The Magical Curd

Tofu techniques plus FREE Tofu Fest tickets.
by Alex Brown and Evan George

In the ’80s, Americans held more culinary contempt for two foods than all the other food groups combined: sushi and tofu. “Raw fish, oh yeah, that sounds good,” or, “What in the hell is tofu!” Thank god those days are over. On August 12, L.A.’s Little Tokyo will shut down for its annual Tofu Festival and we wanted to partake in the festivities by profiling our favorite ways of working with this magical curd. Below are some simple techniques for bending the stubborn stuff to your will. Next week, we’ll offer a couple of our favorite tofu recipes. In the meantime, if you have one of your own you’d like to share, tell us about it at www.laalternative.com/hotknives. The first five peeps will receive a pair of tickets to the Tofu Fest!

Fried Tofu TIPS
1 block extra firm tofu
1 phonebook
1 egg
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup chickpea flour
1-2 cups canola oil

1. Remove the brick of tofu from packaging, being careful not to let it crumble (always use extra firm). Set it on a cutting board draped with paper towels and place another layer of towels on top of the tofu. Then squarely place a phone book, or an object of equal weight and shape, on top of the tofu. Let sit for about 10 minutes and flip the tofu over. This will drain all that gooey water that prevents the tofu from soaking up the flavors you want it to.

2. In a deep dish or flat-bottomed bowl, break the egg and scramble thoroughly. Set aside. Combine the flours on a large plate and season (Salt and pepper may do the trick for some recipes, for others add a touch of cayenne pepper or curry powder). Slice your drained tofu into the desired size pieces for the particular recipe. Then, place a couple pieces at a time in the egg, roll them around until thoroughly covered, and repeat with flour mixture. Pat off excess flour.

3. Heat the oil in a large wok on high. After about 5 minutes the oil will be hot enough to begin frying. Place one round of pieces in the wok and flip after a couple minutes or once the first side seems to brown slightly. Remove when both sides seem to be firm and crunchy, and let sit on paper towels to remove excess oil.

Marinate on This!
1 block extra firm tofu
2 limes
1/3 cup soy sauce
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
4 Tbs. seasoned rice wine vinegar
2 Tbs. ground cumin
2 Tbs. ground pepper
6 cloves garlic, sliced
1 cup cilantro, leaves only
1 gallon size Ziploc bag
1 drinking straw
1 phonebook

1. Press your tofu with a phonebook (per above instructions)

2. Zest and juice the limes. In a bowl, whisk together the lime juice, soy sauce, olive oil and rice wine vinegar. Add spices and whisk again.

3. Now slice the tofu lengthwise about 1/4 inch thick, taking care not to break each piece. Place two pieces of tofu, long edges touching, on the bottom of your Ziploc bag, the zipper facing the ceiling. Cover the face of the tofu with garlic slices, and then some cilantro leaves. Build the tofu brick back up bit by bit, alternating tofu, garlic, cilantro. Once your flavor cube is erect, carefully dump the marinade into the bag. Zip shut, leaving one corner open just enough to fit your straw into. Suck out all the excess air. All of it. Place the phonebook on top of the bag for 30 minutes, or overnight in your fridge. Carefully turn at least once so that the tofu marinates evenly.

4. Sear tofu slices on a high flame in a lightly oiled skillet 2-3 minutes on each side. Add splashes of marinade and cook off before serving.