Grilled Tofu and Vegetables... And Sandwiches

I actually really enjoy tofu.  Truly.  I like it so much that I will eat cubes of it cold, straight from the package when I am cooking.  You may not believe me, but after perusing my other recipes, I think it will become quickly obvious that I am not trying to impress anyone with my healthy eating habits.  Sometimes, it’s nice to marinate some tofu and vegetables (bell peppers, zucchini, and cremini mushrooms), and get them on the grill.  They don’t require much time to marinate or grill, and they make for a virtuous, complete dinner when paired with some brown rice.  I let all grilled items take a 10-minute dip in a flavorful Asian marinade with soy sauce, garlic, sesame oil, and fresh limejuice to avoid any boring vegetable qualities. 

The key is to use a medium low heat, and spray the grill liberally with non-stick cooking spray (this will also lead to a delightful flare-up, which I’m sure is dangerous).  The bell peppers and the mushrooms take the longest to grill, so start there.  However, the tofu poses the greatest danger of sticking.  Grill the stout planks of tofu for about 3 minutes on one side, flip, and repeat.  When flipping them or removing them from the grill, give them a very gentle side-to-side shimmy until they release.  If they stick a little, don’t panic.  Simply proceed as planned, but then remove any pieces that stick and be sure to eat them.  They have sort of a bacony quality.

The best part of this meal was the leftovers.  And, to be honest, I designed this meal with the leftovers in mind.  For anyone out there who claims they dislike leftovers, I say you’re simply not putting enough thought into the use your leftovers.  Not everyone enjoys forkfuls of cold, sauced pasta; I’ll acknowledge that.  However, with a little thought put into your cooking, your leftovers can be a delicious wonder in their own right.  Case in point: grilled tofu and vegetable sandwiches.  I spiked some mayonnaise with limejuice and sriracha.  I then layered the leftover zucchini, grilled peppers, and tofu on some rosemary sourdough bread with some of my spicy, tart sauce, and enjoyed a very flavorful and satisfying sandwich.

Grilled Tofu and Vegetables

Juice of 1 lime

2 teaspoons honey

1 garlic clove, grated

3 tablespoons soy sauce

2 tablepsoons fish sauce

2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil

1 teaspoon sriracha

2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar

3 tablespoons canola oil (or other light colored oil)

1-2 zucchini, sliced in long planks

2 red bell peppers, sliced into “cheeks”

8-10 cremini mushrooms, stems trimmed

1 block of extra firm tofu

-       Cut tofu into 6 pieces.  Line a shallow, wide dish with a clean cloth napkin.  Lay tofu pieces in napkin and wrap the napkin over the tofu.  Place a heavy bottomed pot over the napkin and allow tofu to drain for 15-20 minutes.

-       Whisk together the first 9 ingredients for marinade, and prepare vegetable. In one or two wide dishes, lay all ingredients down and pour 3/4 of marinade over them.  Gently flip tofu and vegetables in marinade.

-       Preheat grill to medium, and then reduce heat to medium low just before adding food to the grill.

-       Cook bell peppers and mushrooms for 8-10 minutes total, or until tender.

-       Cook tofu and zucchini for 4-5 minutes total.

-       Serve with brown rice and drizzle with remaining marinade.

Mapo Tofu

People say, “absence makes the heart grow fonder,” and my blogging hiatus has definitely increased my affinity for my corner of cyber space, and cooking, in general. People also say, “you want what you can’t have,” and during my functional break from my right hand, all I wanted to do was cook.  And I couldn’t.  So, as I started to see some progress with my burn, I began to plot.  Regardless of the diminishing pain, I knew the bandage would impede me from effective chopping, just as it impeded me from so many other things.  So I searched for a recipe that would satiate my need to cook and blog, but also placed little demands upon my right hand.  The recipe that fit these stipulations arrived in the form of mapo tofu, a spicy Chinese dish consisting of soft tofu and minced pork. 

That’s right, I said it: tofu and pork, happy together.  For us Americans, who generally view tofu as a health food, and a vegetarian mainstay, this may sound a little sacra-religious.  However, mapo tofu is a traditional Szechuan dish.  I think it’s genius: the smooth, tender tofu gets a flavor boost from the richness of a little ground pork.  It’s spicy; it’s garlicky; and the ingredients for this particular version are available at the regular grocery store, without costing a fortune.  Chopping requirements are as follows: minced garlic and ginger; chopped tofu; chopped scallions.  As far as my bum hand was concerned, I decided that grating the ginger and garlic (see photo below) with my left hand was feasible, and I CAREFULLY did some left-handed knife work on the scallions and tofu, with minor assistance from my right thumb.  To be honest, I’m pretty impressed with my impromptu lefty knife skills (however, I will not disclose how long those scallions took me).  Even more impressive, the authorities at the burn clinic gave me permission to let my burned hand see sunlight only 14 hours after my mapo tofu experience.  There’s only one explanation: cooking cures all (of course, as long you avoid metal that has been roasting in the oven).     

