cats and cooking.: the most glorious tofu.

i love tofu, i really do. not just sayin' that. people complain that it has no flavor and that you always have to do something to it, but i argue that chicken is the same. no one just puts a chicken breast on a baking sheet and cooks it with no seasoning, no nothing. i'll spare you, but you get the point.

want to know how to get the water out of your tofu? you gotta press it out. but think about it. you can't just put some heavy stuff on it and let it sit in its pool of tofu water. you gotta angle that baby. such a satisfying stream of water comes out. steady stream. real steady. short on time? no worries, two minutes of this should be enough. i put a heavy book on top to really smoosh it.

okay so then cut the tofu into conveniently sized pieces for whatever you are making. i did little cubes for a stir fry. now i shall tell you how to make tofu that is so delicious even the most close-minded meat-eaters would like it (until you told them what it was then they would probably backtrack). i do not wish to take credit, but rather spread the love. so i learned how to do this from Deborah Madison in her cookbook "how to cook everything vegetarian." she is a tofu goddess.

want to know how to get crispy fried tofu bites? so you have your cubes. put a tablespoon or two of peanut oil into a large skillet or wok. once it is hot add the tofu. THE SECRET IS DON'T STIR. i know it is really tempting to just stand there and absent-mindedly spread tofus around the pan, but DON'T DO IT. they won't brown. you gotta let em sit for like 5 minutes (maybe more) on one side before flipping pieces around. then go for another 4-5 minutes. repeat until you are pleased with your brown-ness level. obviously unless you are meticulously turning each piece individually, some sides will be much browner than others but that is totally fine. mine looked like THIS.

okay so now comes the part that makes it DELICIOUS. in a bowl, mix 2 tablespoons of soy sauce with 3 1/2 tablespoons of brown sugar. turn the heat to low-medium and add the mixture to the tofu. stir until all the cubes are coated. after a minute or two, turn up the heat, add 3 tablespoons of water, and simmer it off for 5-10 minutes.

NOW they are ready for whatever your heart desires. snack em or use em in a stir fry. i added a vegetable medley (thanks to Caroline for the beans and carrots) and some brown rice then stirred in some honey ginger teriyaki sauce (from the store, i'm not that ambitious). but yeah...here is the final product!