Playin’ With Some Tofu

A few weeks back I picked up a package of tofu, not having a plan for it at all, but I tucked it in the fridge and waited for an opportunity to use it.  Whenever Andy sees tofu in the house, he goes on high alert.  I don’t know if he’s ever actually tried the stuff, but I think he has a fear that I’m going to try and serve him tofu disguised as something else.  Now, I’ve used tofu in mousses and salad dressings, and he knows that,and likes those things,  but the idea of actually eating tofu… So when Andy goes out of town for a night or two, that’s when I take the opportunity to make something for myself using it.  My tofu appreciation is new, and so far, the only way I really like it is if it’s golden fried and then tossed with something.  These Chinese Noodles with Tofu and Greens are really, really good, and I’m dying for the greens to be available from the garden to make this dish. Last night though, it was curry night.

I’ve been in the mood for curry since before Easter, and at the time I had it in my mind that after Easter, I would make an egg curry with leftover Easter Eggs.  Well, we ended up just eating and enjoying the eggs, so the curry craving was shelved while I debated how I was going to take care of it.   Yesterday I flipped through a few cookbooks and cruised a few websites looking for the perfect curry.  I ended up choosing this Tofu In Spicy Red Coconut Sauce from Cooking Light, but after reading the reviews, I decided to change it up a bit, and ended up changing it kind of a lot.  And that’s okay, because the curry was delicious and spicy, and made plenty so that I have leftovers for tonight.

The first step in cooking with tofu is to press and drain it to remove excess moisture- especially when you’re going to cube it up and fry it to golden like I did.  I simply cut my tofu block into 1/2 inch slices, laid them on paper towels, covered with more paper towels, and then laid a box of unopened rice milk on top.  I set  this in the fridge while I did the rest of my dinner prep, and when I took it out, the paper towels were definitely damp, and the tofu drier.   I also cut up a head of broccoli, half a zucchini, half a package of mushrooms, and then I sliced an onion vertically.  The recipe called for a whole bunch of green onions, but I opted to use regular onions in the dish, and then add some of the green onion at the end to finish the dish.  I stir fried the tofu until nicely golden brown and removed it from the pan.  Then I added my onions, garlic and ginger, and gave that a few minutes to get gloriously fragrant before adding my chopped vegetables to cook for a few minutes.

Next, the curry paste went in, along with a splash of soy sauce and then the coconut milk.  I really hesitated about the coconut milk after having two trys with it and just not enjoying it.  In this case, I ended up figuring that the curry paste would tame the coconut flavor a bit, and then added an extra dollop of curry paste for good measure.  At the very end of cooking, I added a splash of lime juice, a handful of spinach, the scallions, and the tofu cubes, and then served the whole thing over basmati rice and sprinkled it with fresh grown cilantro.  It was delicious, and exactly what I was craving.  I think next time I would like to simmer the golden tofu in the sauce a little bit more to get more flavor into it, but overall it was perfect just as it was.  So here is my modified recipe- the original says it serves four… I’m more inclined to say three, even with my vegetable additions.  Oh, and use my veggies as guidelines, add whatever you like, or have on hand needing to use up.

Tofu and Veggies In Spicy Red Coconut Sauce

2 teaspoons vegetable oil

1 (12.3 ounce) package extra-firm tofu, drained, pressed and cut into 1/2-inch cubes

1 medium onion, cut vertically

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 tablespoon minced ginger

2 cups broccoli florets

1 cup zucchini slices

1/2 a package of mushrooms, quartered

1 tablespoon red curry paste (I use Patak’s)

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce (If using regular, omit salt)

1 (14-ounce) can light coconut milk, shaken

2 scallions, chopped

2 cups fresh spinach leaves

2 tablespoons lime juice

basmati rice chopped cilantro for serving

Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium high heat.  Add the tofu cubes and cook, turning often, until golden on all sides.  Remove tofu from pan and set aside.

Add the onions, garlic and ginger to the pan, saute for about 2 minutes or until fragrant.  Add the broccoli, zucchini and mushrooms, and cook, stirring often, for about 8 minutes, or until vegetables are lightly tender.

Add the curry paste, salt, soy sauce and coconut milk to the pan.  Bring to a boil, turn the heat down to low and simmer for about 3 minutes- the sauce will thicken slightly.

Stir in the scallion, spinach leaves, and lime juice.

Serve over basmati rice, sprinkled generously with cilantro.

Serves 4.