How do I cook Tofu!

[Hazelnutz]

I have just dicovered Tofu, but not sure how to cook it! Before I could even get it out of the packet it had all slipped and slided everywhere and split into a million pieces. In the end I basted it with olive oil, cooked it in the oven and made tofu chips?

I am sure there are better things to do with it? I would like to add it to noodles and other dishes. How do I cook it? or do I just break it up and chuck it in the pan? Do I squish all the water out?

[what i do]

a quick dip in egg, and fry it. Eat with soy sauce.
Or can mix it with stir-fried veggies.
Steam it... or just put it in soup.

[horst]

 If you like spicier dishes, you can't go wrong with ma po tofu. it's dead easy.

500 g regular firm tofu, not the silken stuff which should be used in soups
250 g ground pork
2 tbsp hot bean paste (Lee Kum Kee and others make this). perhaps try 1 tbsp first then check for taste
2 tbps soy sauce
2 cloves garlic, minced
one thumb minced ginger
4 tbsp chopped green onion
1/2 to 1 cup or so of chicken broth
oil for frying pork

stir fry pork, dump in liquids. drain tofu, cut into small cubes and pour them in, stir gently to heat through, check sauce. add salt, pepper or more bean paste to taste. some peopel add a dash of sesame oil

serve with steamed rice and perhaps a steamed veggie. you can stretch this with those dry soy crumb things that health food stores sell and make a total veggie version.

[Mon]

I don't usually cook with recipes, you'll have to do a rough estimate on the items below.

mince prawns
mince pork
egg
chopped water chest nut
Tofu
Soy sauce to taste

Mix all the above together in a bowl, steam it in a rectangular pan.

After cooling, slice them up, dip in egg then plain flour and Deep fry or panfry.  

[Funny]

Tofu was discovered by the Chinese approx. 4000 years ago, not by Hazelnutz in 2007.

[tofu]

make sure you use the right tofu, you dont use steaming tofu for cooking, have a look at the label

[Also]

Wrap it in some paper towels and place a bowl on top of it for 20 minutes or so to get the moisture out of it.

[Vita Mean]

Tofu is fundamentally very tasteless, so it's all about how you season and flavour it.

If you are using the firm tofu (not the soft silken or chinese steaming tofu), you could make patties.

Mash them and saute them with chopped onions,add mashed potatoes if you like, add spring onions and any herbs which go well with potatoes like parsley or rosemary or thyme or basil or oregano. You might add some chopped vegetables like green or red pepper, corn, carrots etc, then shape them into patties, coat them with beaten egg and breadcrumbs and saute till golden brown.

Experiment with flavours, herbs and spices. Good Luck.

[HM]

What I like to do is just eat the silken tofu as it is.  Chill it, put some spring onions and fried onions on top, a dash of soy sauce and it's yum!  You can also add a bit of chopped up chilli to give it a bit of a kick.

[Mumof2]

My children loves the egg tofu and simply refuse to eat the plain ones.  We just steam it for about 5 mins and it's ready to eat. If you prefer, you may want to add a little oyster sauce or abalone sauce and fried onions over it.

For a clear soup - tofu, fish balls, crabsticks in chicken broth. My children loves this combination but you can always modify it to suit your family's tastebuds.