another grated tofu recipe.

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grated tofu.

INGREDIENTS
tofu
1 (10- to 12-ounce/280- to 340-gram) package super-firm tofu (see Tip)
1 ½ tablespoons neutral-flavored oil of choice
4 scallions, sliced at an angle (reserve dark green tops for garnish)
1 to 2 Thai chiles (or 1 small serrano pepper), thinly sliced (optional, for spicy!)
3 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
1 tablespoon roasted black or white sesame seeds

sauce
3 tablespoons/52 grams tamari or soy sauce
1 tablespoon Chinese black vinegar (see Tip for a gluten-free substitute)
1 teaspoon organic cane sugar, pure maple syrup or agave nectar
1 tablespoon gochugaru (Korean chile flakes); see Tip
1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil

1 handful cilantro leaves and tender stems, roughly chopped

METHOD
Start by cooking the rice using your preferred method, or get out your leftover cooked rice.

Make the tofu: Wrap the tofu in a thin dish towel and gently squeeze with your palms to remove some water but don’t squish it. Using the large holes of a box grater, grate the tofu. If small pieces break off, slice them very thinly.

In a large nonstick skillet, heat the oil over medium-high heat. After a minute or two, add the scallions, chiles (if using) and garlic. Cook, stirring frequently, until the garlic is slightly golden and the scallions are softened, about 2 minutes.

Add the grated tofu to the pan and toss to coat it in the oil. Cook undisturbed for 2 minutes, then stir. Cook, stirring every 2 minutes, until the tofu is golden brown in some spots, a total of 10 to 14 minutes.

Meanwhile, make the sauce: In a small bowl, whisk together the tamari, vinegar, sugar, gochugaru and sesame oil until well combined.

Pour the sauce into the pan — it will bubble rapidly — and stir with a silicone spatula to evenly coat the tofu. Cook for 1 minute. Remove from the heat and sprinkle with the sesame seeds.

Serve over cooked rice and top with the reserved scallion tops and cilantro. Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for 4 to 5 days.

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green grapes.

sweet and sour frozen grapes.

INGREDIENTS

1 ½ pounds red or green seedless grapes off the stem, washed and dried
1 tablespoon grated lemon zest (optional), plus 2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 teaspoons sugar
1 teaspoon Aleppo chile flakes or other mild chile flakes like Urfa (See Tip)
Kosher salt (such as Diamond Crystal)

METHOD
Add grapes to 1-gallon zip-top bag (1 ½ pounds of loose grapes fit perfectly in a gallon-sized zip-top bag, allowing them to freeze in a single, even layer—no need to transfer them from a baking sheet to a storage container).

In a small bowl, combine lemon zest (if using), lemon juice, sugar, chile flakes and 1 teaspoon salt, and whisk very well to combine.

Pour the lemon mixture over grapes, seal the bag, and shake well to thoroughly coat each grape.

Lay the zip-top bag flat in the freezer and freeze for at least 6 hours (ideally overnight), until grapes are frozen solid. Remove from the freezer and toss around to loosen them in the bag before tipping them into a bowl. Serve immediately. (Frozen grapes can be stored in the freezer for up to 6 weeks.)

Tip: For a sharper heat, use ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper or ½ teaspoon Italian crushed red pepper in place of the mild chile flakes.

more tofu.

 Is this finally going to be tofu's year? This is a NYT recipe. I guess that means it'll start costing more than €2/lb. 

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broiled tofu. 

INSTRUCTIONS
2 (14-ounce) blocks extra firm tofu, sliced lengthwise 1-inch-thick
2 tablespoons brown sugar (light or dark)
2 tablespoons white miso paste
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons rice vinegar
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
¼ to ½ teaspoon ground cayenne

METHOD
Arrange tofu slices on a clean kitchen towel or paper towels. Cover with another kitchen towel (or paper towels), and place a flat cutting board or sheet pan on top. Stack a few cans or a skillet on top to weigh it down. Let tofu drain for 15 to 45 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a large bowl, stir together the sugar, miso, soy sauce, rice vinegar, oil and cayenne until smooth. Tear the tofu into bite-size pieces (about 1 inch), and add to the miso mixture. Stir gently to coat. You can cook the tofu right away, or cover and refrigerate to marinate for up to 24 hours.

