It’s
a shame, I feel, that for many people tofu is a flavourless meat
substitute, to be overloaded with all the flavour it doesn’t naturally
come with. Of course, if you only encounter it in long-life Tetra Paks, I
understand why you’d want to amp up the aromatics. Tofu, traditionally,
isn’t meant to last longer than the day it’s made. Which is why in
Japan you still find itinerant tofu sellers, who ride around with a
little copper horn on which they play a two-note tofu tune, and sing a song, to alert customers to their presence. Fresh and properly made, their tofu is a thing of beauty.
Anna Thomson, who sent in the agedashi dofu recipe below, said her tofu dish of choice is hiyayakko and yudofu –
cold and hot versions of the same simple dish: fresh silken tofu served
neat, with minced ginger, finely sliced spring onion and soy sauce. And
I agree. Japanese minimalism works as much life-changing magic on
soybean curd as it does in sock drawers,
and with a good block of tofu, there’s little else you need to do to
enjoy it. But equally, that subtle flavour – nutty, fresh, vegetal – and
its light, creamy texture are qualities that shine through even when
paired, as in the winning Sichuan recipe, with myriad aromatics and a
panful of meat.
When it comes to prepping firm tofu, Rachel Kelly
sent in excellent advice, gleaned in a Vietnamese kitchen. Boil lightly
salted water in a saucepan, add your block of tofu and remove from the
heat. Set aside for about 5 minutes, then drain the tofu and pat dry.
Put on a plate or lipped chopping board, cover with another chopping
board and weigh down with a couple of tins of beans or a pile of
hard-backed books, ensuring the weight is evenly distributed. Leave for
at least an hour: preferably overnight.
The winning recipe: Ma po tofu
This is easily my favourite Sichuanese dish, but I never expected to manage it quite so well at home. Kok-Hwa Lie didn’t specify the type of tofu, so I tried it first with firm tofu, which was perfect, then with silken, which was less so, but still delicious. The trick is to try to prevent the blocks from disintegrating. As you can see in the above picture, I did not. So proceed as gently as I will next time. The combo of nuggets of melting bean-curd cream, super-hot chilli oil and richly flavoured pork is superb.Serves 3-4
400g tofu
250g minced pork
2 tsp Sichuan pepper
1 tbsp oil
Salt and black pepper
2 garlic cloves, minced
2cm piece of ginger, finely chopped
1 red chilli, chopped
2 dried chillies, chopped
2 tbsp doubanjiang (chilli bean sauce)
1 tbsp rice wine
200ml chicken stock
1 tbsp light soy sauce
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp sesame oil
1 tbsp cornflour
2 spring onions, chopped, to serve
For the marinade
1 tbsp light soy sauce
1 tbsp rice wine
1 tsp sesame oil
1 tsp black rice (chinkiang) vinegar
1 tbsp cornflour
1 If using firm tofu, soak and press as explained above, then pat dry and cut into cubes. If using silken tofu, cut the tofu into cubes, then slide into a panful of lightly salted water and cook for 1 minute. Drain very carefully, so as not to break up the cubes. Set aside.
2 Combine the ingredients for the marinade, mix in the pork and set aside for at least 30 minutes.
3 Toast the Sichuan pepper in a dry pan until fragrant. Transfer to a pestle and mortar and crush into a powder.
4 Heat the oil in a frying pan and brown the marinated meat on all sides, then remove from the pan.
5 Saute the garlic, ginger, fresh and dried chilli, plus 1 tsp of the ground Sichuan pepper for 1-2 minutes. Add the chilli bean sauce and rice wine. Cook for a further 2 minutes. Return the meat back to the pan, gently add the tofu and cook for 2 minutes.
6 Add the stock, soy sauce, sugar, sesame oil and season with salt and pepper. Simmer for 2-3 minutes.
7 Mix 1 tbsp cornflour with 1 tbsp water, add to the pan and stir.
8 Garnish with spring onions and the remaining Sichuan pepper. Serve with white rice.
Oven-baked agedashi dofu
Agedashi is another of Anna Thomson’s favourites, but a rare occurrence in her home kitchen due to the deep-frying it traditionally requires. Her oven-baked version is an interesting alternative.Serves 2-4
1 block of silken tofu
Sunflower oil
3 tbsp potato starch (or cornflour)
225ml dashi
2 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp mirin (or use 1 tsp honey)
To serve
2 spring onions, finely sliced
1 tbsp finely grated ginger
1 Wrap the tofu in a tea towel and put on a chopping board with a weight on top for 15 minutes to expel excess water. Pat dry.