Now for the bad news:  I wasn’t exactly thrilled with my mapo that first night.  It satiated my cooking desires, but not my taste buds.  I primarily blame this on the fact that I absentmindedly ate Chinese food the night before, because I ended up enjoying the leftovers.  Initially, I wanted to serve this with brown rice, but I went with white rice due to time constraints.  That was a lucky choice because mapo tofu with brown rice would have resulted in a big bowl of beige, and beige is not appetizing.  White rice provides the necessary contrast for aesthetic appeal.  Overall, if you are looking to dabble in Asian cooking, this is nice starting point.  According to the author of this recipe, vegetables or ground turkey can be substituted for the pork.  Regardless of this, I would recommend reducing the sesame oil to ½ teaspoon for balanced flavor.    

Mapo Tofu (loosely adapted from “No Recipes”)

Serves 3-4

1 tablespoon tamari or other good soy sauce

2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar

2 tablespoons oyster sauce


2-3 teaspoons Sriracha [I used at least 3]

1 teaspoon sesame oil
[This was a little strong: I’d recommend ½ teaspoon.  You can always add more]

1 teaspoon corn starch


¼ cup water

1 teaspoon canola oil [or other light colored oil]

2 cloves of garlic, grated

1 tablespoon of fresh ginger, grated

6 scallions, sliced thin

½  lbs. ground pork [note: the original recipe permitted pretty much anything as a substitute from vegetables to ground turkey)

1 package silken tofu, cut into ½ inch cubes [the package I used was 19 oz.]

½ to ¾ cup frozen peas [they don’t have to be thawed]

§  Mix the first group of ingredients in a bowl to make the sauce. Adjust seasonings as you see fit.

§  Preheat oil in a sauté pan over medium-high heat.  Once it’s hot, sauté garlic, ginger, and scallions for about 30 seconds.

§  Add the ground pork, and break it up with a wooden spoon. When the meat is cooked, drain off any excess oil [this takes some time: carefully pour off what you can, and use paper towels to blot up the rest].

§  Add sauce mixture.  Stir to combine, then add the tofu and peas. If the sauce seems thick, add some water and cook until the tofu is heated through.  Handle the mixture gently so you don’t mash up the tofu.

§  Serve with white rice, and extra Sriracha, if desired.

Soba Noodle Salad with Vegetables and Tofu

I have been a little indulgent lately with my recipes.  Personally, I think that everything could be significantly less healthy.  I avoid processed foods in my recipes, and try to incorporate some sort of nutritional value and balance, even if it is merely broccoli as a consolation prize to healthfulness (see previous post).  However, I will acknowledge the abundance of cheese, and frequent use of simple carbohydrates.  In a temporary attempt at balance, I made a cheese-free dish, full of whole grains, fiber, and raw vegetables: soba noodle salad with vegetables and tofu (mind you, those are buckwheat noodles).  I honestly love tofu, and in this dish, it is simply cubed and tossed in (no roasting or frying). So if you are generally skeptical of tofu, this is probably not for you, but I think you could easily substitute another lean protein (chicken breast, pork loin?)  I found this recipe online; it’s from Cooking Light Magazine, but I made a few changes due to personal preference.

Soba Noodle Salad (adapted from Cooking Light Magazine)

Ingredients

DRESSING:

¼ cup soy sauce

1 tablespoon packed brown sugar

1 tablespoon sesame seeds, toasted (plus extra for garnish)

1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger

3 tablespoon rice vinegar

2 teaspoons dark sesame oil

1 garlic clove, cracked

1 teaspoon Sriracha*


SALAD:

8 ounces uncooked soba noodles

3 cups very thinly sliced Napa (Chinese) cabbage

½ red bell pepper, cut into thin strips

1 cup shredded carrot

Chopped scallions for garnish

1 package firm tofu, drained and cut into ½ inch cubes

Preparation

Put a pot of water onto boil and cook soba noodles according to the directions on the package.

To prepare dressing, combine first 8 in a small bowl; stir with a whisk.  If you have time, you may want to prepare the dressing first so you can allow it to sit and the garlic flavor can infuse.  Remove the garlic clove before assembling the salad.

To prepare salad, combine noodles and remaining ingredients in a large bowl. Drizzle with dressing, tossing well to coat.  Garnish with scallions, extra sesame seeds, and extra Sriracha if desired.

Comments:

The final product has a clean, fresh flavor, but it’s a little flat.  The original recipe calls for orange juice, which I omitted because I don’t like it.  However, a tablespoon or so of citrus juice (perhaps lime) may have rounded it out.  As the salad wasn’t particularly spicy, I feel the dressing could have handled two teaspoons of Sriracha.  However, this is easily amended by an extra drizzle, as garnish.  If you want it more garlicky, you could grate or paste a small garlic clove and add it to the dressing, but I enjoyed the purity of the flavor as is, with just a hint of garlic.  Be warned: tossing the ingredients will cause the tofu to break up a little bit, making for a less than pristine aesthetic.  The original recipe also calls for bean sprouts, which I regret omitting.  They would have added a nice dimension.  This recipe makes a HUGE quantity, almost too much.  I see no reason why this recipe couldn’t be halved.  But for grad students entrenched in midterms, the quantity has a practical aspect.  Readily prepared soba noodle salad has its selling point during midterms, even if I was tired of it by the sixth portion.  Sometimes, just sometimes, the perfect meal must be sacrificed for school.  Oh, well.  At the risk of sounding immodest, I am generally adept at avoiding such tragedy.

*See glossary for definitions.