I bought Tofu - Help me make this choice less retarded

[BallsOfaKiwi]

So I haven't cooked with tofu in a while and I know it tastes almost nothing by itself. Always felt it was stupid to do this but then I've been thinking how we buy pasta and rice and other bland things and infuse flavour in it so maybe this spongy thing has a purpose.
I know some Asian restaurants can make it pretty good!

Plus it seems half of the women I meet are trying to be vegetarian which pretty much makes me one if I ever want to invite them to dinner. Curries and stews are fine but I love Asian cooking otherwise so it would be cool to make it work.
Its plain white tofu and I plan to make it with a package of that mixed vegetable wook stuff that has your classic blend of veggies just Asian enough to make it feel exciting and new for us Europeans.
But if you have something else you like to do with tofu then feel free to post it here!

I heard some deserts can be really nice. Never had any myself

 

[JamusActimus]

You can make a nice sciracha honey glaze with sesame seeds

 

[Agent Abe Caprine]

Fry it and throw it in some bibimbap.

 

[Super Guido]

You could make mapo tofu. It doesn't need to be vegetarian, but you can make it without ground meat and vegetable stock in place of chicken stock. Doubanjiang is very salty but it's where the flavor is. Eating it with rice can make it taste less salty.

 

[thejackal2]

Pan fried with a high smoke point oil (eg peanut oil) makes it pretty tasty. Make sure to get all the water out of it first, makes a huge difference in the end product. After it's fried up it's a good protein in pretty much everything.

 

[BallsOfaKiwi]

You can make a nice sciracha honey glaze with sesame seeds

How do you make a good honeglaze without burning it in general? I haven't had much luck except applying it late and that's easier with a big piece of meat.


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Thanks to everyones ideas!

 

[JamusActimus]

How do you make a good honeglaze without burning it in general? I haven't had much luck except applying it late and that's easier with a big piece of meat.


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Thanks to everyones ideas!

I made it twice and it ended up nice each time


I just put honey (rather liquid from a jar) in a pan on low heat ( my stovetop goes from 1-9. I put it at 4)
Add some sciracha, shallots, some herbs ar the end, salt, sesame seeds, vinegar to taste

And you should be good.

 

[pork and beans]

its genuinely really good in miso soup which is really easy to make

 

[mindlessobserver]

The thing that makes Tofu special is that its literally a neutral flavor that can soak up whatever flavor you want.

 

[Randomrando]

If you freeze and then thaw tofu (it only really works for firm/extra firm) it gives it an interesting texture, one could say almost chicken-like. I like to freeze/thaw mine twice then use it kind of like chicken, just add a little more sauce for it to absorb or I'll marinate it in a little veggie broth before use.

My go to stir fry sauce is soysauce, maple syrup, and Tahiti(gives a creamy-ness), if you like spice add some red pepper flakes. Combine in a small bowl, taste test until you're satisfied. Take a spoonful of that mix and combine it with a spoonful cornstarch to make a roux and then add back to main mixture, add maybe a half cup of water and then saute your tofu, maybe 10-15 mins? The sauce will start to thicken up, add in your veg/noodles and you're good to go.

 

[wtfNeedSignUp]

Tofu is nice in salads and soups where having a meat can affect the texture.

 

[Valstrax]

Fry some up with some mushrooms, bok choy and udon noodles with soy sauce, makes for some great stir fry.

 

[Aiōn]

After pressing I like to cube and crisp mine up in the air fryer beforehand. Marinating and baking it works well too.

 

[Kurt Eichenwald]

You can disguise it by putting it into some scrambled eggs, but don't forget the salt.

 

[Grub]

I haven't had tofu for quite a while now but I used to like cutting it into pieces, breading them with cornstarch then frying them up until they get crispy. It's nice on a salad like that.