingredients:
Tofu, broccoli, Sichuan peppercorn powder, cornstarch, garlic, sesame oil, green onion, chili paste, spicy Vegetarian Mushroom Oyster Sauce (contains no animal product)*

Unless one gets wiggy about possible bone char filtration of sugar ( I don't) I think most of their vegetarian dishes are also vegan. Peta called them one of the best veg*n restaurants out there and they even use different woks for the veg food.

I think the cornstarch/flour sticks just because of the tofu's own moisture. They use silken style which is pretty goopy to begin with.

[Roxy]

Yah - I was going to suggest using the Silken tofu. Mmmmm - I wonder if there is a PF Chang's in San Francisco?

[Mahk]

Yah - I was going to suggest using the Silken tofu. Mmmmm - I wonder if there is a PF Chang's in San Francisco?


Pretty close. (http://maps.google.com/maps?sourceid=navclient&ie=UTF-8&rlz=1T4GGIH_enUS233US233&um=1&q=p.f.+chang&near=San+Francisco,+CA&fb=1&sa=X&oi=local_group&resnum=1&ct=image)

You going there on holiday Roxy? (or would you say "on vacation") I highly recommend getting tickets in advance for the "Tactile Dome" (http://www.exploratorium.edu/visit/tactile_dome/index.html) at the Exploratorium museum (http://www.exploratorium.edu/). One of the coolest things I have ever experienced. There was a 6 month waiting list when I went several decades ago as a child but it might not be so bad now. It was a life long memorable event for me.

[PaintedXSkyline]

ooo. yum. their food looks amazing.
there's a restaurant pretty close to my house.
i should go there sometime....

[Roxy]

Oooo thanks Mahk.


Discover the unseen world of the Tactile Dome—an interactive excursion through total darkness, where your sense of touch becomes your only guide!

I think that would scare the shit outta me!! :D

[cedarblue]

all you need to do is have a little oil on a high heat, fry the cubes or slices till lightly brown and crispy on the outside and let it sit for a while. crispy on outside, soft on inside.

[Mahk]

+1. That makes sense to me too since they don't seem to have any coating or batter; just tofu with a crispy exterior. I think the cornstarch/flour in the recipe is just as a thickener for the sauce.

There is a different restaurant I go to that has an odd sort of (perhaps) deep fried tofu cubes that are spongy and seem like they'd bounce if you were to drop them to the floor. Anyone have any idea how to do that?

[bryzee86]

freeze it ad thaw it first?

[Cherry]

Yeh, it definitely goes spongy when you freeze it. I'm not so keen on the spongy effect :)

About the crispy on the outside and silky soft in the middle thing, my recommendation would be to make sure the tofu is dry on the outside first (either kitchen paper or cornflour) and use REALLY HOT OIL!!

[Mahk]

OK I just made it 2 days in a row, one day with and one day without cornstarch/flour. Cornstarch/flour dusting prior to deep frying is key. I used normal black pepper instead of sichuan and this brand of chili sauce:
http://www.complex.com/assets/images/products/hotsauce/sriracha.jpg
Most supermarkets have this in the ethnic food section, at least where I live.

I also used cornstarch/flour to thicken the sauce. It was quite yummy.

[cedarblue]

i'll try it properly dried and then dusted with flour, thanks cherry and mahk!

[fondducoeur]

Mmmmm....I just ate my leftover ma po tofu from dinner at pf changs last night. It was great reheated and I also used sriracha sauce on mine like Mahk cooked with. I love the stuff. Has anyone had the vegetarian lettuce wraps? They are excellent also.

[LMRamsey89]

I just cant wait to make my own vegan lettuce wraps like they serve there. Simply AMAZING! And I think It'd be pretty easy..ooohh im excited :)

[sunrisesunset]

mmm now i'm craving p.f. changs.