MONDAY RECIPE POST - CRISPY PEANUT TOFU AND CAULIFLOWER 'RICE' STIR-FRY

I have been looking for meatless meals to put into our weekly meal plan.  As we are both Thai food fans, I chose this one.  

We found the meal at Minimalist Baker at this link, hosted by Dana.  I recommend reading her information and advice while making this recipe.  She also has a great food blog with many delicious recipes.  Thank you Dana for adding to our list of favorite meals.

Crispy Peanut Tofu and Cauliflower Rice Stir-Fry

The tofu is baked not fried, served over cauliflower rice with sautéed vegetables.

Preparation time: 30 minutes

Cooking time: 1 hour 30 minutes

Serves 2

Freezer: sauce only, nothing else

Ingredients:

Stir-fry:

12 ounces extra firm tofu (organic and non-GMO if possible)

1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil

1 small head cauliflower

2 cloves garlic (minced - 2 cloves yields 1 tablespoon or 6 g)

Sauce:

1-1/2 tablespoons toasted sesame oil
1/4 cup low sodium soy sauce (tamari for gluten free eaters)
1/4 cup light brown sugar (or honey if not vegan)
1/2 teaspoon chili garlic sauce
2-1/2 tablespoons peanut butter or almond butter (natural, salted)

Optional extras:

Vegetables: baby bok choy, green onion, red pepper, broccoli

Toppings: fresh lime juice, cilantro or Thai basil, sriracha

Instructions:

First step, drain tofu for 1-1/2 hours before you serve up your meal.  The instructions say that if your block of tofu is larger than 12 ounces, trim it down, that you don't need a full pound for this recipe, though truthfully we added the whole 16 ounces.

Roll tofu in a clean, absorbent towel several times, and then place something heavy on top to press.  Our blog host used a pot on top of a cutting board, and occasionally added something to the pot to add more weight.  Do this for about 15 minutes.

Near the end of draining, preheat oven to 400 degrees F. (204 C.) and cube tofu.  Place on a parchment-lined baking sheet (I used non-stick aluminum foil) and arrange in a single layer.  Bake for 25 minutes to dry/firm the tofu.  Once baked, remove from the oven and let cool.

Prepare sauce by whisking together ingredients until combined.  Taste and adjust flavor if needed.  Our blog host often adds a little more sweetener and peanut butter (we felt it was fine without the extras.)

Add cooled tofu to the sauce and stir to coat.  Marinate for at least 15 minutes to saturate the tofu and infuse the flavor.

In the meantime shred cauliflower into 'rice' by using a large grater or food processor.  You don't want it to be too fine, just somewhere close to the texture of rice.  Set aside.

Mince garlic if you haven't already done so, and prepare any vegetables you want to add to the dish (this is optional).

Heat a large skillet over medium to medium-high heat, and if adding any vegetables to your dish, cook them now in a drizzle of sesame oil and a dash of soy sauce.  Remove from pan and set aside.  Cover to keep warm.

Using a slotted spoon, put the tofu into preheated pan.   Drizzle a few spoons of sauce to coat.  Cook, stirring frequently for a few minutes until browned.  It will stick to the pan a bit, but don't worry.  Remove from the pan and set aside.  Cover to keep warm.

Rinse your pan under very hot water and scrape away any residue.  Place back on oven top.  Add a drizzle of sesame oil to the pan, then add garlic and cauliflower rice and stir.  Put cover on to steam the 'rice'.  Cook for about 5-8 minutes until slightly browned and tender, stirring occasionally.  Next add a few spoons of sauce to season and stir.

In two individual plates or bowls, divide equally the cauliflower rice, top with your vegetables and tofu.  Serve with any leftover sauce.  

Leftovers reheat well and will keep covered in the fridge for up to two days.  

This is approximately 524 calories per serving.  

What did we think?  Delicious!  Not much here that we would change.  We enjoyed it just as the recipe said.

There were leftovers for the next day and as often happens, the meal tasted even better.