Tofu for beginners?

I have never really cooked it with a recipe but it can be substituted in for meat in pretty much any recipe. I usually cook it with low sodium soy sauce, ginger and garlic and serve it over rice with vegetables. I would cook it in a pan by itself and let it get a little crispy on one side, because the mushy consistancy can be a turn off to alot of people myself included.

VegWeb.com has a ton of good tofu recipes, too.

I follow a vegan diet, and tofu has been a staple for me for a long time.

The easy method:

Six steps, all simple enough for a 6-year-old: freeze, thaw, cut, press, marinate, bake.

I freeze the tofu (firm or extra firm, not silken).

Thaw it.

Cut it up. Cube it (1" cubes or smaller), make it into steaks (3/4" thick or so), or slice it (about 1/4" thick).

I press the water out (arrange on a double thickness of paper towels, put another double thickness of paper towels on top, put a heavy pan on top and weigh it down with other heavy stuff like canned goods, wait a few minutes). Then it acts like a sponge for marinades.

You only have to marinate it for a few minutes, maybe 10 but probably fewer.

Spray a baking sheet, cook the tofu at 375 for 20 minutes, flip the tofu, bake for 10 more minutes. Done.

Just by changing marinades, you can make a variety of great low-cal, high-flavor, protein-rich options for stir-fries, curries, sandwiches, or snacks in the oven.

For me, the "snack" marinade is a little soy sauce, some adobo chile sauce or chipotle sauce, maybe some barbecue sauce, and a hint of sesame oil (toasted or not). When I do this with thin-sliced tofu, it ends up like little spicy jerky slices. I take a small bag to work for when I want a snack outside of lunch.

I drain the water by putting it on a plate of paper towles with another plate on top, then I use a can as eight. I leave it in the fridge for about 20 minutes. Next I cut it into nuggets and marinate in bbq sauce fr 30 min. Next I coat it in bread crumbs (gluten free) and bake at 250 for about 30 min and then place under the broiler for just a few on each side. Just to add crunch. And now you have tofu nuggets. Its enough to satisfy my french fry and nugget loving 11 year old, so that makes me happy.


But seriously, you can do anything with tofu. I hated it until I figured out what to do with it. Now its a staple in my fridge. If you try it one way and don't like it, try again another way. It will taste like anything you marinate it in.

I just bought some extra firm yesterday morning. Going to cook it tonight. Making stir fry my momma's way. will let ya no how it goes.