Cooking Tofu, Second Attempt

As a follow-up to my first attempt to cook tofu (https://marykisner.com/cooking-tofu-first-attempt/) I’ll try to adjust a few things to try to produce better cubes of tofu. My advice to myself the last time said: cut bigger cubes, add more seasoning and reduce cooking time. I started by doing a search online about recipes to season tofu. While I found and printed out about 10 recipes, I chose a simple recipe of olive oil and Italian herbs so I could use the seasoned cubes in a salad or even put them in soup.

I started with a block of extra firm tofu:

Next, I got out my tofu press and placed the block of tofu in it. This block was not as firm as the first time and felt “fresher.”

The instructions said to place the tofu block between the two flat inserts in my palm, drop the container over my palm…and then turn it right side up. This keeps the tofu from breaking apart.

Pressure being applied.

After 20 minutes the whole block was half as thick and submerged in liquid. I poured off the water and opened the press.

This time I cut the block into larger cubes than the first time.
I mixed Italian herbs with olive oil and poured it into the bag of cubes. After gently mixing them up to coat each cube, I put the bag in the refrigerator for 2 hours.
Cubes were now soaked with oil and herbs.
Into the frying pan with a little more oil.
After 10 to 15 minutes on medium heat, the cubes were browned but still soft enough to stab them with a fork.
Drained on a paper towel and sprinkled with salt they tasted pretty good right out of the pan!

These cubes are still soft enough to put a fork through them. I think this way of cooking allows me to keep from overcooking them. Now they’re ready to put on a salad or add to soup! Give it a try!

Please comment or email me directly at marykisner@comcast.net.

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