How Do You Cook Tofu????

I haven't had tofu in a while but when I do I slice it, dip it in egg then cornmeal and saute it til crispy. Serve it drizzled with soy sauce. Yumm!

If you like Chinese food or other Asian cuisine, you might want to try different tofu recipes at an Asian restaurant first to see what you and your family like and then look up recipes after.

Our family favorites are...
- pan-fried tofu (use medium or firm) with a sauce made up of soy sauce, oyster sauce, ketchup, little sugar, cornstarch, and water. Serve along side a green veggie
- soft tofu with chicken broth, soy sauce, oyster sauce, little sugar, cornstarch and mixed veggies. S & p to taste. Kind of has a chicken a la king consistency.
- deep-fried tofu with medium or firm (not the healthiest but yummy) again serve along side some kind of green veggie

All of the above we have with rice (brown or a mixture of brown and white).

Think of tofu as the vehicle for the taste you want to deliver--kind of like grits. It doesn't have much taste but it will absorb the taste(s) of what it's cooked with.....You could stir fry (very typical use for tofu) or cube it for salads, pasta bakes, etc....

My son loves to eat tofu. He has two favorite ways to eat it.

We usually have about 80 grams of silken tofu crumbled up with a teaspoon of fruit sauce (the kind used for yogurt) mixed into it every morning for breakfast. We like mango and blueberry sauces the best. If you don't have fruit sauces, jam also tastes okay. But not as healthy...
He has been eating this since he was a baby. Loves, loves, loves it. I like it too. It is a really easy way to get protein into your breakfast. Keeps me going all morning when I have this paired with oatmeal.

Another big favorite for our family is iridofu. This is a favorite in Japanese homes. (We live in Japan.) This recipe is one of my favorites. I make this 2 or 3 times a month. Ingredients are easy to get and it cooks up quickly. If you drain the tofu in the morning and keep it wrapped in the fridge until ready to use, this takes about 15 minutes to make. There are 3 people in my family, so we can usually get three meals out of one time cooking. I serve it with genmai rice, miso soup, salad, and fruit.

Iridofu

2 packages firm tofu (800 - 1000 grams total)
1 small carrot (thinly sliced)
about 50 grams of your favorite mushroom: I like maetake or shitake mushrooms (thinly sliced)
Your choice of one of the following green veggies: 10-15 frozen green beans (cut into small pieces), a cup of green peas, or 2 small green peppers chopped up
2 Tbsp cooking oil (I use olive oil or sesame oil.)
3 Tbsp soy sauce (weak)
1 1/2 Tbsp sugar
1 beaten egg

1. Drain tofu of excess water. (Wrap in a kitchen towel or paper towels and place between two dishes with something slightly heavy like a small jar of jam on top of the dish for 30 minutes. Or microwave in a safe Tupperware for 2 minutes. Wrapping gets more of the liquid out resulting in a better tasting end product.)
2. While tofu is draining prepare veggies and egg as indicated above.
3. Heat oil in fry pan. Stir fry carrot and mushrooms for 3 minutes. (If using green peppers, add these at this time as well.)
4. Add soy sauce and sugar.
5. Add tofu and crumble up using a wooden spoon or spatula. (It should be chunky in texture, but if some of the tofu takes on a cottage cheese like texture that is fine.)
6. Cook until most of the liquid is absorbed.
7. Add green beans or green peas at this point.
8. Pour beaten egg over mixture and stir well. It is ready to serve when the egg disappears.
Serves 6-8 as a main dish.
(If you half the recipe on the tofu to 400-500 grams, keep the veggies the same amount, and lower the oil to 1 Tbsp, soy sauce 2 Tbsp, and sugar 1 Tbsp. Still use one beaten egg.)

A third way that we like, but can't always afford depending on the price of fruits: Cut silken tofu into cubes and add it to your favorite combination of fruits. We like it with banana, grapes, persimmons, peaches,strawberries, and kiwi. Choose at least three fruits and make sure one of them is quite juicy. If it's not juicy, add 1 tbsp of grape juice to your fruit salad. Throw in a little crushed jello and top with some homemade whipped cream and it makes a wonderful dessert.

