A guide to healthier shopping and eating
Tofu Heaven
What & Where?
Tofu is the Japanese word for bean curd. It is made from soya beans which
means that it’s very high in protein and low in fat. In fact it’s
the richest and cheapest source of protein available in the world. It
is sold in packets in the following varieties and locations:
- Plain medium-firm,
such as Cauldron Foods brand – available in most supermarkets in
the chilled cabinets. Oriental supermarkets are also a good source (and
often cheaper)
- Smoked tofu – also
Cauldron but you can buy other brands in health stores
- Marinated tofu – Cauldron
and other companies – available in health stores
- Silken tofu – Mori–Nu
make silken tofu, a wonderful egg–replacer for quiches, mousses and
suchlike. It
comes in different coloured packets. We tend to use the red (soft)
or blue (firm) varieties, but they also make an enriched (higher in calcium)
version, as well as ‘lite’ versions, which take this already
low–fat
food down to zero! Available from large supermarkets, Oriental stores
and health stores.
How?
It looks and feels a bit like a soggy sponge(!!) – but don’t
worry, it absorbs flavours really well. If you buy the plain version,
try our two methods below!
How to cook plain, firm tofu
Use this in stir-fries, Thai, Japanese etc dishes
1 slab of firm tofu, drained
Garlic paste (optional)
Sunflower oil for frying
Soya sauce like Kikkoman, Sanchi or Clearspring
1. Mop up the tofu’s excess dampness
with kitchen paper or a clean tea towel.
2. Slice it long ways into 2 ‘steaks’.
3. Add garlic paste if using.
4. Sauté the tofu (fry gently) in a
little sunflower oil till golden brown on each side.
5. When it’s done, add a bit of shoyu
in the pan and let it coat each side of the tofu.
6. Drain on kitchen paper.
7. You can use these tofu steaks as they are
or else slice into cubes and add to the rest of the ingredients near the
end of cooking time.
Soakin’ Sauce for Tofu
Here’s another way to prepare plain tofu for a stir fry.
1 pack plain tofu, sliced lengthways into ‘steaks’
1 heaped tsp grated ginger
2 cloves garlic crushed
2 tsp brown sugar
1 tbsp vegetable oil
2 tbsp soya sauce (see above for suitable brands)
1. Mix all the above together, place tofu ‘steaks’ in
a dish and pour liquid over them.
2. Mop up excess liquid with kitchen paper
or a clean tea towel.
3. If you’re in a rush, fry tofu straight
away, until golden brown and crispy on outside.
4. If not, soak the tofu in the sauce for anything
from 20 minutes to 24 hours.
5. Drain and mop up as above.
6. Fry in oil in a wok or frying pan as above.
You can also deep fry it! That’s what the Chinese do to get
that golden crispy texture on the outside and creamy middle.
Smoked or ready-made marinated tofu is much stronger in taste and ready
to cook without flavouring first. It all depends on what sort of savoury
dish you are going to add the tofu to – if you are using a highly flavoured
sauce, plain is probably better.
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