Tofu can be used for many dishes, but what is the best way to prepare this weird tasty white block? You can press, marinate and grill it. But did you know you can also bake it? That’s a genius way to prepare the tofu and today I’ll teach you how!
During the last few weeks I have been experimenting with different ways to prepare tofu. I learned to squeeze it the right way, then I learned how to grill it and also how to give your tofu the desired flavor by making the right marinades. Luis liked my tofu satay from last week so much that he told his parents about it and asked if I would like to make it again soon. Moments like this really give me the courage to experiment further and the joy that he learns to appreciate Mister Tofu.
If there is one thing that I have learned in the last few weeks, it is that it is essential to use spices and dry herbs when cooking vegan or vegetarian. If you don’t use meat, you have to enhance the flavor in a different way.
The best thing about tofu is that you can control what your dish will look like. You can create all possible flavors yourself and also determine the consistency yourself! That’s how it works with tofu. And if you are lazy for a day, you can also scramble it, but this way of preparing tofu will be discussed at other times!
The great thing about baking tofu in the oven is that you don’t need any oil. You marinate it, coat it with cornstarch and throw it in the oven. In between, just shake the pieces once, put the tofu back in the oven and you’re done. Voilà, easy and tasty but not very fast. I actually think that is a disadvantage. I sometimes have that in the kitchen: I find a new way to cook something, and it is not exactly how I want it. We all have that sometimes, I think. Another disadvantage is that you have to make the marinade very strong because I have noticed that otherwise the taste is lost a bit in the oven.
The advantage of this way of making tofu is that you can immediately make a large batch to use with everything. The tofu will stay crispy for a few days and you can quickly stir it into your dishes or reheat it in a pan or in the oven. When I made this recipe I was looking for something to add to a large batch of potato hash. That became this tofu, and what a good idea that was! And now to the recipe, before talking about my love for potato hash. But I have decided to share my secret and crispy ingredient with you!
Ingredients
3 to 4 bowls
This recipe is really delicious if you take the time to properly grill the potatoes in olive oil. It takes me a total of 45 minutes to cook the potatoes and the time in the oven.
Marinade
- 70 ml of lemon juice
- 6 tablespoons of olive oil
- salt and pepper
- 1 tablespoon of Italian herbs
- 1 clove of garlic, crushed
Tofu
- a 250 gr block of tofu, drained weight
- cornstarch
- pepper
Potato hash
- 900 g potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
- 350 g carrots, peeled and sliced
- 1 onion, in rings
- 4 cloves of garlic, crushed in the skin
- olive oil
- breadcrumbs (the secret ingredient)
- smoked pimenton powder (paprika powder is also possible, but it is different)
- salt and pepper
- rosemary and thyme
- chili flakes
Preparation
For this recipe, I let the tofu marinate overnight in the marinade and only prepared the next day. Press the tofu for more than 30 minutes and meanwhile make the marinade by mixing all the ingredients together in a bowl.
Cut the tofu into cubes when it is pressed. Gently mix the tofu with the marinade. Place it in a container and pour the rest of the marinade over it. Put this bowl in the fridge until you need it. It should marinate for at least an hour. Shake the container from time to time so that the whole tofu is well covered in the marinade.
Preheat the oven to 180 degrees. Place a lot of parchment paper in a baking tray and remove your tofu from the marinade. In a large bowl, mix the cornstarch with fresh ground pepper. Roll the marinated tofu through this so that all cubes are completely covered. Divide the tofu cubes over the baking tray and make sure they do not touch each other. Now place the tray in the oven. After 15 minutes, shake the tofu back and forth in the oven. Then everything goes back into the oven for another 15 minutes. By allowing the tofu to bake for less or longer in the oven, you can determine how crispy it will be.
For the potatoes, heat a large pan with plenty of water and some salt. Add your peeled potatoes. You don’t have to wash them, you can just slide them into the lukewarm water. Then increase the heat until the water starts to boil. Let the potatoes cook for about 10 minutes and then add the carrots. Let it cook for about 5 minutes. First stick a knife in the potatoes to see if they are cooked.
Meanwhile, heat a large frying pan with olive oil. Heat the rosemary, thyme and the chopped onion in it. Drain the potatoes and carrots. When everything has drained well, add this to the frying pan and increase the heat. From now on you have to keep stirring every few minutes and add new oil every now and then so that the potatoes and carrots don’t burn.
Add a little more oil and the pimenton powder. Now you have to stir well and quickly back and forth so that the potatoes are well covered. Let everything fry again, add a little olive oil, and then the breadcrumbs. I usually really use 1 or 2 tablespoons because it gets nice and crunchy. Stir well and put your hash in the oven for 5 to 10 minutes.
Remove the tofu from the oven and let it cool while you also remove the hash from the oven and serve it. Sprinkle a little fresh pepper, salt, and chili flakes over the hash and mix in the tofu. Voilà, a delicious and warm snack!
The result
The best thing about this recipe is that you can immediately make a large batch of both recipes. I really like this hash comfort food. Especially because of my secret ingredient the breadcrumbs it is and stays so crispy! Especially if you heat it up again in olive oil for about 5 minutes!
It sounds like a lot of work, but in the end it is really worth it. With this dish you are guaranteed to have happy people in your house and otherwise you’ll have a couple of servings for yourself! What is an issue with the tofu is that you have to make the marinade really strong, because otherwise the taste will disappear very quickly into the tofu. Remember that very well because I’ve had a few disappointments.
But we turn disappointments into great recipes, because I can’t find peace until my dish has become the way it should be! And that is an advantage for you of course! Well, it is wonderful time to enjoy my Monday and go back to the kitchen. Happy Monday, friends!
And as usual, here’s the question of the day: what kind of comfort food do you prefer? I am always curious about this. Did you make this hash with tofu or a great tip for a new kind of comfort food? Send me a message or leave a message!
