Thank you for the marinade idea; tried it and it turned out great and tasty (if a bit salty because of the soy sauce). Tried a honey & mustard based marinade since then that turned out equally great. Will try a curry marinade next.
You can also try battering long thin slices of tofu in seasoned cornstarch (no egg wash), then frying in a quarter inch of vegetable oil. This makes some nice, crunchy tofu. Itll still be bland, but will pick up sauces better and have a neat texture.
still tastes bland
marinate it after pressing it.
edit: lemon, lime, garlic, ginger, cumin, soy sauce, apple cider vinegar, little brown sugar or honey, siracha and peanut butter, as a marinade. then fry it and add it to some noodlies with whatever veggies and maybe some sesame
I'm just getting into tofu as well, but buy the extra firm, press in between paper towels (don't go crazy but try to get most of the liquid out), slice it thin, marinate in soy sauce, sesame oil, MSG, and whatever other spices you want for half an hour to a few hours, then fry it up in sesame oil mixed with a high smoke point oil until its brown and crispy on the outside.
Tofu has a pretty subtle flavor on its own, think of it more as a vehicle for sauces and marinades, and play around with different ways of cooking to get different texture
Extra firm tofu, press that shit and get the water out. Shouldn't be glossy looking. Cut it into about 1/4 inch thick rectangles. Put some olive oil in a pan on medium heat and y lay the tofu on to the heated oil (don't let the oil get too hot though). Time will depend but you want to get a nice golden brown on the down side before you flip it and do the same for the other side. The olive oil will end up soaking in a little and it frys really nicely.
Once it's done, season liberally with salt and pepper. Don't skimp on the salt especially tofu needs it. Serve hot for most enjoyment, throw them in a sandwich or whatever. The same method words for cubes too for like stir frys, just make sure you turn to get all the sides.
1 packet ramen, 1 block tofu 1 big spoonful of miso 1 handful of scallions or green onion Eyeball the right amount of water
Blend together water, sauce packet, and miso
Bring to a boil with tofu in it
Add ramen
Cook for 3 minutes
While cooking, dice onions
Serve ramen with onions as garnish
It's around 3 dollars, takes a minute, and is a pretty tasty way to eat tofu
I use firm since I like the texture better, but it doesn't super matter.
I haven't made this recipe specifically, but have really liked their other stuff
https://sweetsimplevegan.com/2020/09/crispy-baked-tofu/
My favorite thing to do is tofu scramble.
Get firm or extra firm tofu and press that shit.
While the tofu is pressing, chop up an onion and a bell pepper and toss them in a pan with some oil. Add salt and pepper, oregano, cumin, maybe some garlic, whatever you want. Cook for awhile and if you want to add a can of chopped green chilies, I'd recommend that too.
Add the tofu and break it up, put in enough turmeric for color and I usually add some curry powder too. Put in some more salt and pepper, maybe more oregano and cumin, you know, season the thing. Also put in a healthy squeeze of mustard.
Give the tofu like 5-7 minutes to cook, it's not very precise. Then I always add a can of either pintos or black beans, drained and rinsed. Cook until the beans are starting to split open, add more salt and spices if needed, then boom, it's done.
Serve with salsa, or in burritos, or over hash browns, you know, use your imagination. I also strongly suggest making janky chilaquiles with any leftovers. Put a layer of crushed up tortilla chips in a bowl, add the scramble and some salsa or enchilada sauce, microwave until hot.
I'm not familiar with American tofu, but I like to cut the block into wedges, and cook them on the pan with oil for quite a while on medium heat until they are pretty firm, then take them out again. Then cook your stir-fry normally, maybe extra saucy for the tofu to absorb when you add them back in at the end.
