My partner works near lots of Vietnamese Grocery stores, they sell the best stuff and are so cheap! I love wandering the isles and wondering what all the different ingredients are used for. This week, on request, he brought home some fried tofu. Tofu, like many things, tastes best fried. I like it other ways but fried is my favourite. You can fry it yourself but the experts know what they are doing. I hate frying, all that oil and spitting. When fried, tofu becomes wonderful cushiony cubes that readily absorbs flavours. Freshly fried it has a lovely crunch - you can quickly refry the fried tofu in a hot pan with a tiny bit of oil. Bowerbird dad cracked the pack when we were having chicken wraps this week as he doesn't eat chicken, yummy sweet chilli tofu wrap instead.
Back to using up the leftovers in the fridge (like yesterday), we had an open pack of tofu that I would hate to waste and 1/2 a jar of Laksa paste lurking in the door. The fussy boy is at camp so great timing to cook something he'd hate.
Visited the garden and brought back - leek, silverbeet, celery and coriander - forgot the broccoli but we did eat a mountain of it with pasta yesterday. Got distracted finding weeds going to seed that urgently required pulling and returned to kitchen 1/2 hr later. Rice cooked and keeping warm in the rice cooker, a great tool for vague, garden obsessed people.
Fried leek and garlic (3 big cloves) from last years harvest. Added mushrooms (sliced) that were getting a bit old (the big one had the genius of looking for what needed using in the crisper), celery (chopped) and silverbeet (sliced stem removed)- big one helped stir. Made hole in vegies so I could fry Laksa paste to bring out flavours - then stirred together. Added tin coconut milk (light - tasted just as good), kecap manis (sweet soy 1tbspn), peanut butter (2 tbspn) and tofu. Cooked until hot. Served with fried shallots, peanuts, chopped coriander and chilli. Also cracked the Fijian chutney gifted to me earlier this year, for minding goldfish whilst their owners were in Fiji - thankyou Susan. Lovely tangy tamarind spicy flavour to have with the creamy curry.
What to call it? Satay Fried Tofu
Another hit with the family, a bit spicy for little one so she had tuna rice, big one loved it. Have packed for Bowerbird dad to take to work tomorrow, I have a hard time convincing him to save money and take lunch due to all the great food on offer in his neighbourhood.
