What's your favorite way to prepare tofu?

[Gorilla]

there's a Chinese takeaway in Brighton that does salt and pepper tofu. it's fantastic but i have no idea how they get it like that either.

[RubyDuby]

i just cut a block of tofu in half, rinse, blot dry. brown in earth balance in a skillet. salt and pepper and coat each side in the 'butter' while frying.

meanwhile heat oven to broil. butter a hogie roll with earth balance (i used whole foods brand sesame seed hotdog roll. so good).

when tofu is almost done broil roll until top is half browned.

pour significant amount of 365 citrus chipotle bbq sauce onto one side of hot roll. top bbq with top to bottom tofu halves and other half of roll.

it would be good with veganaise and raw chopped onion too.

yum.

[bugaboo]

i just cut a block of tofu in half, rinse, blot dry. brown in earth balance in a skillet. salt and pepper and coat each side in the 'butter' while frying.

meanwhile heat oven to broil. butter a hogie roll with earth balance (i used whole foods brand sesame seed hotdog roll. so good).

when tofu is almost done broil roll until top is half browned.

pour significant amount of 365 citrus chipotle bbq sauce onto one side of hot roll. top bbq with top to bottom tofu halves and other half of roll.

it would be good with veganaise and raw chopped onion too.

yum.

wow! that sounds amazing rubyduby. i'm gonna try that.

here are my favorite ways of using tofu:

okay most recipes for scrambled tofu are bland and boring but this one is simply amazing.

http://www.oprah.com/foodhome/food/r...tofueggs.jhtml

don't worry if you don't have red peppers, salsa, or corn tortillas. It is amazing just by itself, but if you don't have the green onions I would suggest a heaping teaspoon of onion powder. YUM so good! Use a reduced-sodium soy sauce if you prefer less salty food.

Next recipe:

Faux egg salad (perfect for sandwiches or just plain with a fork)

1 package medium or firm tofu; drained
1/2 cup vegan mayonnaise
4 tablespoons chopped parsley (fresh or dried, doesn't matter)
1 or 2 chopped pickles or 1/4 cup relish
1-1/2 tablespoons prepared mustard (in other words, squeeze bottle kind)
1-2 stalks green onion (this recipe is just fine without it)
2 stalks celery
2 cloves garlic
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon turmeric

In a medium bowl, mash tofu with fingers or a fork. Add the remaining ingredients. Mix together well and chill in refrigerator.

Fucking Yummo!

I don't know how I got along without these recipes. And they are very versatile. You can make sandwiches out of them or just eat them plain. Awesome source of protein and nutrients.

[vava]

is it normal for the tofu to take a long time to become golden when you fry it - or did i just have the heat a bit too low. It seemed to take ages!

[foxytina_69]

well it depends on what form the tofu was in. was it strips of tofu, crumbled tofu, tofu cubes?

[RubyDuby]

is it normal for the tofu to take a long time to become golden when you fry it - or did i just have the heat a bit too low. It seemed to take ages!

It does take awhile. I usually put it on med-high heat with the lid off so the juices evaporate out of the tofu (otherwise you're just steaming it w the lid on and that makes it take even longer to brown). Just make sure to keep a spatula handy so all of your yummy browness doesnt stick to the pan

[foxytina_69]

i cook tofu the same way.

[crimson~noir]

The best tofu I've ever eaten was 'Salt and Pepper Tofu' from a Chinese near me. It's tofu tossed in salt, pepper and spices and then deep fried. I've never found a recipe that comes close to the way they do it at this restaurant though.

I used to love the salt and pepper bean curd form the place where I used to live. Every time I went near there I bought some its truley addictive, I am thinking of making this as my first own cooked tofu dish but like you said I doubt it will come any where close!

[crimson~noir]

Ok I have a question (I hope this is an ok place to ask).
I was using marinated tofu that is really nice the texture etc, so I bought plain to make my own but mine tasted 'beany' and was not nice at all? I was trying to bake it in the oven with soya sauce, garlic powder and seasme oil. The outside tasted really nice but the inside was nasty, any ideas on what I did wrong.

[RubyDuby]

maybe ur taste buds just arent ready for it yet? did u marinate it first? or just brush on the flavor and bake? personally, i prefer it with just oil, salt and pepper... but I'm used to it. I heard taste buds change every 3 yrs or so...

maybe u should start with a scramble so the chunks arent so big and theres more surface area for flavor?

[animaladvocate]

I love to slice it thinly into triangles, marinade it in soy sauce, water, crushed garlic and yeast flakes for a minimum of 2 hours and then roast it for around 30 minutes.Yum. yum, yum.Now why couldn't I have known to do that when I first went vegan, lol.Scrambled tofu gets my vote too when cooked with soy sauce, crushed garlic and a pinch of tumeric.Seriously tasty.Alternatively I love silken tofu in a vegan cheese sauce or in chocolate pudding.There is surely nothing more versatile!

