Something to balance all those cookies and more tofu for lunch: cubes of pressed tofu this time, quickly marinated in soy sauce and a confident sprinkling of Shichimi Togarashi (a wonderful Japanese chilli seasoning that also contains orange zest, nori, pepper, ginger, black & white sesame seeds) and pan-fried. Not to shabby in taste and appearance, not one cube broke or disintegrated, nicely seasoned, so, I’d say, this was another good tofu lunch.
Of course, the salad has some baby spinach in it for these three good reasons: it is healthy, I like it and it is a really, really big bag. Other components are mostly decided upon depending what I would like in the salad or what is in the fridge or what was prepared or what vegetables are leftover from last night’s dinner.
Next time it should definitely be with the miso-tahini dressing I had originally planned for this one but – shockingly might I add – there was no tahini in the house. If you know me and our larder, than this might surprise you just the same as it did me. I will correct this clerical error today.
marinated tofu & salad
for one specimen of the tofu experiment
100g (3.5 oz) of pressed (firm) tofu
2-3 tablespoons soy sauce
1-2 teaspoons Shichimi Togarashi (I used S&B)
mixed salad leaves: baby spinach, endive, radicchio or a mixture ( I always like the herby organic Trader Joe’s or Whole Foods one)
1 spring (green) onion, cut into little rings
leftover blanched broccoli
sesame seeds
lemon-soy-sesame oil dressing (see here)
or miso-tahini-dressing (see here): mix 3 tablespoons tahini, 1 teaspoon miso & a dash of lemon juice
Dry the tofu with a paper towel, gently pressing it with your hands, then cut into smallish cubes. Put those in a small bowl, pour the soy sauce over it and sprinkle with the Shichimi Togarashi according to your spice preference. It has quite a kick, not in your face but nevertheless. Stir to get all cubes covered in soy and leave for about 10-20 minutes, giving it another stir while you are passing the dish.
Heat a non-stick pan over medium heat, add a drop of oil and lightly fry the pieces until browned on all sides (this only takes about 3-5 minutes). Dress the salad leaves, spring onion & broccoli stems with the dressing and top with the browned tofu cubes.
thejameskitchen 