Happy eating!

Like Amanda said, you have to get moisture out. I get the firmest kind. I drain, cut the block into 4 slices and put them on a towel on a cutting board, then a towel on top, then another cutting board + something heavy. About 30 minutes will do it.

I do stir-fried tofu & rice with broccoli, onions & garlic (and soy sauce).

Get the firm kind, press it under towels to soak up moisture then fry it or bake it in anything you want.

I usually fry mine in 1 part olive 1 part butter and agave nectar. then toss in lemon juice and rind and scallions.

Tofu has a lot of water. Even the extra firm.

You can stir fry extra firm tofu, but you need to prep it. Place the whole chunck of tofu on a plate. Put a plate and some weight on top of it, and let it sit there for an hour or so. You may need to pour off some of the liquid at 30 minutes. You can then cut it in cubes and stir fry it with veggies and serve over rice.

You can also cut the tofu into small cubes and cook in broth (either chicken broth or use miso to make a broth). You could throw in some cooked noodles and veggies (carrots or baby bok choi) to make a full meal.

My youngest really likes baked tofu. We just cut some in cubes and feed it to her. She doesn't like meat very much.

I don't.

However, if I were to cook tofu, I would do it in a stir fry or a soup.

this is what I found when I googled "how to cook tofu"

http://www.mahalo.com/how-to-cook-tofu/

I like it in stir frys and vegetable soup(like Kristin W.). I add carrots, celery, bok choi, onions, bell pepper, chicken bouillon, soy sauce, and sesame oil to the soup and cook it in the microwave. I wish I knew how to cook hot and sour soup- the restaurants put lots of tofu in it. For stir fry, I'd add some of the same vegetables plus mushrooms and zucchini, and use teriyaki sauce. I don't worry about getting the extra water out for soup or stir fry.

I also like fried tofu but it's not as healthy. I try to get more of the water out, then coat the pieces with flour or tempura mix and fry in enough oil to cover the bottom of the pan. Cook until golden brown on all sides, then put on paper towels to soak up the excess oil. I like this with a sesame-ginger dipping sauce, but my son has put powdered sugar on it before.

I tried baked tofu recently. It reminded me of a hot dog because of the texture- and because I used bacon drippings to oil the pan ;)

Stir fry is a great idea. Tofu will absorb the taste of whatever you cook it in, so if you can put a little chicken broth in there with the vegetables, it will help it have a distinctive taste.

Dawn

I can only tolerate it in cut small chunks in soups or stir frys, b/c I'm a real texture nut. That said, I've never prepared it myself :) Thanks for asking though, I've been meaning to try as well.

I have a great recipe for tofu with broccoli and peanut sauce. The recipe is in The Enchanted Broccoli Forest cookbook. Basically, you prepare a sauce with peanutbutter, water, vinegar, soy sauce, molasses, and cayenne. While it heats on low, you stir fry your cubed tofu with ginger and garlic powders. Once the tofu is browned, add it to the peanut sauce, then saute a chopped onion. Finally, add chopped broccoli and soy sauce to onions and saute another 3 minutes or so. Combine with the peanut-tofu mixture and serve over brown rice. My whole family loves this meal. I use the extra firm tofu. I always chop it about 30 minutes ahead, then drain it and pat it before using.

Ingredient amounts: Sauce: 1/2 cup peanutbutter, 1/2 cup water, 1/4 cup cider or white vinegar, 2 tablespoons soy sauce, 2 tablespoons molasses, and 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon cayenne. Saute: 1 lb tofu, 1 1/2 teaspoon garlic, 1/4 teaspoon ginger, 3 tablespoons vegetable or peanut oil, 1 lb broccoli (chopped), 2 cups chopped onion, 2 - 3 tablespoons soy sauce