My whole life I was afraid to try tofu. It seemed like a strange food that vegetarians were forced to eat. I never knew what I was missing out on until my husband Matt made his Tofu to Love recipe one day…and my goodness, it is truly Tofu to Love! For those who do not know, Tofu is soy beans. Soy is in practically everything we eat. It’s an interesting process how its made, and worth googling if you feel like learning!
The key to good tofu, according to Matt, is to buy the extra firm tofu. This cooks the best and tastes the best as well. First thing you do for this recipe is place the block of extra firm tofu on a wire rack, on a baking sheet with a paper towel underneath and on top of the tofu. Place a heavy pan or large heavy can on top of the tofu to let the water drain out of the tofu for at least thirty minutes. You want to do this to squeeze as much as the water out of the tofu as possible. This is important, so please don’t skip this step!
When the tofu is resting, make the sauce. This is where the yummy flavor comes from that will merry with the tofu like bread on butter. In a small bowl, combine ¼ cup of soy sauce, ¼ cup of water, 2 teaspoons of sugar, 1 teaspoon of Sriracha, ½ teaspoon of rice wine vinegar, 1 tablespoon of cornstarch, and 1 minced garlic clove.
When enough water has drained out of the tofu after at least thirty minutes (the longer the better), slice the tofu into 1” cubes. Transfer the cubed tofu to a bowl and coat with 2 tablespoons of corn starch, ½ teaspoon of garlic powder, and 1/8 teaspoon of black pepper.
In a skillet, heat 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil over medium-high heat. When oil is hot and shimmering, add the 4 halved garlic cloves. Cook the garlic for about 2 minutes until garlic is golden brown (DO NOT BURN). Remove garlic from skillet. Chop cooked garlic on cutting board.
Add tofu to the skillet and cook until browned on all sides. Add the sauce and the chopped garlic. Stir constantly to coat the tofu for 1 minute. Immediately serve in bowl topped with chopped green onions for a garnish. Now that is some serious Tofu to Love!
Tofu to Love!
Ingredients
- 1 pound extra firm tofu
- 4 garlic cloves, peeled, cut in half
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 2 tablespoons corn starch
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/8 teaspoon pepper
- green onion, chopped, for garnish
Sauce
- 1/4 cup soy sauce
- 1/4 cup water
- 2 teaspoons sugar
- 1 teaspoon Sriracha
- 1/2 teaspoon rice wine vinegar
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- 1 garlic clove, minced
Instructions
- Place tofu on a wire rack on a baking sheet with paper towel underneath and on top of tofu. Place a heavy pan or large can on top of tofu and let water drain out for at least 30 minutes. The point here to to place weight on tofu so the most amount of liquid comes out.
- While the tofu is resting, make the sauce. To make the sauce, combine all ingredients and set aside.
- Slice tofu into 1″ cubes. Transfer to a bowl and coat with 2 tablespoons of corn starch, 1/2 teaspoon of garlic powder, and a 1/8 teaspoon of black pepper.
- Heat 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil in skillet over medium-high heat. When oil is shimmering, add the halved garlic. Cook for 2-3 minutes in the vegetable oil until golden brown. Make sure the garlic is submerged in the vegetable oil when cooking.
- Remove garlic from skillet. Chop garlic and set aside.
- Place tofu in skillet and cook on medium high heat. Brown all sides of tofu, flipping when a side is browned and crispy.
- Add sauce and chopped garlic to skillet with the tofu. Stir constantly to coat tofu for 1 minute. Immediately serve in bowl topped with chopped green onions for garnish.
