Mara’s Tofu With Mixed Grains

Mara’s Tofu With Mixed Grains
Gentl and Hyers for The New York Times. Food stylist: Maggie Ruggiero. Prop stylist: Gozde Eker.
Total Time
45 minutes
Rating
4(1,013)
Comments
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With only a few steps and five main ingredients, this simple dish barely requires a recipe, but the results are simultaneously nourishing and deeply satisfying. Steeped in aminos (soy sauce's unfermented cousin), the semisoft tofu melts away with each bite, leaving behind a steamy, satisfying contrail of salt and umami. The coconut oil lends a trace of its sweet, tropical aroma as it yields a crisp, lacy crust. Mixed with quinoa, the rice becomes nutty and complex, a chewy counterpoint to the tender tofu. Plus, it's healthful enough to justify a little self-righteousness.

Featured in: A Comfort Food Dish Rich in Friendship

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Ingredients

Yield:4 servings
  • 1⅓cups Thai jasmine rice
  • cup quinoa
  • 3cups water
  • ¾teaspoon fine sea salt
  • 214-ounce blocks medium-firm tofu
  • 6tablespoons Bragg’s liquid aminos
  • 4 to 6tablespoons coconut oil
  • Cilantro leaves for garnish
Ingredient Substitution Guide
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Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Rinse and drain rice and quinoa. Cook in a rice cooker with water and salt, or in a heavy-bottomed 2-quart saucepot over medium heat. Cover, and bring to a boil, then reduce to a faint simmer. Cook for 35 to 40 minutes, or until all water has been absorbed.

  2. Step 2

    Line a baking sheet or large plate with paper towels. Set aside.

  3. Step 3

    Pat tofu blocks dry, then halve lengthwise. Cut into ½-inch-thick slices. Drizzle 2 tablespoons aminos onto the bottom of a large, shallow glass or ceramic dish, then lay a layer of tofu in it. Drizzle with another 2 tablespoons of aminos, then layer in remaining tofu, and drizzle with remaining aminos. Marinate for 5 minutes, then rotate and flip tofu slices, and tilt dish to coat evenly. Marinate 5 more minutes. Drain away excess aminos.

  4. Step 4

    Set a 10-inch cast-iron or nonstick pan over high heat. When the pan is hot, add 2 tablespoons coconut oil. Just as oil begins to smoke, carefully lay in pieces of tofu in a single layer, leaving room between each piece.

  5. Step 5

    Reduce heat to medium high, do not touch the tofu and cook 6 to 7 minutes per side until golden brown. Use a thin metal spatula to carefully flip the pieces. Cook the rest the same way, adding more oil as needed.

  6. Step 6

    Remove cooked tofu to prepared baking sheet, and allow to drain.

  7. Step 7

    Use a fork to fluff rice and quinoa. Serve tofu with rice. Garnish with cilantro leaves.

Ratings

4 out of 5
1,013 user ratings
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Comments

We regularly make the Broiled Tofu recipe from "The Moosewood Restaurant Cooks at Home," using low sodium soy sauce, sesame oil and grapeseed oil for the marinade. We skip the step of pressing the extra-firm tofu and it comes out of the oven crisp and dense with a savory, smoky flavor. Even our picky son loves it. With sauteed kale and brown basmati rice it makes a great weeknight supper.

I was intrigued by this recipe, which sounds delicious, but was not familiar with Bragg's liquid aminos, so looked it up. The Bragg's site gives the 'the Average Nutritional Breakdown per 1/2 Teaspoon as: ... • Natural Sodium 160 mg ...' So 6 Tsp of this ingredient alone amounts to almost 6 grams of sodium, or 1.5 grams per serving, about 50% more than the recommended daily maximum intake. Just be aware if you need to limit sodium. Regular soy sauce is the same, BTW.

I've found that the simplest way to season tofu is to add about 1 tablespoon of Chinese fermented bean curd (functionally the same as Japanese Miso, but a lot cheaper) to the tofu when it is about half- fried, mashing and spreading it so that it seasons the tofu uniformly. Regular vegetable oil can substitute for coconut oil, and halving the amount of oil saves you the trouble of draining the tofu after frying.

This was perfect. I served it with roasted broccoli, sliced avocado, and a dollop of gochujang. Using carbon steel and a slick of avocado oil, I got zero tofu stickage. A sprinkle of rice wine vinegar over the bowl at the end is also very nice.

Makes no sense in this regard: neither jasmine rice nor quinoa takes 40 minutes to cook

I made this in my mom's perfect cast iron pan, just like the recipe calls for. It was perfect. Served with sesame oil and Sriachi sauce, some green onions and ginger I sautéed in another pan, and some leftover short grain sushi rice I'd made the day before, heated in the microwave. Salty, flavorful, and quick. If you don't mess with the tofu while it's frying, after six minutes in the pan it's perfect. Quick and flavorful.

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