Thursday
Indian spiced peas with tofu (recipe in the comments)
Okra supreme
Naan (Trader Joe's frozen)
Oreos
Hot tea
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Alright, I have to fess up. M and I used to have trouble with tofu. Yes, we're part of the legions of people who had eaten far too much mushy, slimy, flavorless tofu to feel completely confident about tofu as a food, much less a food we wanted to eat. For years, despite eating a relatively low meat diet, we NEVER ate tofu at home. It was just too scary. The revolution occurred due to two friends (F and S), who both prepared tofu for us in wonderful ways we enjoyed. Thus, a quest began. If tofu could be good, we had to master it. I now look for tofu recipes EVERYWHERE. We have mastered a few techniques (light pan frying and roasting) that lead to fantastic texture without sacrificing the health benefits of this wonderful protein. Even if the recipe at hand has a questionable preparation, but a great sounding sauce, we can usually use one of these methods and get an excellent product. This is a case in point. Score another point each for both our Indian and tofu recipe arsenals.
* We have previously made this with rice instead of naan as our side dish. Rice is better as the peas are quite saucy.
Prep Notes
Difficulty: Easy
Chopping: Tofu, onion, ginger
Time: 40 minutes
Make ahead: You can make the tofu recipe ahead and reheat, but the okra should be made last minute.
Reaction
J: "Another tofu success!!!!"
M: "Tofu triumph!"
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4 comments:
Indian Spiced Peas with Tofu – M & J (inspired by Whole Foods)
Serves 3 - 4
2 T canola oil
14 oz extra firm tofu, drained and patted dry
2 medium onions, thinly sliced
1.5” ginger, peeled and chopped
1 T garam masala
1 28 oz can diced tomatoes, undrained
1 lb frozen peas, defrosted
Juice from ½ lime
Salt and pepper
Chopped mint (optional)
Slice tofu block into 8 crosswise slices. Crumble each into uneven pieces. Heat 1 T of oil in a large flat bottomed skillet over medium-high heat. Cook tofu in a single layer, without turning, for 5 minutes or until browned. Turn and cook for 4-5 minutes until browned. Gently toss until evenly browned. Remove tofu.
Heat additional 1 T oil and sauté onions and ginger until onions are golden. Add garam masala and tomatoes and simmer for 5 minutes. Add lime juice, peas, and reserved tofu, cover and lower heat, simmer an additional 10 minutes. Season to taste and serve sprinkled with chopped mint.
I made your spinach kugel (from a post from last week or so?) and it was quite tasty! I forgot to add the lemon and I can report that it was still good, although the flavor was a bit heavy and I think the citrus would have added a high note to the flavor that would lighten the mood. Ed's reaction, "Good bless J&M"
Mine: "the dark flavor is a bit Russian, but if that's wrong, i don't want to be right"
I am intrigued by this recipe (I'm always looking for a good tofu recipe). Is garam masala a paste?
Flynn - you make me laugh so hard I snort. And, yes, you are the "F" in our tofu conversion story (stand back folks, Tofu Loaf is on the way!). This *is* a good tofu recipe and very easy. I am toying with the idea of draining half the tomato juice instead of leaving it all undrained, as it seemed *very* juicy. I'd reserve it though, just in case that was a fluke.
Garam masala is a spice mixture that you should be able to get at most grocery stores. You can also make it yourself, but need access to an Indian market for the base spices (and they'd probably sell it pre-made there). We use it in a lot of our curries. Stay tuned for more tofu recipes - it really has become a quest.
I certainly wouldn't mind it if you posted (or emailed me) some of your favorite tofu things - I'd try them since you earned such a good tofu reputation with that loaf :)
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