Dry Frying Tofu

If you've read my earlier post ,"Tempeh vs. Tofu," you know that I'm not the biggest tofu fan. I decided to give it another shot with Lauren Ulm's dry-frying method from Vegan Yum Yum. What usually turns me off to tofu is the moisture and mushy texture. I've heard that pressing or freezing tofu can improve the texture, so those methods are next on my tofu to-do list. I tried to the "Sweet Chili Lime Tofu with Wok Steamed Collards and Quinoa" recipe from Vegan Yum Yum. The ingredient list and lengthy recipe seem intimidating, but it was super easy and took me less than an hour. Dry-frying essentially involves cooking the tofu without oil and pressing out the
water while cooking, then adding a sauce to the hot pan and allowing it to cook down to a glaze. The tofu came out so flavorful and chewy. For the greens, I used Trader Joe's massive bag of pre-washed and cut Southern greens (collards, mustard greens, turnip greens, and spinach). In the future I would add 3-4 cloves of minced garlic and a bit of oil to the greens for added flavor. The quinoa and greens were a little bland, so definitely double the sweet chili lime sauce and drizzle the rest on before serving. I drizzled some Soy Vay Hoison Garlic Marinade on my leftovers today and that  gave the dish the extra flavor boost it needed.

While I was already making a mess of my kitchen yesterday, I baked up a loaf of Irish soda bread. I followed the recipe exactly, and sifted a touch of flour onto the finished loaf for a more traditional look. Let's just say that the loaf won't be making it to St. Patrick's Day. My parents, Danny, and I devoured the entire thing last night, with some warm Earth Balance spread. The loaf had a light sweetness to it, and it was a little moister than most Irish soda bread I've had in the past.


I will leave you with this funny "Defensive Omnivore Bingo" post I found on vegan.com. I've gotten so many responses like these when I tell people I'm vegan!