When you’re ready to cook, arrange a rack about 6 inches from the broiler and heat broiler to high. Line a sheet pan with aluminum foil. Remove the tofu from the marinade and arrange on the sheet pan. Reserve marinade.

Broil, flipping occasionally through with a spatula, until browned and crisp, 10 to 15 minutes total. (Broilers have hot spots, so check the tofu periodically and rotate the pan and tofu as needed so everything crisps.) Drizzle with the reserved marinade.

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how many more times.

Am I going to do some stupid pun on the word orange. 

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orange tofu.

tofu
400g firm tofu

1 tbsp sesame oil
1 tbsp sesame seeds
zest of one orange
1 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp fine salt 

4 tsp cornstarch

sauce
3 garlic cloves
a thumb sized piece of ginger
2 scallions, sliced
1/2 cup orange juice
zest of that orange
1/4 cup soy sauce
1 tbsp rice vinegar
1 tbsp brown sugar
1-2 tsp cornstarch
1 tsp gochugaru

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tempeh orek.

I just made what I think is the most Indonesian-tasting thing I've ever made. Lime leaves: underrated. Mushroom bouillon: underrated. 

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tempeh orek. 

INGREDIENTS
400g tempeh
400g green beans, trimmed, cut in thirds or so

50g red chilies, chopped* (this is the authentic ingredient, to adjust for the average Dutch palate use one chopped red bell pepper and 2-3 tsp sambal oelek)
1 handful cherry tomatoes
3 shallots or one large red onion

3 garlic cloves, minced
3 whole lime leaves, plus 1 shredded
3 tbsp kecap manis
1 mushroom bouillon cube, crushed to a powder
salt to taste
1/4 tsp white pepper

2 tbsp butter 

METHOD
Forthcoming, but basically: cut the tempeh into 1cm slices, toss with sesame or coconut oil, sprinkle with salt, and roast in a 200C oven for 10 minutes, flip, 10 minutes, flip, then 5-10 minutes watching closely to make sure they don't blacken, you're aiming for a toasted color that seems on the verge of going too far. 

Throw the beans in salted boiling water for 6 minutes or so, drain, and let them wait for you to finish the boemboe: put the onion/shallot, tomatoes, and red pepper in a food processor and process to a coarse paste. Saute in a wok in sesame or coconut oil for 10 minutes. Add garlic and cook for 2 minutes. Add ketjap manis, green beans, tempeh, lime leaves, crushed bouillon cube, and saute for 5-10 minutes, adding sambal oelek to taste. Serve with plain white rice.

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why you got to be such a friggin spicebag.

Coupla recipes in progress, finally had a go at it, the curry sauce recipe is perfect but you got to buy McDonnell's to make it happen, which isn't ideal even though it's excellent. Anyway, this is Mark I. 

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irish spice bag.

INGREDIENTS
the spice mix
1 tbsp five spice seasoning
1/4 tsp cardamom powder
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp ginger powder
1/2 tsp gochugaru flakes or other mild chile powder
1/2 tsp zwarte peper
1/2 tsp fine white sugar
1 tsp fine salt

the curry sauce
2 tbsp butter or vegetable oil
1 small onion, finely minced
1 cloves garlic, minced
2.5 tbsp mild curry powder
1/2 tsp chinese five-spice powder
2.5 tbsp all-purpose flour
400ml (approx. 1.7 cups) vegetable stock
1 tbsp soy sauce
1 tsp fine white sugar

METHOD
Whisk all spice mix ingredients together in a small bowl until completely combined. 

Set a saucepan on medium heat and melt the butter over medium heat. Cook the minced onion for 3 minutes until soft but not browned, then add the garlic for 1 minute. 

Build the roux: stir in the curry powder, five-spice, and flour. Cook for 1-3 minutes while stirring constantly to toast the spices and cook out the raw flour taste.

