We love tofu. I know I know…..you can’t eat too much soy. Over 90% of soy is genetically modified so eating organic is a must. But when we do eat tofu, we eat un-adulterated tofu. We don’t eat tofurkey or tofu burger or tempeh. We eat silken tofu cold, Japanese style (Hiyayako) with Bonito flakes (shaved dried fish flakes), scallions, and soy sauce. I make Chinese style “Mapo Tofu” with spicy bean paste and ground pork. But one of my favorite ways is Korean style. The only thing I don’t like about it is that they don’t last long because everyone just wolfs them down. We have them with hot rice but you can have them with just about anything.
Korean Style Tofu Recipe
1 container of Firm or Extra Firm Organic Tofu – sliced in 1/2″ thick
1/4 C olive oil
1/2 C of soy sauce or Tamari
1/2 C cold water
1/2 C chopped scallions
6 garlic cloves, minced
1 tbsp red pepper flakes (optional)
1 tsp black sesame seeds (optional)
1 tsp of grated ginger (optional)
Direction
Combine scallions, garlic, pepper flakes (optional), ginger (optional) water and soy sauce in a med bowl.
Heavenly combo.
Pat dry tofu slices or drain the water by putting the slices on a cutting board and leave it slanted against something underneath for about half an hour.
Or you can pat them dry with clean kitchen towel.
Heat skillet or pan on medium heat. Brown tofu slices on both sides. This is the hard part. Tofu will undoubtedly stick to the pan if not careful. If you have a ceramic coated non-stick pan, this will be a piece of cake. I have stainless steel pan and it can be a disaster. But I use enough oil (thank goodness olive oil is good for you – just DO NOT heat in high heat to retain its goodness) and I make sure to tilt the pan to get the oil underneath the tofu so that they won’t stick. Make sure NOT to flip the tofu too many times because they will crumble. Just lift the edges a little so that oil can get underneath them. Browning one side should take about 5 minutes or so, depending on your stove. Then, turn them over carefully to brown the other side. When both sides are brown, put the tofu pieces on a single layer.
You see the yummy crunchy brown bits? Save them and add them to the sauce.
Spoon the soy sauce mixture on top of the tofu layer. Add more tofu on top of the sauce, and repeat the process.
Serve immediately. But if you make extra, you can spoon the sauce on top of the tofu layers and store them in a glass container. You can eat them cold or reheat in a pan or in a microwave. If you don’t want to bother with browning, you can drizzle the marinade over a cold or steamed tofu too. Store unused marinade in a glass jar for up to two weeks in the refrigerator.
This dish has been a hit with the kids since I can make them with Tamari and serve with brown rice.
No Wheat, no dairy, and no eggs! A perfect meal.
P.S. If you don’t want to use oil to brown them, you can bake them in the oven at 350 degrees F first before topping them with season soy sauce. Yup. That works really well too. Kinda crispy on the outside and not oily. But be aware; it. takes. time. A. very. long. time. I don’t have patience so I don’t bake them.
Korean Style Tofu Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 container of Firm or Extra Firm Organic Tofu sliced ½" in thickness
- 1/4 C olive oil
- 1/2 C chopped scallions
- 6 cloves garlic minced
- 1 tbsp red pepper flakes
- 1 tsp black sesame seeds reserve a pinch for garnish
- 1 tsp of grated ginger
- 1/2 C cold water
- 1/2 C soy sauce or Tamari
Instructions
- Combine scallions, garlic, pepper flakes, ginger, water and soy sauce in a medium bowl.
- Pat dry tofu slices or drain the water by putting the slices on a cutting board and leaving them slanted against something underneath for about half an hour.
- Heat skillet or pan on medium heat. Brown tofu slices on both sides. This is the hard part. Tofu will undoubtedly stick to the pan if not careful. If you have a ceramic coated non-stick pan, this will be a piece of cake. I have stainless steel pan and it can be a disaster so I heat the pan hot, add oil before adding the tofu slices. And I make sure to tilt the pan to get the oil underneath the tofu so that they won't stick. Make sure NOT to flip the tofu too many times because they will crumble. Just lift the edges a little so that oil can get underneath them. Browning one side should take about 5 minutes or so, depending on your stove. Then, turn them over carefully to brown the other side. When both sides are brown, put the tofu pieces on a single layer.
- Add the fried tofu in a medium sauce pan. Then, spoon the seasoned soy sauce mixture on top. Add more tofu on top of the sauce, and then, sauce. Repeat until soo the tofu pieces are seasoned with soy sauce.
- Bring the pan to boil on medium heat. Once the soy sauce boils, reduce the heat and simmer for 5 minutes. Garnish with remaining black sesame seeds and serve while it's hot.
This looks so good! I just bought tofu today so … I’m going to try this! Thanks for sharing!
i just made this for my partner and it is awesome! thanks for posting it!
That is great! So glad you liked it! Thanks for letting me know.
Oooh, good tip. Thanks!
Beautiful pics and you cut the tofu so perfectly! For some reason I cannot cut in a straight line. Boo!
Crystal,
The trick is to use a knife that is long enough to cover the whole length of the tofu and come down straight. There’s no sawing action…just straight down. And tofu is soft enough that a knife can cut right through.
Alright, when should I be over then? Yummmm!!!
He he….you let me know when and I’ll get the skillet going.
Sounds seriously delish! Adding it to my slowly expanding vegetarian meals list.
If you kids like tofu, this makes a great bento item!!
You should try making them. You’ll love the taste. And when you do, come back and let me know what you thought of it!
Oh this looks wonderful! and I like the black sesame seeds!
Oh yum! That looks fantastical.