Seared Silken Tofu with Soy Sauce Marinade

Cooking, like everything else, gets boring if you stick with the same things over, and over again.

One must EXPLORE! One must adventure! One must try cooking with new ingredients and concocting new recipes when able to.

Yesterday I used Silken Tofu for the first time ever. It can be used for smoothies, dressings, in scrambles, or just on its own.

I used this blog article as a guide, and then added a little of my own spin to the recipe because I didn’t have scallions: http://pennyforherthoughts.com/silken-tofu-soy-sauce/

Thank you very much, Eunice!

Moving forward.

Cook time: approx 30 mins

Ingredients(yields 2-3 servings; depending on thickness of cut tofu):

1 package firm Silken Tofu

1/3 Cup soy sauce

1 tablespoon teriyaki sauce

1 tablespoon sweet dipping sauce

1 teaspoon sesame oil

1 tablespoon or so of olive oil for sautéing

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 teaspoon ground ginger(fresh ginger would add way more flavor and boldness)

A few shakes of Asian 5 spice(this one is from Williams-Sonoma)

A dash of white pepper

Steps:

First thing is first, you have to take the tofu CAREFULLY out of the packaging and drain the excess water. How do we do that, Emily?

First, cut the tetrapack open, always being very careful because the tofu itself is very very delicate, even if it says ‘firm’.

Next, place on cutting board and cut a few slices about 1 inch thick(this is where I messed up.. I thought, ‘but I want my pieces smaller than that in my dish’ and I cut it three ways.. this made it a challenge to flip them in the pan because they’re so delicate!). Sprinkle a bit of salt on the sides of the tofu. Angle the cutting board slightly so more water can drain. I found using a paper towel to pat dry the tofu helped a lot.

Now, heat skillet on medium heat with olive oil and a dash of soy sauce.

While tofu is draining and skillet is heating, mix soy sauce, teriyaki sauce, sweet dipping sauce, garlic, ground ginger, Asian spices, and white pepper.

Once pan is hot, carefully(and strategically!) place your pieces of tofu. Remember, you’re going to have to flip them and they break really easily!

I followed the recipe in the link I provided with this step and sautéed each side for 6 minutes.

When I flipped the tofu, I added some of the sauce into the pan to give my tofu more flavor. Once it had a little browning to it, I took it off the heat and put them on a paper toweled plate for draining.

I added a small amount of the sauce I had left into the hot pan and warmed it, then put it on top of my tofu.

Great little recipe, didn’t take too much time and it was something brand new!

I will be adding the tofu to my salad and drizzling the sauce over the spinach and veggies to give that a try as well.

Please reach out with any questions! And if you have other tofu recipes, please share in the comments!

🙂