On May 11, 5:10 am, Artistic Taste <Artistic.Taste.
> wrote:
> The only way I've used firm/extra firm tofu is to season it, bake it to
> render out the water and chop it in salad. If anyone has any suggestions
> or recipes for an actual meal using tofu, that would be great, thanks.
>
Long before foodbanter was created I posted this to rec.food.cooking
in 1999. It's quite mild, but tasty.

Mushrooms and Tofu

Preparation.

Soak 10 med. size dried Chinese mushrooms (aka shiitake) in hot
water.
Cut tofu into cubes.
Mix 1/2 TB cornstarch with 1/4 Cup cold water and 1/4 tsp sesame
oil.
Clean and slice two scallions on the diagonal into 1" pieces.
Mix together 1 TB dry sherry, 1 TB soy sauce, 1/4 tsp sugar, 1/4
tsp MSG (recommended, but omit if you're among the 5 percent or
so who are allergic).
When mushrooms are soft, squeeze excess moisture out of them, cut
out stems, slice into 4 pieces.

Cooking.

Heat a heavy pan or skillet, when hot add 1 to 2 TB peanut oil,
cook the mushrooms for 2 minutes. Add 1 Cup of the mushroom
soaking liquid (pour carefully to avoid the sediment in the
bottom), simmer for 2 more minutes. Add the tofu and the
seasoning mixture and the scallions, cover and simmer for 2 more
minutes. Uncover, turn the tofu over if necessary to color the
top side. Now add the cornstarch slurry, stirring all the
while, until sauce thickens to the degree you like. Serve with
plain rice.
-------------------

And in 2002 I posted this. It has pork and considerably more
spiciness if you get the right Chinese condiments.
Cooking for one tonight, don't want anything heavy, let's see what I
have....
Half a package of firm tofu, some ground pork in the freezer, that's
about
it plus the staples. Okay,

Soak 5 med. shiitakes in very hot water till soft, slice.
Get the rice started.
Chop a couple cloves of garlic, slice a couple of scallions.
Thaw 1/4 lb. ground pork in the microwave.
Melt about a cup's worth of frozen chicken stock cubes in the
microwave.
Slice the tofu into bite-sized pieces.
Get the wok hot, stir fry the mushrooms in hot oil flavored with a
slice
of ginger for about two minutes.
Add the pork and half the garlic. Stir fry until all the pink is
gone.
Add a heaping TB of brown bean sauce, stir well, add the chicken
broth,
about a TB of soy sauce, about 2 TB of rice wine, the rest of the
garlic,
about a tsp. of chili bean curd, stir well again, then add the tofu.
Turn
the heat down and let it all simmer until the rice is done. Add the
scallions about a minute before serving.

Very tasty, though I have no name for it.
----------------
In addition to these, google "ma po tofu" for a nice spicy Sichuan
classic dish. -aem

Subject

"Good" & "Tofu" are mutually exclusive terms.

Lew