Friday, April 10, 2009

Crispy Mango Tofu


After an extravagant excursion of excellent excitement nothing quite hits the spot like crisp, fried tofu in a mango sweet and sour sauce. This surprisingly simple recipe was quick and oh so wonderful....but enough doting, lets get down to business so you can make this little piece of wonderful for yourself.

What you'll need:
* extra-firm tofu
* 1/4 cup corn starch
* 4 Tbsp canola oil
* 2 garlic cloves, minced
* 1 Tbsp minced ginger
* 1 large green bell pepper, cut into bite sized pieces
* 2 large mangoes diced



For the sauce:
The sauce used in this is a sweet and sour sauce that could be used for a variety of things from tofu to sweet and sour chicken.

*Combine the following in a bowl and set aside for use at the very end
* 1/4 cup water
* 3 Tbsp rice wine vinegar
* 1/2 tsp sriracha sauce(tabasco works too)
* 2 Tbsp ketchup
* 2 Tbsp soy sauce
* 1 Tbsp brown sugar
* 2 tsp corn starch


What to do:
*Cut tofu into whatever size bits you desire.
*Roll tofu bits in cornstarch, hehe, they look like fondant cubes.
*Fry tofu in some canola oil until crispy, it takes longer than you think but it's worth it, this really will be the most crisp tofu you've ever tried!

*After sampling (try not to swoon) put on a paper towel covered plate to drain of excess oil
*While you're waiting for you're rice to finish cooking...did I mention the need for rice? Well you need rice and chances are, because tofu fries rather quickly, it won't be done yet. Anyways, since you already have a pan of hot oil sitting on your stove you might as well make Popcorn...at least, that's what we did.

The great Popcorn interlude, brought to you by hungry, that pesky brat that just keeps coming back:

Really? You need Popcorn? Really?

*What are you? Jiminy Cricket? Yes really we need popcorn. (In her defense, she was only trying to help...)

*Now, because we know you need some too, throw some raw corn kernels into your oil, put a lid on and shake the pan around until the popping stops. Salt and nom till your heart's content!


Getting back to the dinner at hand...
*In the little bit of oil you have left in the pan put your chopped green peppers
*Then put your ginger and garlic, we grated ours to avoid more chopping
*Put your tofu back in and then dump your sauce on top
*Let this simmer until it gets thick and then add your mango
*Stir it all around so your mango gets warmed up and you're done! (go eat now)

2 comments:

  1. You forgot to mention to avoid mourning over the crispy tofu getting soggy in the sauce-- it's worth it.

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