5.10.2012

wassup hippies? bbq tofu, that's what!

i mentioned in my last post that i have recently tried two, count em 2! tofu recipes that turned out perfectly and i'm going to be sharing both recipes here. word to your mother, it has been a long and painful road with me and the bean curd. way back when, when we were vegan, i tried multiple recipes and outside of one yummy olive dip, nothing tofu-based ever tasted right to me. and tofu without the right consistency is like the most unyummy thing ever. but as of late i've figured this bidg out.

this recipe for barbecued tofu is quick to make, easy, baked (not fried), and tastes as good as or better than bbq tofu i've had at vegetarian restauarants. also? cheap! and? the toddler ate it UP. so like one thousand points of winning on this recipe. without further ado...
bbq tofu: what you need...
- 1 package firm or extra firm tofu
- cooking spray (oil)
- 1/4 cup water
- 2 Tbsp peanut butter, almond butter, or for nut-free use sunflower butter
- 1 Tbsp soy sauce
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 1/4 tsp ground black pepper
- 1 bottle of bbq sauce (we like Trader Joe's  Bold & Smoky Kansas City Style - has a little kick to it!)

the trick to a great tofu consistency...
the night before you make this recipe, cut a slit along the top and one side edge of your tofu package. drain all of the water out of the package, then gently press the still-covered top while holding the package over a sink so that you are squeezing and draining some additional liquid out of the tofu. don't press too hard or the tofu will buckle and start to crumble, but use a firm pressure with your whole palm. don't worry about getting all the liquid out, but do what you can.

then throw that bad boy in the freezer, still in its package, for at least 12  hours.

when you're ready to cook, remove the tofu from the freezer and remove it from the package to a microwave safe plate. cook the tofu on "defrost" (times vary depending on microwave, ours takes about 8 minutes on the defrost setting). once defrosted, use your whole palm to squeeze remaining liquid out of the tofu. you'll be surprised how much comes out.

voila! you've now created a tofu with that wonderful restaurant-style consistency that you get at good chinese restaurants. whoot!

bbq tofu: what you do...
- preheat oven to 350'
- cut your thawed/drained tofu into 1/2" strips
- do a nice layer of your cooking spray on a cookie sheet
- lay your tofu strips out on the cookie sheet
- in a small bowl mix together the ingredients water-through-black pepper to make a nice paste
- ladle the paste evenly over your tofu strips and then use the palm of your hand to mash the paste into the tofu
- bake for 15 minutes
- turn over the tofu strips, spray lightly with cooking spray, and bake another 10 minutes
- pour barbecue sauce over the strips (we use about 1/3 of the bottle) and then cook another 10 minutes

done! serve on its own, on a sandwich, over brown rice, or however you like to eat your barbecue. so good!

NOTE - if you stop at the 2nd to last step, you've made delicious tofu strips that are great in salads, over pastas, etc. even without the bbq sauce.

both this recipe and the other one i'll be sharing are modified from this awesome cookbook i found at the thrift store "Tofu Cookery" copyright 1982 & 1991. we've made several other of the recipes as well and they are all rock and roll. if you spot it in your travels, i would highly recommend picking it up!

now go eat your barbecue. enjoy! :)

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