Wanna be vegetarian needs help with tofu

Hello folks!  I'm new here and I'm hoping you guys can help me.  I'm working towards removing animal flesh from my diet.  I no longer eat pork or beef at all and I'm trying hard to phase out chicken.  I know I'm not an actual vegetarian now but I'd like to get there one day. 

I wanted to use tofu as a protein-replacement but my problem is that I have absolutely no idea what to do with it!  No clue how to cook it or what I can use it in place of.

Anyone have any useful links or yummy tofu receipies?

Thanks!

I looove scrambled tofu (i just had it for dinner).  Treat the tofu like scrambled eggs, only dry it first by putting papertowels over it and putting something heavy ontop of that.  Add anything you want; be creative!  I had mine with spinach. 

My mom also makes a really yummy sautaed tofu with peanutbutter sauce.  It's pretty commom in regular cokbooks, so i'm sure you could find it. 

happy tofu recipe searching!

Tofu smoothies!!!! Berries, silken (dessert) tofu, and peaches....tofu.com is a good site. Tofu replaces any meat. Marinade and season it. !5-30 minutes before marinading it, place it on a towel, drape a towel over it, and set a plate on top --- gotta drain the water out.

I think the first thing we should mention is that there are different types of tofu.

Silken tofu is very soft, and if you hold onto it too hard you'll smush it very easily. This is the kind that the two above posts would use for scrambled tofu and tofu smoothies.

The second time is firm (or extra firm) tofu and this is ususally used as a meat replacer as it has a denser texture and can usually hold together in sauces, and even for grilling.

The key to cooking tofu is taste. Tofu by itself has very little flavour and is quite bland. However, it picks up the flavour of what it is cooked with very easily. For extra flavour try marinating.

Tofu in a marinated ginger orange sauce makes a good breakfast sausage substitute. I add firm tofu cubes to a lot of stir fryies and pasta dishes. Tofu also works really well in curry and jerk dishes.

I find the best way to incorporate tofu is to think what can I add tofu to rather than how can I cook tofu.

Hi, I've been a vegetarian since 4th grade and I'm now entering 9th.

Tofu2Go is a company that sells packages of tofu and sauce that can be eaten straight from the container with no preperation. Thats a good option if you are bringing lunch to work or school.

I also love barbequeing tofu-kebobs with vegetables.

However, a vegetarian shouldn't rely completely on tofu for protein. Be sure to supplement with eggs or beans or some other protein rich food.

Great replies, thank you all so much!

Super - thanks for explaining the differences.  I really didn't know that there was more than one kind! 

Mireille - great idea for when I'm short on time, thanks!

dee, try vegweb.com for all your veggie needs. it was a tremendous help to me when I went vegan a couple years ago.

I typically sear the tofu after marinating a while.  A typical marinade would be oil, vinegar, ginger, chili, and liquid smoke.  Oh, and for this I use the extra firm tofu.  Once seared, I'll eat the tofu by itself or on a sandwhich.

Another recipe, also using the extra firm tofu, is to add it to tomato sauce and serve over pasta - a tofu caccitore.

Hope this helps a little.

--Mickey

Other that tofu, try checking out seitan, tempeh, and adding soy to meals to supplement protein.

Definitely go out and get a good cookbook, it really helps.

Ah, tofu. Love it. Tofu is a great source of protein and if your lucky enough to have an Asian grocer in your neighborhood, it can come in fresh pieces or in the string kind (looks like spaghetti). I usually stir fry mine, then add lots of veggies. Here is the name of a company that sells the "spaghetti type" of tofu. CHAN KEE DRIED BEAN CURD CO., INC 71 STEUBEN ST., BROOKLYN,NY 11205

Good luck! Happy Eating. Feel free to email me for more info. I'm at joje@verizon.net

You've GOT to try freezing tofu.  This is my method...

1. buy extra firm tofu
2. cut into 1" cubes
3. freeze in an airtight container
4. thaw in the same container (use lots of paper towels).
5. gently press out any water with more paper towels.

Yes it takes some forethought and patience, but it is worth it.  After draining, the tofu has a chicken-nigget texture!  I like to coat it in a tiny bit of BBQ sauce, place cubes on aluminum foil, and bake at 400 degrees for about 20 mins (until crisp on the outside).

Lowfat and delicious--good luck!

I like to make tofu "steaks"

Get a package of extra firm tofu, slice into 6-8 slabs.  Coat both sides of each slab with soy sauce, and then a little olive oil, and then sprinkle with sesame seeds.  Bake at 400 for approximately 45 minutes (more if you like it chewier, less if you like it softer) and eat!  It goes well with just about anything.

I'm new to tofu and have tried the following:

Fry tofu with safflower oil in pan, flipping until it starts to get crispy on the outside, add a couple spoons of Thai pad thai sauce, stir briefly, add minced raw peanuts, serve.  One problem I experience with this is that the tofu tends to stick to the pan.  I love the dish and just live with the stickiness.

At restaurants, they have awesome veges, tofu and sauce.  Can't quite figure out how they get the firm outside texture on their tofu cubes.  I'm going to try the freezing and baking suggestion above.

Hey ive been vegan for 2 years and try marinating low-fat firm tofu in soy sauce and vegetable broth overnight, then cooking it in that same sauce the next day. Add cornstarch to the sauce and it becomes like a thick gravy. It's really yummy!

tofu picks up the flavors of marinades.  Here are my favorites

soy, ginger, garlic, brown sugar (just a little) and lime juice

lemon, herbs, sea salt and pepper

white wine, dijon mustard, and a touch of honey

lime, cumin, hot chiles

Leave tofu slices or cubes in the marinade as long as you like.  When ready to stir fry, pat them dry on paper towels.  The flavor will be deep inside the tofu after a couple of days.  You can use the marinade as part of the sauce.

It's one of my favorite foods! (Though it can be intimidating to look at, haha) It's so versatile, and as mentioned, it takes on the flavor of whatever ingredients it's mixed with, from asian-style stir fries to vegan "cheese"cake :) I've left some links to a couple websites with some great recipes to try if you are feeling creative (and adventurous)...It takes on a completely different texture when frozen as well, so have fun with it!

http://www.savvyvegetarian.com/recipes/tofu-r ecipes.php

http://www.tastyandmeatless.com/recipes_tofu_ dishes.htm

http://www.fatfree.com/recipes/tofu/

try frying it with nature burger mix and nutritional yeast.

also, make some nature burger mix and crumble tofu in with it.

you can mix tofu with falafel also.

hmmm.....

-rob

Tofu doesn't stir-fry well unless you coat it with flour or breading.  Fried tofu in restaurants is usually so good because it is battered or breaded. 

Also gotta agree with spinachgirl . . . freezing tofu is the way to go.  I don't go to nearly as much trouble, though . . . I just toss the package into the freezer and thaw it out when I'm ready to use it.  I'll tear it up into medium sized pieces and throw it in a tomato sauce or vegetable curry and it is delicious.

Beware of relying heavily on tofu for protein, though, because it has a high fat content.  It's better to rely on lower-fat legumes like beans and save tofu for an occasional treat.

I am a vegan and have had my fair share of the tofu.  You can fry it without batter.  Cut it up into small pieces and then fry.  The only problem is that it's not good for you at that point.  I actually don't think tofu is good for you at all.  Most people don't believe it, but vegetarians can get plenty of protein from vegetables.  I don't ever consume tofu (cuz of soys link to breast cancer) and I get more protein than the daily recommendation. 

Toodles!