Slowly whisk in the stock a little at a time to prevent lumps, this can take 5 minutes or so. Add the soy sauce and sugar. Bring the mixture to a very gentle boil, then turn the heat down a bit and simmer for 10–12 minutes until thick and glossy. Optionally blend with a hand blender if you prefer a completely smooth texture.

A 1-person spicebag should have about 2 tsp of spice mix added, assume that the fries and chicken are already salted. 

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to try II.

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five-spice tofu with snap peas and noodles in pepper-sesame sauce.

INGREDIENTS
300g tofu
300g ramen noodles
200g snow peas or sugar snaps

5-spice marinade
1 and ½ tbsp ketjap manis
1 tbsp sesame oil
1 tbsp (rice) vinegar
½ tsp five spice
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped

paprika-sesame sauce
200g roasted bell peppers from the jar, patted dry
50g tahini
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
1 and ½ tbsp toban dan chili bean sauce

1 tbsp soy sauce (low salt)
1 tsp sesame oil

METHOD
Preheat the oven to 190°C. Open the tofu, save the liquid, Nguyen the tofu. Mix the ingredients for the 5-spice marinade with plenty of pepper in a second bowl and add the tofu. Knead the marinade firmly into the tofu until it is crumbled. Spread the tofu over a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and roast in the oven for 18 to 20 minutes until dark brown (but not black). Turn over 2 to 3 times in between.

While the tofu is in the oven, blend the ingredients for the paprika-sesame sauce with 3 tablespoons of the reserved tofu liquid (top up with water if necessary) until smooth in a food processor or with an immersion blender.

Cook the snow peas in a large pan with boiling water for 3 minutes until tender. Remove the snow peas from the pan with a slotted spoon and place them on a plate. Cook the noodles in the same water according to the time indicated on the packaging. For a fancy garnish, cut some snow peas into strips.

Pour the paprika-sesame sauce into a pan and heat over low heat.

Stir in the ramen and divide among four deep plates. Spoon the tofu over, serve with the snow peas, and garnish with the snow pea strips if desired.

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to try I.

One of two untested recipes from a cookbook that I had zero faith in but the first (third?) recipe I cooked from it was really great. For this one I think I'd sub actual parmesan for the nutritional yeast. 

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rice cakes with white beans and gochujang. 

INGREDIENTS
5 garlic cloves, peeled
1 medium onion, roughly chopped
125g carrots, roughly chopped
1 celery stalk, roughly chopped

15g basil, leaves cut into strips and stems kept separately
3 tbsp olive oil
1 x 400g can peeled tomatoes

2 x 400g cans of cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
10g gochujang
100g ricecake sticks

cheesy sesame topping
1 and ½ tbsp nutritional yeast flakes
1 tbsp sesame seeds
1 tsp gochugaru 
¼ tsp coarse sea salt

METHOD
Finely grind the garlic in a food processor. Add the onion, carrot, celery, and basil stems to the garlic and grind into small pieces.

Heat the olive oil in a large skillet or skillet over medium heat. Add the chopped vegetables and ¼ teaspoon of salt and cook for 7 to 8 minutes until softened.

Meanwhile, blend the contents of the can of peeled tomatoes and a scoop of borlotti or cannellini beans in a blender until smooth.

Stir the gochujang into the vegetables and cook for 1 minute. Then add the tomato-bean mixture and cook for another 4 to 5 minutes until the liquid has largely reduced. Add 450ml water, the rice cake sticks, the remaining beans, and ¾ teaspoon of salt, and bring to a boil while stirring regularly.

Let simmer uncovered for 10 to 12 minutes until the rice cake sticks are cooked.

Mix the ingredients for the cheesy sesame topping: divide the rice cake sticks with beans among the bowls and garnish with basil leaves and the sesame topping.

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traybaked.

Improbable but delicious and refreshing. 

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sweet potato and chickpea traybake.

