Name: Crispy Baked Tofu with Vegetable Rice
Prep time: 75 min
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 105 min
Ingredients: 12 oz firm tofu; 1/3 cup tamari sauce; 4 Tbsp olive oil; 2 Tbsp garlic powder; 2 Tbsp onioon powder; 2 Tbsp black pepper; 1 cup cooked rice; 1/2 cup red peppers; 1/2 cup fresh onions; 1/2 cup leek; 3 pieces sun-dried tomatoes

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This Crispy Baked Tofu is made with delicious aromatic ingredients and it is a lot less oily but is still an incredible crispy flavor explosion in a plate! You can adjust the spiciness to your own taste. Serve it with vegetable rice and fresh basil. This is The BEST Baked crispy tofu recipe!

Crispy Baked Tofu is a Vegan dish I often cook as part of a Sunday roast with veggie side dishes. My friend loves just snacking on this Crispy Baked Tofu. We probably eat tofu once a week.

Tofu also known as bean curd, is a food cultivated by coagulating soya milk and then pressing the resulting curds into soft white blocks. A component in East Asian and Southeast Asian cuisines. It has a subtle flavor and can be used in savory and sweet dishes. It is often seasoned or marinated to suit the dish. can be soft, firm, or extra firm.

Calories in Tofu

It is low in calories and contains big amounts of Protein, in Iron, Calcium, and magnesium.

It is often considered as a controversial food because of soya. Tofu often genetically produced (especially in the USA and the crops are sprayed with the herbicide Roundup. So choose organic as often as possible.

Prior to using firm or soft tofu, you should press out the liquid. Wrap it in a towel and squeeze it gently. This allows the marinades to be absorbed better. Another method is to freeze it and defrost it. This will give you a chewy tofu and the marinade will be better absorbed, like a sponge! You can bake it, fry it or grill it.

Some recipes call for firm tofu, especially savory dishes, and some of them a soft one (silken tofu). The soft one we use it for desserts.

Today we use the firm tofu. The marinade is very important. Do not be in a rush as the marinade will determine the flavor of your final dish.

It’s just pure comfort food and pretty much goes with any main course (almost) I mean, it’s even great on its own. If someone plonked a plate of baked cauliflower cheese down in front of me for dinner and nothing else well, I would not complain one bit.

What Can I Add To Crispy Baked Tofu?

Sun Dried Tomatoes
Spring onions
Leeks
Baked Broccoli or cauliflower (so good!)
Different sauces such as tomato sauce (because why not?)

How to Make Crispy Baked Tofu – Step by Step

First, wrap tofu in an absorbent towel and press out the liquid. Cut it into cubes, place it on a plate and sprinkle with some coriander. (photo 1 & 2)

Mix the tamari sauce, olive oil, garlic powder, onion powder and black pepper in a bowl and add the tofu cubes. Make sure that all tofu cubes are covered with the sauce. Let it rest for 1.5 hours. (photo 3)

How to bake tofu

Preheat the oven to 204 C (400 degrees F) and place the tofu cubes in a pan one it's ready. Bake for 25-30 minutes until the tofu cubes edge is golden brown and crispy. (photo 4)

In the meantime prepare the rice. Put 11 cups of water to a boil in a large pot. Once boiling, add rinsed rice and stir. Boil on medium heat for around 25 minutes. Strain and cover.

Heat a large pan over medium heat. Once hot, add the oil and salt and the onions. Cook for 3-4 minutes, until golden brown. Add the garlic and cook for 1 more minute. Add the pepper and leeks and cook 3-4 minutes until golden. (photo 5-6)

Add the cooked rice, the basil and stir occasionally for 3-4 minutes. (photo 7)

Take a serving plate and add the rice. You can put it in a small cup and make a "cup" design as I did. In my case, I kept 1 portion rice without veggies and 1 portion with veggies. Add tofu and sprinkle with basil and sun-dried tomatoes, if you wish. (photo 8)

Different Seasonings to Try for the resting sauce

You can play around with the flavours and add in any herbs and spices you like to this sauce.

Here are some ideas to try;

Red pepper flakes or cayenne pepper
Dried oregano
Freshly chopped rosemary, parsley, or thyme (any herb will work)
Nutritional Yeast
Mustard
Agave Syrup
Soya sauce

HOW TO PREP THIS IN ADVANCE

This crispy tofu is so easy to make in advance just cook the tofu and the rice in advance. Place them on the fridge. Heat a pan and reheat the rice and tofu separately for 2-3 minutes. Remove aside. Cook the veggies, add the rice mix a little a bit and serve with the tofu.

COOK’S TIPS FOR PERFECT CRISPY BAKED TOFU:

Prior to using tofu, it is important to press out as much liquid as possible. This allows the tofu to better absorb other flavors from marinades or sauces.
To do this, wrap the tofu in a towel and place in a colander. Lay something somewhat heavy, such as a plate, on top and leave it for 20 minutes to remove any excess water.
Another way to remove excess water is to freeze and defrost it. Note that this method of freezing results in a more porous, “meatier” texture that is good if you want to use tofu as cutlets or when you want a chewy texture.
To make the perfect Baked Tofu, you have to make sure that you season it very well. Leave it to rest for at least 1 hour.
Instead of Tamari, you can use Soya sauce for nice crispy tofu.

OTHER HIGH IN PROTEIN RECIPES IDEAS and baked tofu recipe

Tofu Scramble Recipe
Chickpeas Recipe with sun-dried tomatoes
The best original Falafel
Arabic Hummus

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📖 Recipe

Serving plate - Baked Tofu with Vegetable rice and Sun Dried Tomatoes. maninio.com

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