Asian Food
I love Asian food of all kinds, but especially Indian, Thai, and Japanese. However, cooking these foods from scratch does not come easily to me. I have taken a Thai cooking class but can’t make a Thai dish that tastes like take-out. My sister-in-law is Japanese and she and her mother have taught me how to make some dishes, but on my own, they never taste the same.
So… I keep trying, but often end up making my stand-by “Asian” meal, a stir-fry with rice accompanied by baked tofu. And that’s what I made tonight. (if I wasn’t writing this up, I probably would have heated up Trader Joe’s frozen Indian entrees…another go-to when I have some in the freezer…)
The baked tofu
I always buy organic extra firm, but it still needs to be pressed to remove the water. I wrap the brick of tofu in a towel and weigh it down with a few cast iron pans for 30–45 minutes.
After it has been pressed, I slice it into slabs about 1/2 inch thick, marinate it in a sauce (soy, teriyaki, or tonight Kung Pau) for whatever time I have before dinner, and then bake it in the oven until it is browned a bit.
This is a good basic recipe:
Vegetables and Rice
While the tofu is baking, I slice the vegetables I’m using, and heat up some avocado oil in a cast iron skillet. (I only fry/saute in cast iron). I add the vegetables (tonight I have carrots, green onions, celery, and mushrooms in the house), fry them for a bit, and then add the pre-cooked rice and cover the pan, turning the heat down.
Note: I don’t peel the carrots, and I save vegetable trimmings in a ziplock bag in the freezer until I have enough to make soup stock.
A time saver: I cook several cups of rice at a time, and freeze portions for later use. This way, I don’t have to plan ahead to get the rice cooked in time for the meal.
When the tofu is done, I heat up the vegetables and rice a bit, and dinner is ready! There will be enough tofu to freeze for another meal.
In case you want to try to make the mochi balls (I haven’t tried yet…)