INGREDIENTS
1 large (400 g) and 1 small (200 g) can of chickpeas, rinsed and drained
1 kg sweet potato, washed, patted dry, and sliced 2 cm thick

2 1/2 tbsp neutral vegetable oil
1 organic lime

⅓ tsp cardamom powder
200g yogurt

60g tamarind paste
1 tbsp sriracha sauce
1 tbsp agave syrup

1 can of corn (340 g), drained (285 g)
1 cucumber, halved lengthwise and sliced ​​wafer-thin
1 shallot, cut into half rings

METHOD
Preheat the oven to 220 °C.

Pat the chickpeas dry and spread them with the sweet potato over a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Drizzle with the oil and sprinkle with ⅔ teaspoon salt. Mix, redistribute over the baking sheet, and roast in the oven for 20 minutes.

Mix the corn, cucumber, and shallot in a large bowl. Halve the lime and squeeze the juice over the bowl. Season to taste with ⅛ teaspoon pepper and ⅛ teaspoon salt.

Finely grate the zest of ½ lime and stir together with the cardamom powder and a pinch of salt into the yogurt.

Remove the baking sheet from the oven. Mix the tamarind paste, sriracha sauce, and the agave syrup, carob syrup, or honey, and stir through the sweet potatoes and chickpeas. Place back in the oven for another 15 to 20 minutes until the vegetables are golden brown and sticky.

Serve the traybake with the corn salad and cardamom yogurt.

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black beans, version xxx.

For a long time I thought I made really good black beans from scratch. I mean, I did (make really good black beans from scratch). But at a certain point I lost the plot via overtweaking and could somehow never really get back to a super-solid base recipe. 

UNTIL NOW. Welllllll, I just went back to the very beginning, the first recipe that ever told me how to make black beans, from Mark Miller's Coyote Cafe cookbook, the black bean soup recipe. And I combined the ingredients/ratios from that recipe with the zero-effort technical approach that Tortilla's perfect bean recipe uses. So, no rinsing, no soaking, no baking soda, no wrapping aromatics in a cheesecloth to perfume the beans, etc. Just herbal beany goodness +/- 3 hours from start to finish. 

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the coyote cafe black bean recipe. 

INGREDIENTS
500g dried black beans
3 liters boiling water

1 tsp cumin seed
1 tsp ground coriander seed
1 tsp dried oregano

1 medium onion, peeled and halved
4 large cloves garlic, lightly smashed
1 jalapeno chile, halved
2 bay leaves
1/2 tsp dried thyme
1 tsp freshly cracked black pepper
1 and 1/2 tsp fine salt 

1 tbsp olive oil

METHOD
In a big bean pot toast the cumin seeds, coriander seed and oregano until aromatic, about 1 minute. Add the 3 liters of boiling water, then add beans, onion, garlic, jalapeno, bay leaves, thyme, pepper and salt. Set heat to a simmer, cover the pot and cook for 3 hours, checking every 30 minutes to make sure nothing is sticking. When beans are tender, you can add the tbsp of olive oil and simmer with the lid off for 15-30 minutes to thicken the pot liquids. 

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crispy tofu.

Always looking for delicious protein sources, this is very easy and a total winner, from Ottolenghi, this is kind of a garnish for a sweet potato and tofu recipe (!). 

Also: if you don't Nguyen the tofu before you start, you get a very scrambled egg texture as a result instead of the super crispy version that's intended, could be useful for something. 

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american chinese restaurant crispy tofu. 

INGREDIENTS
400g firm tofu 
2 tbsp olive oil
4 tsp cornstarch
1 tsp mild chili flakes (Urfa, Aleppo, gochugaru, etc) 
1/2 tsp fine salt

1 and 1/2 tbsp gluten-free soy sauce

METHOD
Nguyen your tofu: boil a liter of water and pour it over your tofu blocks, making sure they're submerged. Leave them for 15 minutes, then drain and pat dry. Use a box grater to grate the tofu into a large bowl. Toss with olive oil, cornstarch, chili flakes, and salt until well mixed. Spread out in one layer on a baking tray lined with baking paper. Bake at 200C with fan for 25-30 minutes, stirring halfway through. After +/- 30 minutes of baking, add the soy sauce then bake for 5 minutes more.