I offer this dish as another quick Asian dish that can be prepared in 15 minutes or less, in honor of Jaden’s birthday:
Two Tofus, Two Ways
Growing up, my mom would make this cold tofu dish. We ate it with rice and it was so easy to eat, so soft and silky and really tasty. When I left home, this was one dish I tried to recreate. I’ve made it enough now that I’ve forgotten my mom’s version (I think she used to add Thai bird chillies and chopped dried shrimp in her version) and they’re truly my own.
I just made it recently for lunch and between Nate and I, we finished that block up in no time at all.
Cold Tofu topped with Fried Shallots and Garlic in an Oyster-Soy Sauce
Ingredients:
1 14-16 oz block of silken tofu
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 large or 4 small shallots, halved and sliced
1 Tbsp oyster sauce
3 tsp soy sauce
½ tsp kicap manis or thick soy sauce
1 Tbsp vegetable oil
1 Tbsp sesame oil
half bunch of green onions, diced
Method:
- Run a knife along the edges of the tofu tub and turn tofu over onto a plate.
- Heat up a small frying pan. Add vegetable oil and heat on med heat.
- Add sliced shallots and fry till light golden brown.
- Add garlic and fry for another 30 seconds.
- Add sesame oil, soy sauce, oyster sauce, and kicap manis. Stir around. Lower heat a little and watch that the sauce doesn’t burn.
- Throw in most of the green onions, saving 3 Tbsp for garnish. Remove from heat.
- Drain whatever water has come out of the tofu. Now, pour the shallot-garlic sauce over the top of the dish and garnish with remaining green onions.
Along with that dish, I also pan-fried some egg tofu. I’ve always loved this style of egg tofu in Malaysia. There, they were normally deep-fried and then braised or sauced over other vegetables and meats. For the longest time, I could never find these tubes anywhere in the US. But recently, they started showing up at the 99 Ranch Markets. I swooped up 4 tubes of them at my last visit. If you can get them, you have to give them a try.
Cooking them is really simple. I normally slice them into half-inch rounds and throw them on a non-stick pan with a little bit of oil. After 3-4 mins on med-high heat, I flip them on the other side and fry the other side till they are golden brown too. They are so tasty, you could eat them like that.
But if you want to boost their flavor even more, just make a little sauce of 1 tbsp oyster sauce, 3 tsp soy sauce, dash of white pepper, 4 tbsp water and 1 tsp cornstarch. Mix that together, turn the heat down to med-low and throw it into the pan with the tofu and gently fold. If the sauce gets too thick, just add a little bit more water. Dish up and enjoy!
Cheers, Annie
Five Quick Asian Dishes Series:
“1-4-7” Steamed Eggs
Two Tofus, Two Ways
Mustard Potatoes
Stir-Fried Beef with Ginger and Egg
Steamed Shiitake Mushrooms with Bok Choy and Fatt Choy
>”…but let’s see if the cow can represent!”
LOL. Voted! =)
>The shallot sauce sounds to die for!!
>This is amazing. You’ve given me a few idea now! Thanks.
Sid
>@TS – Thanks for voting!
@Esi – You’ll never eat plain tofu again!
@Sid – Take the idea and run! Just make sure to credit us later. LOL
>I think the closest Ranch 99 to me is about 10 miles away in Cupertino, CA. I’ve been meaning to make the trip over there for quite some time now, and the egg tofu might just be the catalyst that it takes to get me off my duff…
-Jen (http://www.ModernBeet.com)
>@Jen – You could go crazy in the Ranch!
>YES! EGG TOFU! that stuff is the BEST.
and I voted!
>I love egg tofu but can’t find it anywhere around here in the DC area!
>I’ve never had egg tofu ( I think)! I feel so deprived. Time to go yell at my mom.
>Cool presentation. Never had egg tofu but I’m sure I’ll like it.
>@Daniel – You’re so right. It’s got really nice flavor.
Thanks for voting! 🙂
@carmencooks – There’s got to be an Asian grocery around where you can find products from China and Taiwan, right? I would hope so.
@Jessica – why would you want to yell at your mom for?
@Jude – If you can find it, try out this recipe!
>Hi, Annie. I just discovered your blog recently and am enjoying catching up on current as well as older entries.
I will definitely have to try your cold tofu recipe. One question: If you don’t serve it with the fried egg tofu, would you eat it with rice or just on its own?
>@Jenster – welcome! I’d eat it with rice.
>Thanks for sharing the dish and tips. In fact, I have been trying to look for the egg tofu and couldn’t find them… Next time when I go to 99 Ranch, I’ll take a closer look for that tofu.
By the way, love your blog!
>@Elena – I hope you find them so you can try out this dish, and the steamed tofu with ground pork and shrimp one too.
>Hi, I tried your recipe and add some enoki and shiitake mushroom. It was so good. Thanks for sharing :))
>@foodtravelblog – you’re welcome. We love mushrooms too!
Do you cook the tofu (not the egg tofu, the regular tofu block) or is it left raw and the sauce is just laid on top of it? I couldn’t figure out from your instructions if the tofu block is steamed or cooked or is just raw from the container.
Thanks for the info.
Lightspeed,
the tofu block is cold and uncooked, straight out of the container.