[insubordination]

I always order salt and pepper tofu too. It sounds average but is usually glorious.

[angelamc]

Crimson Noir, did you press all the water out of the tofu? It must be pressed for quite a while, sometimes. Also, you might need to try a different consistency, like firm instead of extra-firm, or maybe firm-silken. You could also switch brands of tofu. I've had a couple of brand that I thought did not hold flavor very well.

[crimson~noir]

^^ I think that may be it, as I like the taste of it cooked by others. I also wonder if I cooked it for long enough. Thanks.

[HappyVegan]

I usually either scramble it or bake it. Sometimes when I bake it I marinate it in a mixture of braggs, liquid smoke, ginger and chili powder then bake it at 425 for 30-40 minutes (depending on how thick the slices are).

I recently tried a new way and now we're totally addicted to it. I slice it in about 1/4" slices, dip each one in Seeds of Change Sweet Dijon dressing, then roll them in a mixture of corn starch, nutritional yeast and salt. Then I just bake as usual. They're really good and crispy like they're fried but so much healthier!!

[PaintedXSkyline]

mmmm. sounds delicious. i might try that.

[elisiabattell]

Tofu sticks. Basically you marinate them for a few hours (extra firm tofu, and they should be the size of your finger, and the more you press the tofu the more taste is gets) and then you bread them, fry them, and eat them with plum sauce or whatever. :]

[RebeccaDye]

I love to:
Chop it into fingers, fry it in a bit of olive oil and add soya sauce and sesame seeds.

[Hemlock]

Chopped into cubes and covered liberally in yeast flakes

[fondducoeur]

I'm not sure if this is my favorite, but I just made a tofu salad out of The Everyday Vegan and it was delicious! It has the tofu crumbles and marinated in soy sauce, balsamic vinegar, and hot sauce, lightly fried, cooled and then mixed with vegannaise, dijon mustard, and vegetables. I used tomatoes, green onions, and cucumbers. Then I ate it in a whole wheat pita.
Yum....

[Roxy]

Mmmmm - actually, that sounds really nice!

[lizzo]

I've heard a lot of people say they don't like tofu raw but....
extra firm tofu, pat it dry, cut into 1 inch cubes, drizzle olive oil and soy sauce over it and sprinkle with green onions. Great snack!

[sandra]

That sounds good lizzo.............must try that!

[Pob]

I finally found an edible way to eat tofu. Whizz it up with parsley, onion granules, tahini, nutritional yeast, spinach, salt. Stuff it in canneloni, cover in tomato, veg, and italian herb sauce and bake in the oven for 40 minutes.

We fed that to 3 omnis, all of whom cleared their plates. We kept quiet about the tofu as one of em would have instantly hated it

[Shrapnel]

If I have the time, I fry up tofu breaded. Otherwise, if I'm in a hurry, then I'll just nuke it (if it's silken, I can just eat it straight from the package).

[RubyDuby]

silken from the package.

*vomits*

[Shrapnel]

Heh, well, when I was hungry, and came home too late to cook... =p

[Sarah_]

Pob's idea sounds amazing.

[Shrapnel]

I finally found an edible way to eat tofu. Whizz it up with parsley, onion granules, tahini, nutritional yeast, spinach, salt. Stuff it in canneloni, cover in tomato, veg, and italian herb sauce and bake in the oven for 40 minutes.

We fed that to 3 omnis, all of whom cleared their plates. We kept quiet about the tofu as one of em would have instantly hated it

Never made cannelloni before, but this sounds like it'd taste great!

[Pob]

We've been buying a really dense smoked tofu from the healthfood shop lately. It's a really good substitute for smoked cheese - has almost the texture of cheddar.

Even better, if you slice it thin and fry it in plenty of oil until it's crispy it has the taste and texture of crispy bacon, even without being salty at all.

I can't remember the brand. It's brown, vacuum sealed, almost cube shaped, with no moisture at all.

[pat sommer]

the secret to salt and pepper tofu is that part of the pepper is actually Sichuan pepper corns (slightly mouth numbing). A few pinches of Sichuan salt is the easiest way to do it.

the other Chinese-restaurant flavor of the dish comes from very dirty deep fat fry oil.
Clean oil = no flavor

[Anik]

Hope this hasn't been posted...
firm tofu diced into cubes, thrown into a very hot NON-STICK fry pan with olive oil, fryed till crispy brown, throw in lots of garlic, dried oregano, pepper & right before serving a good splash of balsamic vinegar. Goes amazing well in salads & tastes like it has been marinated for hours.

