Crispy Tofu With Cashews and Blistered Snap Peas

Pls drain tofu on clean tea towels that you designate for this, wringing frozen spinach, etc. Pls stop using plastic film & bags, foil, p.towels. Americans create 3-4x as much trash as our peers in wealthy nations, & our carbon footprint is up to 5x bigger. Cover lasagna with a sheet pan to prevent browning. Use plates, lids, or bowls to cover stored or resting items. Previous generations did w-o foil, plastic, & p.towels, & we can too. We *must*--our lives depend on keeping Earth healthy.

I watched a cooking show on a Japanese TV, instead of putting the tofu on paper towels to dry, they popped the tofu in a bowl in the microwave for a few minutes. I tried it and it really worked. Just drain the water from the bowl.

I dusted the cubed tofu pieces with cornstarch, to give it a crispy skin.

As someone who has embraced a vegan diet to exert some personal control over our out-of-control and violent world, I thank you sincerely for this tasty vegan dish.

Three blocks of tofu are required to feed my family of five, so I recommend increasing the amount of tofu. Also, it’s really helpful to plan to dry the tofu for at least 15-20 minutes between multiple layers of dish towels or the tofu will be too wet and will cause alarming pops of oil.

Question: Why would you not slice the tofu in the first place and sear the smaller pieces? Why only sear the two halves and break it down later?

Made this tonight and it was yummy! But a whole can of coconut milk makes it really rich and a very pale color--not at all like the picture. Recipe writers feel compelled to use the entire can, but that is often too much. Indians would use far less for a dish this size. I will try it with half a can next time and hope to achieve that glossy brown look I was hoping for!

Looks amazing! My favorite tofu tip that I just learned is to freeze the tofu before using. It opens up air bubbles that give it a fluffy, seitan-like texture. Great for soaking up sauce flavors.

This was good, but a little bland. A big shot of fresh lime juice helped a lot.

I've become a huge fan of air frying tofu. I don't like it too slimy/soft, and the air fryer gives me the texture I want--- it seems less likely to fall apart when compared to having to fry it up in a frying pan. I made two batches of tofu since I used two blocks of tofu (seasoned with salt & pepper; added a little oil...) and cooked it at 375 for about 18'.

I take tofu slab out of the container and wrap it in a clean kitchen towel. Then I lightly press on the slab. The water is absorbed in the towel. Unroll and you have dry tofu.

Tasty! The intro text bills it as a 'one dish meal' but there are many dance steps. If you have a jar of minced garlic and maybe another one of ginger in the fridge, this is a good use for them. Maybe there are pre-toasted cashews in your pantry too... But I have to admit, made with all fresh local ingredients, the tastes were amazing. Herbs from the garden: shiso, lemon mint, tiny Thai basil blossoms, and chives. Added fresh spinach at the end. Served w/brown rice. Yum.

After cooking was underway, I realized I was out of coconut milk! I used tahini instead — 2/3 cup of tahini and 1 cup of water whisked together. I also added more soy sauce to taste. It turned out a bit like gado-gado, which makes me think peanut butter would have worked as well. Probably tastes nothing like the original recipe, but it was still tasty!

This is a nice vegan meal; I enjoyed it. However, a couple of points: 1. It needn’t be a one-pot meal. The snap peas were cold by the time the tofu was done. While reducing the coconut sauce in one pan, the peas can be blistered in another. 2. For those not wild about tofu, mine came out a bit mushy. Freeze the block, thaw, and squeeze out water. Cube and stir fry tofu cubes in a wok. More sides are browned and it’s more meaty, not quite as slick in the middle. Great flavors!

Will try this out in a couple days, looks amazing. I appreciate any vegan recipe in the Times. I would hope most readers can try it as it's meant to be, meatless. Tofu can be fantastic once you get the hang of it. I find brand Heiwa from Portland, ME to be easy to work with. Perhaps the 1st try won't be the best yet, but it's worth giving it a chance. If sauces don't thicken as expected, a tiny bit of cornstarch helps. Looks like active time is 30 minutes. Got to get some mint, then, cook!