What’s For Dinner: Asian Stir Fry With Tofu

I love tofu. I think everyone should love tofu. But that’s not the case. So instead of forcing it upon you, just pretend that every time I say ‘tofu’ I’m saying ‘chicken’. Or ‘beef’ if you want to be a nutrition rebel for the night.

Here’s what you need:

8 oz. Extra Firm Tofu (Chicken breast-wink,wink)

1 small onion

*Green Pepper

*Broccoli

*Carrots

1 clove Garlic

Salt

Pepper

¼ cup of Soy Sauce

1 tbsp. of Honey

1 tsp. of Red Pepper Flakes

1 tsp. Ginger (I used powdered because it’s all I had, fresh works better)

*No amounts were used because you can add as many vegetables as you want. I’m using leftovers from the week, so use whatever you have. Snap peas, mushrooms, and green beans also go really well in this recipe.

For you tofu-newbies out there, I’ll give you a quick lesson. Extra-firm tofu is best to use if you want a meat-like product or if you’re trying to get a sear on it. Firm tofu goes well in soup and will hold it’s shape like in Miso Soup. Silken tofu will blend really well in a smoothie or as an egg replacement in baked good (I’ll post those recipes too!).

To prep extra-firm tofu, remove all of the excess liquid and slice it into blocks about ¼ inch thick. Press it pretty firmly in between a stack of paper towels to remove as much liquid as possible. Then cut it into strips or cubes, or leave it in blocks, whatever fits your purpose.

For this, I’m making cubes. Heat a skillet on medium high and drizzle with olive oil. When hot, add the tofu, season with salt and pepper and let sear a bit until it’s slightly browned on both sides. If the pan looks dry, add some more olive oil and add sliced onions and sauté for a few minutes. Then add carrots since they take the longest. After a few minutes, add in the other vegetables, garlic, salt and pepper and sauté until tender.

Unfortunately, the stupid brand I bought that said "Extra Firm" looked more like silken to me so I had some trouble with it sticking to the pan due to all of the moisture, but I made it work. 

*Keep in mind that the soy sauce will add a lot of salt, so go easy when seasoning at first. You can always add more at the end.

To make the sauce, whisk together soy sauce, honey, ginger and red pepper flakes. If you think it needs more sweet or more heat, add it in. Poor the sauce over the vegetables and toss them around until they’re evenly coated.

Add a scoop of brown rice and there ya go. What a beaut.

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