I'd post this is in /food but it appears the rest of the site is filled with people who are very strongly attached to eating corpses right now and i don't really have the energy to deal with people trying to "debate" (use the same tired arguments over and over https://www.godfist.com/vegansidekick/guide.php) right now.

Anyway, this is for people who don't know how to cook with tofu, non-vegan and vegan alike.

Let's start with the myths.

Is tofu bad?

Nope! It seems at most, it might be able to affect your fertility. But even this was only shown in animals with HIGH amounts of soy. But the other negative things you've heard have not played out consistently in studies. You're not gonna grow boobs this way, no matter how much you want them. It does seem to have some mild health benefits, but i wouldn't take these too seriously either, i'm not a doctor but like, it's food and vegan food is generally better for you compared to eating corpses injected with hormones and antibiotics.

https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/what-is-tofu#cancer

https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/vegan-diet-benefits

So whether the cancer protective effect comes from Tofu specifically or just being vegan, idk. It's good, in any case.

Why should i eat Tofu?

It's got that protein, and it has all the essential acids, making it a complete protein. One pack has around 40 grams of protein and costs around $2 where i'm at, making it a really cheap way to fill up. I guess it also has low carbs and decently low calories (~400 per block) which is probably good if you're trying to lose weight. I'm not about that life, but idk that's a thing. Anyway, i eat this for the protein and because it's hilariously easy.

How do i actually cook it

Before we start, plan to make your tofu like, 3 days from now. Tofu is notoriously bland out of package, so you're gonna need time to marinade it. I'd recommend getting a few blocks at a time so you can always have a couple blocks rotating through the steps at a time.

Let's start with this: https://thehiddenveggies.com/tofu-marinade/

Day -3: decide on a marinade. Buy marinade things + tofu. Stick Tofu in freezer overnight. Make sure you have plastic baggies or a shallow dish at some point, and some way to bake these.

Day -2: Take Tofu out of freezer, let thaw in fridge.

Day -1: It's prep time! This is where 95% of the work of making this comes in, but it's not too bad, just a few minutes of stirring and mostly waiting.

1. Press Tofu. If you don't have a tofu press, it's fine, just grab one of your math books or a heavy pot or something idk. So you're gonna cut open the tofu container, drain the tofu water, wrap your tofu in paper towel or a clean kitchen towel, put a heavy thing on it. The recipe says 15 min, but i sometimes let it press for an hour or longer though it seems to give diminishing returns. I'd recommend pressing it for 25 min or longer if you don't have a tofu press as it won't be as effective. The more water is pressed out of the tofu, the more marinade it will absorb, like a delicious little flavor sponge.

2. While/After the tofu is pressing, make the marinade flavor you've chosen. I like the sweet asian flavor as a snack, i eat them as cubes from the fridge. I'd also recommend doubling the amount of marinade it says in the recipe.

3. After pressing, cut up your tofu into large squares or rectangles about 1/2 inch thick. If you make the surface area of your tofu too tiny, it's at risk of crumbling especially if you followed these steps and froze it. That's how you make tofu "eggs", which is great, but not what we want right now. Put the tofu + marinade in a ziplock baggie and make note of the time. You need to give those cute little soy blocks 24 hours of fridge time to really infuse.

Day 0: It's the day!

Okay, here's the recipe for actually baking it

https://thehiddenveggies.com/baked-tofu/

TL;DR - cut into the shape you want, cubes or strips or little triangles idk you do you. Bake at 400 degrees for 40-45 min on a greased/parchment paper/silicon lined cookie sheet. You're supposed to flip every 15 min but when i'm too lazy to do that they turn out fine anyway.

EAT. I like to eat this type of tofu cold, as the texture is chewier after it cools. But i did eat this right out of the hot pan and burn my tongue before i let them cool in the fridge for an hour or two. Whatever way you want to eat them, it's the correct way and i salute you.

There you have it, you made an easy tofu recipe and hopefully it tasted good and filled you the fuck up for cheap. Once you have the method down (freeze - thaw - flavor - cook ) you can do this with whatever flavor combination you want and move onto more advanced tofu recipes.