2 Set the oven to 220C/425F/gas mark 7 or hotter, if possible. Pour a thin layer of oil in a shallow baking tray and put in the oven.
3 Cut the tofu into cubes. Put the potato starch into a bowl, then add the tofu and coat by shaking around gently.
4 Take the tray from the oven, put the tofu in the tray and return to the oven: be careful of the sizzling oil. Bake for 10 minutes, turning each cube frequently so that all sides are cooked evenly.
5 Meanwhile, mix the dashi, soy sauce and mirin together. Set aside.
6 Put the cooked tofu in serving bowls. Top with the spring onions and ginger, add the sauce and serve immediately.
Maple tofu bao buns
ColonialCravings professes a love for these sweet, soft, fluffy pillows of dough that I can easily echo. So I was excited by her attempt at a vegetarian version. My only addition is mayo on the buns – there’s just no other way to get the tofu up to pork-belly bao-filling fat levels. And more sriracha.Makes 4-6
5g yeast
150ml warm water
225g strong white bread flour
25g sugar
For the filling
1 garlic clove
25mm fresh ginger
1 tbsp dark maple syrup
1 tbsp dark soy sauce
1 tbsp sesame oil
1 tsp chilli sauce (I use sriracha)
200g firm tofu (cut into slices and pressed for 15 minutes)
To serve
Mayonnaise
Fresh coriander
Sriracha or fresh chilli, finely sliced
2 Clean the mixing bowl and lightly oil it before returning the dough to the bowl and covering it with clingfilm. Pop the bowl in a warm place and leave the dough for about an hour to double in size.
3 Meanwhile, grate the garlic and ginger and combine it with the maple syrup, soy sauce, sesame oil and chilli sauce in a baking dish. Cut the tofu into triangles and toss them in the marinade. Leave for 30 minutes to soak up all the flavours.
4 When the dough has risen, knock it back a little, then divide it into 4 or 6 pieces (depending on how big you want your buns). Shape the pieces into balls, then roll them out on a lightly floured surface into an oval shape. Cut squares of greaseproof paper and fold each in half diagonally to make a triangle. To shape your buns, put these on to the dough, then fold each oval in half over the paper to create a taco shape. Put them on a board or tray covered with greaseproof paper. Loosely cover them with oiled clingfilm. Leave them somewhere warm to rise for 30 minutes.
5 Preheat your oven to 180C/350F/gas mark 4 and bake the tofu for 25-30 minutes, turning occasionally, until the pieces are sticky and a little crisp around the edges.
6 Cut up the greaseproof paper under the buns, so each one sits on an individual piece. Set a steamer over a pan of boiling water (a steel one works fine: you don’t have to have a bamboo one) and steam the buns in batches for about 8 minutes, or until the dough is cooked through and the buns are puffy.
7 To serve, spread the inside of the buns with a generous amount of mayo, and fill with a couple of wedges of the tofu. Add a generous garnish of fresh coriander and top with a squeeze of sriracha or a little fresh red chilli.
Vietnamese lemongrass and chilli tofu
Rachel Kelly uses Clean Bean Co tofu to make this, and if you live or work in London, you should track some down. It’s a prime, local example of how good tofu can be, and particularly delicious with these simple flavours.Serves 4
300g block of firm tofu
Juice of 1 lime
Light soy sauce, to taste
2 fat red chillies, deseeded and finely chopped
2 lemongrass stalks, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
Salt
Vegetable oil, for frying
1 Boil and press the tofu as described in the introduction at the beginning, then cut into 2cm cubes.
2 Make the dip by combining the lime juice with 2 tsp soy sauce. Taste, add more soy if you like, and set aside.
3 Combine the chillies, lemongrass and garlic into a rough paste by blitzing in a food processor along with ½ tsp salt.
4 Gently toss the tofu in this mixture. Set aside for an hour to allow the flavours to develop.
5 Heat vegetable oil (about 2cm deep) in a large frying pan. Brush off any excess marinade and gently fry the tofu for about 10 minutes, or until lightly browned all over and crisp. Drain on kitchen paper and keep warm.
6 Heat 1 tbsp vegetable oil in a small frying pan and quickly fry the remaining marinade mixture. Pour over the warm tofu and serve immediately with the dipping sauce.
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