Yet another recipe which proves that tofu can actually be quite tasty. I don't want to make too much of a habit of this though. There are loads of books called things like 'Cooking with Tofu', 'The Tofu Cook Book' and so on. I wouldn't read them. Tofu is often described in such books and on the back of tofu packets as 'versatile'. This means you really have to use your imagination to make it palatable - 'challenging' more like (In my experience this applies to most products where the manufacturers/packers feel the need to print recipes on the back of the packet).
Tofu is, however, as we've discussed elsewhere and as I'm sure you are fed up hearing by now, healthy and nutritious (if not tasty) and a good source of protein. Pointing out that it contains all twenty-four amino acids and a whole bunch of minerals besides is a nice way of countering the stupid arguments of a certain obnoxious minority of meat eaters, whom you are bound to encounter occasionally, even in these enlightened times, if you dare to make your vegetarianism known publicly. And, by the way, while we are not far from the subject of information printed on the back of various kinds of food packaging - if they mention vitamin B12 (the real morons might) and how it is only found in dead animal products, refer them to the nutritional information on the back of any jar of concentrated yeast extract before telling them to piss off.
Anyway, back to tofu. The best way to get a hold of it is to buy it ready made. It is very complicated to make and a lot of things can go wrong between the raw soy beans and the finished product. And let's face it, do you really want to spend so much time and effort learning to make something like tofu? A guy I met in Saudi Arabia did, incidentally. Maybe he was motivated by being married to a Japanese woman, but he even claimed that he had appeared on Japanese television to demonstrate his ability. Saudi Arabia is full of ex-pat nutters ('What were you doing there?', I hear you ask).
Tofu. The success of this recipe depends very much on the texture of the tofu you buy. The softer stuff will tend to fall apart a bit when you fry it, however you won't know which kind you've bought until you get it home and open the packet. It will taste good anyway.
Ingredients
1 packet/block of tofu
1 red pepper
1 large carrot
A few cabbage leaves
1 level tsp. corriander seeds
Marinade:
3 - 4 cloves garlic
2 cm piece fresh ginger
2 tomatoes or 2 tsp. tomato puree
3 or 4 tablespoons of soy sauce
Juice of 1 lemon
1/2 cup of orange juice
1/2 tsp. red chilli powder
To prepare marinade, chop tomatoes and ginger finely, crush garlic with a broad knife and mix everything together. Cut tofu into pieces roughly 1 ( 2 ( 5 cm and put into a bowl with the marinade. Leave in the fridge for an hour or so (even overnight) or five minutes if you didn't expect to have to do this.
Cut the carrots, peppers and cabbage into thin strips or matchsticks and put to one side. Lift the tofu pieces out of the marinade (don't throw it away) and put them on a plate. Heat a little oil in a heavy frying pan or wok (you really don't need much oil) and heat until the oil is smoking. Add the corriander seeds first and the tofu pieces a few seconds later, then turn the heat down a little. Shove the tofu pieces around gently and cook for about 2 minutes each side until they are starting to brown. Lift the pieces out of the pan and return them to the plate.
Turn the heat back up full and throw the vegetables into the pan. Stir fry for 5 minutes then add the marinade and the tofu pieces. Stir gently, cover the pan and turn down the heat. Leave for 5 more minutes and it's ready.
Serve with boiled rice or noodles. Noodles are, in my opinion, a better accompaniment and if you use instant ones (but leave out the packet of chemical flavourings) they are extremely easy to prepare while you are cooking the tofu and vegetables.