Meatless Monday: Spicy Peanut Butter Tofu with Sriracha

August 5, 2013 Category Vegetarian 5 Comments Tags food photography, meatless monday, photography, tofu, vegan, vegetarian

Life is full of surprises, right? Three years ago, I would have been quite surprised to learn that I would be preparing home-cooked meals 4-5 nights per week…and even more surprised to learn that I’d be painstakingly photographing those meals each night before eating them. I would have been further surprised to learn that I’d be eating tofu on the regular.

Most surprising of all? That my husband went back — enthusiastically! — for seconds on tofu night. That is not a lie, people. We both had seconds of this, because it was delicious. Peanut butter and sriracha is a great combo, and I think this has been my favorite tofu meal to date.

Husband approved.

SPICY PEANUT BUTTER TOFU WITH SRIRACHA (recipe from Kalyn’s Kitchen)

Ingredients for the sauce:
3 tbsp reduced-sodium soy sauce
3 tbsp rice vinegar
2 tbsp smooth peanut butter
1 and 1/2 tbsp agave nectar (can sub with regular sugar, but use about half at first and see how it tastes)
2 tbsp water
1 tbsp sriracha, or more to taste

Ingredients for the tofu:
1 package (14-16 oz) extra firm tofu
1 /2 tbsp peanut or sesame oil
2-3 garlic cloves, sliced
1-inch piece ginger, sliced
chopped green onions and/or cilantro, for garnish
Cooked brown rice, for serving

1. To remove excess moisture from tofu: line a plate with 2-3 paper towels and place tofu on top. Cover tofu with 2-3 more paper towels, then place something flat and heavy over the top (a glass baking dish with a bottle of olive oil in it works well). Let tofu drain for half an hour or so.
2. While tofu drains, prepare sauce by combining all ingredients in medium bowl and stirring well. Once drained, cut tofu into two pieces cross-wise, then cut the two halves into strips (about the size of your finger).
3. Heat large skillet over medium heat. Add oil add allow to heat up for a minute or two. Add garlic and ginger slices and stir until fragrant, about 1 minute.
4. Remove garlic and ginger from skillet; discard. Add tofu in single layer and cook, flipping halfway through, until nicely browned on both sides, about 7-8 minutes.
5. Once tofu has browned, reduce heat to medium low and add sauce. Stir carefully (so as not to break up tofu) until tofu is coated and sauce has thickened slightly. Serve tofu and sauce over rice, garnished with green onions and cilantro.

As I said, spicy and delicious (and a great take-to-work lunch the next day). And vegan!

And here’s a little bonus for you…if you ever wanted a peek into the highly professional windykitchen photo studio, here it is. Note the leaf to my dining room table, the laundry hamper propping up the white board, and the ego light perched atop a stack of Parks & Recreation DVDs. Please attempt not to note the dress hanging from the closet doorknob and the Estee Lauder free-gift tote bag strewn in the corner.

I never promised you it was classy.