[littlemiss]

This is my husbands favourite way I cook it, freeze and thaw it, cube and fry it and sprinkle suitable gravy granules over the cubes as it cooks. It comes out quite crispy and meaty but not in a horrible way as I can eat this happily. I normally do some pasta up and fry some leeks, peppers and mushrooms too. Its an adapted fish recipe. (some old man gave me an oxo recipe book not thinking that I wouldnt cook most of the recipes)
I use it in so many dishes and desserts. We do scrambled tofu sometimes, with tumeric to give it a yellow colour and lots of other spices. I think I shall cook some this weekend. I also do tempura style tofu with veg and a chilli dip.
I am very inspired by this thread. Good thing I've been stocking up on half price tofu!

[1gentlemaorispirit]

I'm not a tofu fan, but when I gets a craving for it, it's a few days of eating deep fried tofu dipped in plenty of soy sauce or vegan scrambled egg sandwiches.

[emmapresley]

I finally found an edible way to eat tofu. Whizz it up with parsley, onion granules, tahini, nutritional yeast, spinach, salt. Stuff it in canneloni, cover in tomato, veg, and italian herb sauce and bake in the oven for 40 minutes.

We fed that to 3 omnis, all of whom cleared their plates. We kept quiet about the tofu as one of em would have instantly hated it

i've tried something similar to this...sauteeing onions/peppers and mixing that with nut. yeast, the silky tofu stuff and other whatevers..into canneloni with a sauce on and it is really tasty :smile:

[mariana]

Cut into triangles, coated in corn flour (cornstarch), and fried (usually in copious amounts of peanut oil). Not healthy, but delicious! (Though I usually eat it in a dish with carrots, green beans, and cashews, so it's not that unhealthy.)

[miss-fit]

I soak it in say sauce then fri it and use it in burgers.

[Spud Addict]

I chop it up into 2cm pieces, shove it in a box with loads of cajun spices and mix it all together, leave for about half an hour to soak in, then stir fry it with broccoli and soy sauce.
Then serve with wholewheat noodles, wholegrain rice and mini roast potatoes.

[snaffler]

The local whole food shop stocks this tofu http://www.naturemade.co.uk/organic/tofu.asp around here we do the following with ours.

Herb one - scramble it and make scramble tofu on toast or grill the tofu in chunks to add to rice etc.

The smoked one - We use in Smoked Tofu and Bean hot pot or make TLT (Tofu Lettuce Tomato sarnis )

Plain One - Marinate with flavors or sprinkle with salt and pepper and grill

And the deep fried one is used in stir frys

The stuff is all very nice and cost about £1.40 for a 200g block.

[bringsMore]

This is a very inspiring thread. It gives me hope that some day I'll be able to prepare tofu and actually eat the tofu that I've prepared.

[smallhelen]

There's a cool recipe in 'How It All Vegan' for Faux Eggs Bennie, which I think is like an eggs benedict kinda thing.
You marinate the tofu in a mix of oil and cider vinegar, then bake it in the oven. It is almost reminiscent of fried egg whites, but not in a bad way, and the sauce that is with it is real cheesey and delicious.

[missbettie]

that sounds delightful...i miss fried eggs...however disgusting they might be.

[smallhelen]

Yeah. The thought of eating real eggs makes me feel ill. But a tofu, animal-free version!!!
I might just have to make them tomorrow morning now.

[DiaShel]

I chop it up into 2cm pieces, shove it in a box with loads of cajun spices and mix it all together, leave for about half an hour to soak in, then stir fry it with broccoli and soy sauce.
Then serve with wholewheat noodles, wholegrain rice and mini roast potatoes.

This sounds great! Do you press the tofu first? I've never cooked it without doing that first.

Can you blacken tofu? mmm....

[Spud Addict]

Press it? What does that mean Dia?

I usually pat it with some kitchen roll to get the excess liquid out, but find a little bit helps the spices to 'stick' better.

[Daffodil]

Breaded and deep fried.

yummy, i'm gonna try this

[Quantum Mechanic]

I like scrambled tofu and teriyaki tofu.

[DiaShel]

Press it? What does that mean Dia?

I usually pat it with some kitchen roll to get the excess liquid out, but find a little bit helps the spices to 'stick' better.

I mean get a lot of liquid out. Like I will wrap it in a towel and cut a cutting board on top and then put my dumbbells on top for about an hour. Is this that necessary?

[Troutina]

My new favourite way to eat tofu, is marinated and then grilled on an oiled baking tray. It's perfect! And so nice the next day in salad.

[DiaShel]

^ I agree! I like to cook it a long time on low heat. Great texture!