The Foodie Quartet

Another Asian inspired meal, another dinner that was scrumptious and another feather in my hat!! This was a very easy meal to put together. Hot weather, the lingering fire scare and busy weeknights call for easy to make meals, meals that will comfort us and make us believe in a good day. Food is one way of expressing our emotions, at least it is for me ! A good bowl of yummy food at the end of the day is as healthy a meal as I can eat…..I grew up eating warm foods and I am still partial towards them over cold food and salads.

Anyways, my point being, this bowl of noodles topped with some Gochujang tofu and broccoli was exactly what we needed after a grueling few hours! Ok…maybe I am being overly dramatic about the grueling part…but definitely not down playing the fear that was lingering over an imminent threat from the wildland fires around us. Thankfully we are out of the woods and hoping the fire shows the woods some mercy as well.

What is Gochujang ? Gochujang or red chili paste is a savory, sweet, and spicy fermented condiment made from chili powder, glutinous rice, meju powder, yeotgireum, and salt. The sweetness comes from the starch of cooked glutinous rice, cultured with saccharifying enzymes during the fermentation process. ~ Wikipedia

I have used my favorite store bought Gochujang paste here. The flavor from the fermentation is unique and rest of the ingredients bring that umami that we crave for while eating Southeast Asian inspired food.

Recipe : Gochujang Tofu

Prep Time : 10 minutes	Cook time : 15 minutes
Spice Level : 🌶🌶	Ease Level : 😃
Serves – 4 to 5	Entree

Ingredients :

For the Tofu:

1. Firm tofu, drained – 16 oz – cut into bite sized cubes
2. Rice Flour – 1 tablespoon
3. Salt to taste
4. Crushed Black Pepper to taste

For the Sauce :

5. Gochujang paste/sauce – 1 tablespoon
6. Soy sauce – 1 teaspoon
7. Sambal Oelek – 1 teaspoon
8. Sugar – 1 teaspoon – or any sweetener
9. Tomato ketchup – 1 teaspoon
10. Crushed Garlic – 1 teaspoon
11. Grated Ginger – 1 teaspoon
12. Salt to taste

How To :

1. Take the cubed tofu in a shallow mixing bowl and add rice flour, salt and pepper to it and toss well until all pieces are coated well.
2. Heat a wok or skillet on medium high and add a neutral flavored oil.
3. Once oil heats up, slowly drop in the tofu pieces and fry them until lightly golden on both sides. Takes about 3 to 4 minutes on each side.
4. Toss the tofu pieces carefully so as to no break them. Once they become crisp they will retain the shape well.
5. Once the tofu is brown enough, add the sauce and toss it gently to coat the tofu pieces in the sauce.
6. One well coated, let it cook for 2 minutes.
7. Remove from heat and serve it with veggies of choice and a carbohydrate if needed like noodles or rice or even quinoa.

We ate it with some steamed broccoli and garlic noodles.

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This is a very good recipe to manipulate according to our tastes and dietary needs. I hope you try it and enjoy it as much as we did! I will post the recipe for the Brown Rice and Millet Garlic Noodles soon.

Thank you for stopping by !