Tofu-a food that scares many, but it can be awesome! Most likely you had poorly prepared tofu if you think you don’t like it. Try it again. Tofu is packed with plant-based protein, is low in fat, and a great source of calcium.
Tofu is like a sponge, and can take on any flavor it’s marinated in. For this dish, we marinated our tofu in a soy sauce, and then prepared a glaze that was used in the marinade process, as well as the final cooking. The glaze was easy to prepare and added a tropical flavor to the dish. Our kids loved this! Left over tofu can be used on top of salad, as a snack, or mixed in with rice or noodles. We served this over our light asian noodles, prepared with spiraled cucumbers and carrots. You can make the glaze and/or the tofu ahead of time to help make this come together in under 20 minutes. The tofu will last in the fridge for about 5 days-if you can stop yourself from munching on it! It’s great on its own, added to a salad, or mixed in with left overs for an awesome rice bowl.
Pressing Tofu: To Do, wrap tofu in towels and place weight on top
It’s important that you press the tofu. This is because by extracting the extra moisture from the tofu, it will be better able to soak up the marinade you put in. This will help to infuse the tofu with a lot of flavor. To press the tofu, wrap tofu in towels and place a weight on top of it for 30 minutes. For how to do this, click here to see our youtube video.
Recipe was adapted from www.rouxbe.com Sweet and Sour Tofu
Ingredients For Tofu (for noodles, click here)– Serves 6
For Marinade:
- 2 blocks of extra-firm tofu (pressed, see video)
- 5 tbsp tamari or gluten free soy sauce (regular if not gluten free)
- 1/2 tsp liquid smoke
- freshly ground pepper
For Glaze:
- 1 cup of fresh pineapple
- 1/2 cup of sake or dry white wine (like sauvignon blanc)-we used wine, as we were out of sake
- 1 1/2 tbsp honey or agave (we used honey)
- 1/2 tbsp minced garlic
- 1/2 tbsp minced fresh ginger
- 1/4 tsp chili flakes
- *optional: if you’d like a thicker glaze, add 1 tsp of arrowroot or tapioca starch to 2 tbsp water)
- mince a few scallions for serving
Instructions:
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees
- Slice each block of tofu into 6 slabs, totally 12 pieces. Place into a 9×13 pyrex dish.
- Pour marinade over the top of the tofu and turn pieces to make sure they are evenly coated.
- Mix glaze ingredients in a blender, all except the starch. Blend until smooth
- Heat glaze and reduce by 1/3, about 15-20 minutes, and turn off heat.
- Pour 4-6 tbsp of glaze on tofu, making sure to lead enough to glaze for searing, and place into oven to bake for 30-40 minutes. Flip tofu after about 20/25 minutes, and cook until browned.
- If thicker glaze is desired, mix starch mixture into the glaze and bring to a boil, until thickened (this happens quickly). Do this right before you plan on glazing and searing the tofu.
- When ready to serve, heat a non-stick pan to medium heat. Place tofu into pan and brush glaze on top. Flip and repeat. Remove from heat and serve over rice or our asian noodle salad.
Can Cut Into Bite Sized Pieces or Cubes To Be Served As An Appetizer
Nutritional Benefits:
- Amazing source of plant-based protein: 18.5 g per 2 pieces, helps to heal and repair tissues
- Low in fat: 5 g/serving: no cholesterol, good for heart health
- Low in calories
- Vegan/gluten free: redues inflammation
- Good source of plant-based calcium which is more easily absorbed by the body-17% daily needs per 2 pieces
- Good source of Vitamin C, 17% daily needs, great for reducing inflammation, boosting immunity, antioxidant
- *When combined with Asian Noodle Salad-meal is a great source of fiber
- 2 blocks of extra-firm tofu (pressed, see video)
- 5 tbsp tamari or gluten free soy sauce (regular if not gluten free)
- ½ tsp liquid smoke
- freshly ground pepper
- 1 cup of fresh pineapple
- ½ cup of sake or dry white wine (like sauvignon blanc)-we used wine, as we were out of sake
- 1½ tbsp honey or agave (we used honey)
- ½ tbsp minced garlic
- ½ tbsp minced fresh ginger
- ¼ tsp chili flakes
- *optional: if you'd like a thicker glaze, add 1 tsp of arrowroot or tapioca starch to 2 tbsp water)
- mince a few scallions for serving
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees
- Slice each block of tofu into 6 slabs, totally 12 pieces. Place into a 9x13 pyrex dish.
- Pour marinade over the top of the tofu and turn pieces to make sure they are evenly coated.
- Mix glaze ingredients in a blender, all except the starch. Blend until smooth
- Heat glaze and reduce by ⅓, about 15-20 minutes, and turn off heat.
- Pour 4-6 tbsp of glaze on tofu, making sure to lead enough to glaze for searing, and place into oven to bake for 30-40 minutes. Flip tofu after about 20/25 minutes, and cook until browned.
- If thicker glaze is desired, mix starch mixture into the glaze and bring to a boil, until thickened (this happens quickly). Do this right before you plan on glazing and searing the tofu.
- When ready to serve, heat a non-stick pan to medium heat. Place tofu into pan and brush glaze on top. Flip and repeat. Remove from heat and serve over rice or our
- asian noodle salad.
