Sesame Tofu and Tofu Tips

It's said that vegetarians typically have a repertoire of five or so recipes that they make over and over. I'm trying hard not to be that person, so every once in a while I will try something new, shake up the recipe to make it mine, and see if it works. I have a book called The Complete Vegetarian Handbook which has info on various veggie foods and a few recipes. I made a sesame tofu with vegetables, greatly increasing the amount of veggies--two of my favorite veggies are mushrooms and snow peas. It was a little awkward trying to pan-fry tofu slices coated in sesame seeds, and without the seeds, it didn't have much flavor, so I will have to do something about that (find a sesame-flavored sauce?). The veggies had a simple sauce of tamari sauce and toasted sesame oil with a bit of ginger. I think I'll add some garlic next time.

Over the weekend, a local TV station sponsored its annual Health and Fitness Expo. VSDC is there every year, amongst drug companies, the dairy industry, a local hospital, companies that sell health stuff, blah, blah. This year, we were near the "pavilion," so to speak, that the children's hospital had set up, a stone's throw from the FDA booth. My boyfriend and I spent a couple of hours tabling there, handing out information and answering questions. One question I got was about preparing tofu to avoid all the nasty silly stereotypes. When she said she didn't like tofu, I invoked Sarah Kramer's quote -- saying you don't like tofu is like saying you don't like cake flour -- and quickly wrote down steps to take to avoid mushy tofu syndrome. There were constantly people coming to our table, lured by other volunteers standing in the aisle handing out information. And if a kid came close enough and was the right age, I handed him or her a coloring book from Vegetarian Resource Group.

To me, this is a friendly way of getting out our message and one of the most effective. A lot of people are curious about eating less meat, and most of them wanted recipes -- and we had numerous magazines and brochures to give out with tons of recipes. While I would be happy if everyone went vegetarian -- or better yet, vegan -- anyone who strives to reduce consumption of animal products is taking a step in the right direction.

So here is how to have tofu without the dreaded stereotypical mushiness:

1) Make sure you have the right type of tofu. The stuff in the aseptic boxes on the shelf is for creamy sauces and soups, desserts, and smoothies. Unless you're making one of those, put it back on the shelf and head for the refrigerated section commonly called the dairy case. I get the Whole Foods Firm tofu because it's coagulated with calcium salts, so it has more calcium than the Extra Firm, but do feel free to experiment with what brands work best for you.

2) When you get your packages of tofu home, cut open the package and drain out as much water as possible. Wrap then in plastic freezer bags and toss in the freezer. You want to freeze them for at least 24 hours, but you can store tofu in the freezer for a few weeks. I usually have three or four packages in the freezer.

3) Defrost in the fridge. It takes a couple of days, unfortunately, but you can also leave it in the fridge for five or six days before using it. You probably could also do the hot-water method, but you're going to want to press out all that water later.

4) Press. Line a plate (or a flat-bottomed colander) with paper towels, plop your block of tofu on top (some people slice the tofu first) and put more paper towels on top. Put something heavy, like one of those aseptic quarts of soy milk or vegetable broth, on top of the paper towels to press the tofu. Leave it for about 1/2 hour.

5) This is time to do your prep work--cutting veggies, mixing the sauce ingredients, etc. You may want to change the paper towels during the pressing process.

6) After finishing the pressing process, it's cooking time! And then dinner time! And those should not need any further explanation.

Hats off to the incredible, edible tofu!