3 Simple Methods to Cook the Tofu

The tofu is a very versatile dish and can be used to create many different kinds of delicious cuisines. Here are 3 simple methods to cook tofu that you can try.

1) Deep fry tofu. You should cut the tofu into thin triangles pieces and proceed to put the tofu into the deep fryer until the tofu turns crispy and light brown in color.

2) Hot and Spicy tofu. Add the tofu to chili or hot stew. After the tofu is pressed and drained, it may be crumbled in to pieces. Proceed to add the crumbled tofu to more chili sauce. Cook the mixture for at the very least 20 minutes at medium heat.

3) Stir-fry Tofu. This process is similar to frying other foods such as meats. Stir-fry chunks the firm tofu for 5 minutes. The tofu will be able to absorb all of the flavors of the sauce nicely

How to make Tofu Stir Fry

I love tofu stir fry. It tastes great, it is healthy, easy to prepare and you can combine it with virtually any vegetable you desire. You use only one pan, a little oil, big heat and with constantly stirring you will succeed.

Image by Ian Ruotsala via FlickrWhat you will need
- wok
- 1 tablespoon coconut oil
- tofu (use firmer one if possible)
- paper towels (for drying the tofu)

- sliced vegetables of your choice (onions, carrots, peppers, broccoli, baby corn, mushrooms, bamboo shoots, garlic)

- marinade of your choice (e.g. low-sodium soy sauce + oyster sauce + cornstarch + rice vinegar)

- rice or noodles (or any other side dish you prefer)

Preparation
Prepare the tofu for marinade. Before soaking it in marinade you should press it to remove as much water from it as possible. Place sliced tofu on paper towels and cover it with some more towels. Put moderate weight over tofu. Change towels if too wet and repeat the process until tofu is dried. If you skip this process then tofu will not absorb much of delicious marinade taste.

Prepare marinade of your choice. Never put oil in tofu marinade. Soak tofu in marinade and let it soak for at least 30 minutes.

Slice all vegetables. Just before you start cooking, slice or chop all vegetables. Keep each of them separated or group by cooking time. The ones that have similar cooking time can be put together. But remember: prepare ALL vegetables before cooking. You will not have the time to chop because you will be very busy with stirring. This process of preparation will take you quite some time depending on your chopping skills.

Directions
Heat the wok over high temperature. When really hot add coconut oil and start adding vegetables that require longer time. Gradually add other vegetables. Somewhere in the middle of the process add marinated tofu. If the heat starts to get too weak because there is too much vegetables in the wok, then you should stir fry only few vegetables at a time and then remove them from the pan to large bowl and keep stirring smaller amounts. Combine all in the end. Before the end add marinade, cover the pan and let cook for a minute.

Serve with rice or noodles. or.... check out restaurants that cook with tofu in your area ;)

Fried Tofu in a pan

Tofu is a very healthy source of protein. It is easy to cook with. In fact it does even need to be cooked. This recipe shows you how simple it is to fry tofu in a pan.
Image via Wikipedia
Frying tofu is very popular and really easy way to prepare meal with tofu. It gives it nice brownish color. You can combine it with almost any food, it especially comes along with vegetables.

There are different kinds of tofu, some may require more time for frying, some less.


Ingredients:
- tofu
- vegetable oil (preferably coconut)
- marinade *(optional: marinade which you prefer: soy sauce, garlic, pepper, chili, ginger, vinegar...)


Instructions:

1. slice tofu in smaller pieces. Some prefer cubes, other triangles or slices. Cubes tend to take longer to fry, because you should fry them evenly on all six sides whereas slices need to be fried only on two sides.

2. marinate the tofu * (optional). If you are really hungry you can skip this step and fry non-marinated tofu. For best taste, marinate it to your taste. The longer the better. Press the water out before marinating it.

3. dry it. Place tofu on top of multiple layers of towels and rinse it well.  Be really careful not to fry moisturised tofu.

4. heat oil in a frying pan. Use only best vegetable oil, which are heat resistant. One of the best oil for frying  is coconut oil. If you have non-sticking pan you can user very little of oil.

5. fry tofu on both sides. Depending on size, type and preferred color, it may take from 1 to 5 minutes of frying on each side. The longer you fry it the crispier it becomes. Remember - there is no undercooked tofu - it can be eaten raw. If you wish you can stir-fry the tofu  also.