This Can't Be Tofu! (6 page)

MAKES ABOUT 3
½
CUPS

This crunchy dish looks like ground pork laced with dark green spinach leaves. In fact, you could mix some pork with the tofu, but it’s quite good just as it is. Amazingly, the large amount of ginger doesn’t overwhelm, and leftovers keep for days. Nothing if not versatile, gingered tofu can be spooned over rice, tossed with Chinese egg noodles, scattered over a noodle cake, and used as a filling for spring rolls, wontons, or lettuce or cabbage leaves
.

1.
Mash and dissolve the tamarind paste into ½ cup boiling water. If it doesn’t dissolve evenly, use a rubber scraper to force it through a strainer. Stir in the barley malt syrup. Crumble the tofu with your hands. It should resemble ground meat, but don’t worry about making the pieces even in size.

2.
Heat a skillet or wok, then add 1 tablespoon oil. When hot and fragrant, add the garlic and shallots and stir-fry for about 1 minute. Remove to a bowl.

3.
Return the pan to the heat, add the remaining oil and when hot, add the tofu. Stir-fry, breaking up any larger chunks, until it’s firm and dry. Add the diluted tamarind, cooked garlic and shallots, and ginger. Season with 1 teaspoon salt and cook for about 3 minutes. Add the peanuts and cilantro, and season well with pepper. Remove to a bowl.

4.
Add the spinach to the pan with a pinch of salt, and stir-fry until wilted. Pour off any juices, then return the tofu mixture to the pan, add the scallions, and toss well. Taste for salt and season with more pepper, if desired. Mound in a bowl or on a platter and garnish with cilantro sprigs.

Deep-frying the tofu will give it the chewiest texture, but you can also shallow-fry it in a few tablespoons of oil until golden and crisp, or fry it in a dry nonstick skillet until firm, although this won’t yield the crispness that makes the dish so nice. Just remember that if you plan to deep-fry, press out as much water as possible beforehand so that the tofu doesn’t splatter
.

Serve the golden tofu mounded on a plate with toothpicks on the side and a bowl of the cashew-laden dipping sauce. Or skewer a few pieces on small bamboo sticks, stack them log cabin–style on the plate, and pour the sauce over them
.

1.
Press the tofu for at least 15 minutes, according to
these instructions
, if you’re deep-frying. Cut the tofu so that you end up with about sixteen 1-inch cubes or triangles. Tofu comes in different shapes and sizes, and exact measurements aren’t always easy to determine, but aim for generous, bite-sized pieces. Blot again with paper towels, once it’s cut, to wick up any excess moisture.

2.
Meanwhile, combine the vinegar, sugar, and salt in a sauce pan and simmer until bubbles appear all over the surface and the mixture looks slightly syrupy. Remove from the heat and add the remaining ingredients. Place in a serving bowl.

3.
Fry the tofu according to the method you wish to use, then set briefly on toweling to drain. Heap the tofu on a plate or skewer it, garnish with pretty sprigs of cilantro, and serve with the sweet-and-spicy sauce.

Nibble on these hot crunchy pieces before a meal, or toss them while hot into a spinach or watercress salad. There is a bit of oil in this recipe—the dark flavorful sesame oil in the marinade, and the peanut oil for frying—which is why I suggest them as an appetizer rather than as a main course. However, by the time you’ve finished, you’ll be convinced that a good part of the oil has stayed behind—in the marinating dish, in the frying pan, but mostly over your stove. It does splatter, so don’t wear your good clothes while frying
.

1.
Press the bulk of the water out of the tofu by wrapping it in cloth or paper toweling and setting a heavy object on top for 10 minutes or so. Then, slice it lengthwise into narrow slabs about ⅜ inch thick, and cut each slab into strips, about ⅜ inch wide. Lift them with a spatula onto fresh paper towels and cover with a second layer of towels to wick away any excess moisture.

2.
Mix the sesame oil, soy sauce, lime juice, and cornstarch together in a glass pie plate. Gently add the tofu pieces, using a rubber scraper to turn them once so that they’re coated with the marinade. Set aside for 30 minutes to several hours.

3.
Place a cast-iron skillet on the stove over medium heat for 3 to 4 minutes. While it’s heating, sprinkle half the sesame seeds over a large plate. Lift the tofu out of its marinade, letting any oil remain in the pan, and set it on the sesame seeds. Sprinkle the remaining seeds over the top.

4.
Add the peanut oil to the heated skillet. As soon as it’s hot enough to sizzle a piece of tofu, add 6 or 7 pieces and fry until dark gold and firm, 2 to 3 minutes, turning them as they cook so that they brown on all sides. Remove the finished pieces to paper toweling to drain and continue frying.

5.
When all the pieces are fried, mound them on a pretty plate and season with sea salt and freshly ground pepper. Serve right away.

These dark, crispy, piquant bites can be served alone or dipped into virtually any sauce from soy sauce to balsamic vinegar to mayonnaise. They’re also a very good addition to the
Warm Red Cabbage Salad
. If you don’t want to fry all the tofu at once, it will keep, refrigerated, in its marinade for several days
.

1.
Cut the tofu crosswise into slabs ¾ to 1 inch thick, then lay them on several thicknesses of paper towels. Cover with additional towels and press firmly to absorb the water. Cut it into cubes and put them in a bowl. Toss with the soy sauce, black pepper, red pepper flakes, and salt.

2.
Mix the rice wine with the cornstarch and flour. Pour it over the seasoned tofu and toss well. Add the cilantro and toss once more.

3.
Heat the oil in a heavy 8-inch skillet until it sizzles when a piece of tofu is added. Fry about 8 pieces at a time until golden, then scoop them out and drain on paper toweling. Fry as many pieces as you wish to serve, set them on a plate or in a napkin-lined basket, and serve right away.

Deep-frying gives the tofu a golden crust and a soft interior, which is especially appealing when the tofu is skewered and dipped in a pungent peanut sauce. If deep-frying isn’t something you want to do, you can shallow-fry the tofu or simply brown it in a dry, or lightly oiled, skillet. The textural contrast won’t be as evident, but with the peanut sauce on board, it will still be very good
.

1.
Drain, then wrap the tofu and press it well. It should be quite dry since you’ll be deep-frying it. (In the meantime, make the peanut sauce.) Cut the tofu into cubes about ¾ inch across.