Tofu - what to do with

[Janet_Girl]

Hi there family,

I recently received three packages of silken lite firm tofu.  And I am not sure what I can do with it.  I have read a couple of sites, but I am still in the dark.

I understand that it will pick up the flavor of whatever it is cooked with.

[Renate]

Tofu is not known for a strong flavor.
It is pretty good for soaking up flavors, particularly hot, spicy stuff where it can moderate the hotness a bit.

I chop it up in cubes and throw it in any rice dish.

Something else to consider is TVP, texturized vegetable protein, also known as TSP, texturized soy protein.
It is also a product made from soy, high in protein, low in fat.
The "granules" are processed and extruded to be like fine ground beef.
They take about 10 minutes to rehydrate in a hot liquid.
They don't have a lot of flavor and tend to give off a bit of musty smell by themselves.
TVP would also work best in spicy dishes.
If you made spaghetti sauce or chili with half ground meat and half TVP some people might not notice.

I make a vegan chili that's pretty good.

[annajasmine]

The only time I used tofu the texture ended up like scramble eggs. What am I 'm doing wrong? I found this site which might be of interest.

http://www.tastyandmeatless.com/kungpaotofu.htm

Anna

[Hazumu]

Renate has a handle on it.

My landlady is Japanese.  She has a couple of dishes based on cubed-fried tofu in a spicy sauce.  We also eat a block of tofu with a little hole scooped out of the top and flavorful sauce poured into and over the tofu.

Miso soup.

Can't think of anything else at the moment.

=K

[Fer]

I'm not criticising but the statement "firm silken tofu" is a bit of an oximoron, silken is a type of tofu that is very soft, firm is silken with 90-95% of the water pressed out, for me I only use extra firm, it's the best for most dishes, I do use silken for mousses, tofu cheesecake like dishes, as a mayo sub with afe added ingredients, there is a brand named "Silken" not to be confused with the actual style of tofu named "Silken".  I use the extra firm for stir fry dishes.  I just dice it  & fry it with veggies of my choice, add soy sauce & put it over noodles, rice or even inside a spring roll.  Happy eating!

[Kaitlyn]

I understand that it will pick up the flavor of whatever it is cooked with.

That's awesome!  Cook it with a steak!

Seriously, it might make for a neat vegan chili.

EDIT: Oh, Renate said that already.

Something else to consider is TVP, texturized vegetable protein, also known as TSP, texturized soy protein.

Don't forget Quorn!

[Dennis]

You can curry it, you can make saag paneer with it (an awesome spinach dish, instead of the unripened cheese, use tofu). If it is firm, you can barbecue it with some balsamic vinegar and spices. It's also good in hot and sour soup.

Dennis

[findingreason]

You could find some recipes for Japanese miso soup , it's really good. And there are too many ways to make miso soup too!

[Janet_Girl]

Now that I look at the package again, I think that Fer is correct.  It very well could be a brand name.

Dennis, when you said 'barbecue', you mean like a steak?

[Dennis]

Yeah, I had a vegetarian friend who made it for me once. Was extra firm tofu, and it was really good.

My favourites are in saag paneer (google a recipe for it), and hot and sour soup (which I only get right about 1 time in 10, so I've given up making it).

Dennis

[BlueAndYellow]

I don't know whether there is a need for more recipes or not, but since I am a vegan I am used to tofu and similar things Usually I use saitan, but I got some really good recipes for tofu as well...
If you still want to have some of these, just tell me and I'll try to translate all the ingredients to English...(I am not used to talk about food in English  )

[Shana A]

I dice it up, or cut into small triangles, and stir fry with veggies... for flavoring add ginger, garlic, soy sauce, etc, while cooking.

[almost,angie]

I make scrambled eggs out of firm tofu.
1 tablespoon nutritional yeast
1/2 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp turmeric
2 tbsp  tamari or soy sauce.
It is very good, I pre cook some veggie sausage and potatos and together makes a great meal.
Just chop up the tofu with a fork first.

with silken tofu I make vegan pumkin pie.

[placeholdername]

One trick my mom learned from when I was vegetarian, is to freeze the tofu solid, and then thaw it.  Somehow this changes the texture to something almost meaty, and works well as a chicken substitute that way.

[Pica Pica]

throw ts away, quick - or you may have to eat it... 

On the other hand, I love sag Panir, and I imagine that is quite good with it in.

[Hildy]

OK, I LOVE tofu, and my favorite thing is "tofu steak." You slice the tofu about 3/8" thick and let it sit in some soy sauce while you slice up some mushrooms (any kind is OK). Then you heat up some dark sesame oil in a frying pan, add the tofu (with the soy sauce), the mushrooms and some grated ginger and let it cook for awhile (sorry I'm not very specific...I made up the recipe!). Anyway, it's yummy IMHO. 

p.s. You can throw in some chopped scallions, too.

[Annwyn]

You don't just chop it up into cubes and toss it in, not unless you want some tasteless mushy cubes squishing around in your mouth: quite unpleasant.

You can do anything with tofu, but if you're going to be eating it then there's a few basic preps that will make all your tofu adventures bear better memories.

Put the designated amount of tofu between two paper towels and gently press to squeeze excess water out.

Shape it(cubes, strips, whatever), cook it the first time to harden it.  You can often avoid this by leaving it in the freezer uncovered the night before.

Marinate it, then add to the dish in substitute of meat.

Or get soft tofus for things like dips or milkshakes or to thicken sauces.

Tofu definitely rocks.

[Constance]

I once made chowder with soft tofu, a little plain soy milk, and shiitake mushrooms. I added seasonings like salt, white pepper, garlic and onion powder.

A Japanese cookbook I recently checked out from the library suggested something quite similar to what others have posted here. Cut the block into steaks and deep fry them. They can be eaten that way, or used in other dishes. I've been buying deep-fried tofu at a local Japanese market. I love the stuff.

I also dice tofu for miso and/or hot and sour soup.

[Suzy]

You can curry it, you can make saag paneer with it (an awesome spinach dish, instead of the unripened cheese, use tofu). If it is firm, you can barbecue it with some balsamic vinegar and spices. It's also good in hot and sour soup.

Dennis

   A man after my own heart.  All of those are good.  I love it.  Are you married, Dennis?

Seriously, the only thing you have to watch is that some brands, because they are soy based, can have a high carb count.  Not a big deal unless you are on a diabetic diet like me.   


Kristi

[Michelle.]

Theres other uses for ToFu other than the Miso Soup course at the Sushi bar?