The Ingredients for Stir-Fried Tofu |
Stir-fried tofu seems so simple yet tasted so good at local hawker centres in Singapore that I had to try it at home. I did ask the aunty at the food stall what they add to it but she just waved me off after saying “tofu, tomatoes, tomato sauce..” so I was thinking I’ll pretty much improvise on my own. The basic recipe is inspired by Hooked on Heat with some minor changes from my end.
Ah but before I go on, I had some trouble finding the right tofu to make this dish, in Singapore. So, if anyone else here has had trouble finding firm tofu in Singapore, please look for ‘Tau Kwa’. Any brand will work, the most popular one being Unicurd. I use the NTUC housebrand too.
Ok on to the Stir-Fried Tofu recipe now. This is a killer combination with vegetable fried rice.
Stir Fried Tofu with Beans
Ingredients:
Firm tofu – 1 block, cubed
Beans – 1/2 cup 1″ pieces
Tomato – 1, finely chopped
Onion – 1, finely chopped
Tomato paste / ketchup – 1 tbsp
Garlic – 3 pods, crushed
Tamarind paste – 1/2 tsp
Red chilli powder – 1 tsp
Coriander / malli / dhania powder – 1 tsp
Turmeric powder – a pinch
Oil – 2 tsp
Salt – to taste
Spring onions – 2 stalks for garnish (optional)How to Make Stir-Fried Tofu:
1. Lightly fry the cubed tofu in the oil until golden brown on all sides. Make sure you keep the flame on medium-low. Drain on a kitchen napkin and set aside.
2. In the same oil, add the onions and garlic. Fry lightly until the onions turn soft and transparent. Take care not to burn them by maintaining the heat at medium-low.
3. Next, add the turmeric, coriander, chilli, salt and tamarind paste and fry for about a minute. Then add the chopped tomatoes and beans and cook till the tomatoes break down and the oil separates from the sauce. The beans will be more than half cooked at this stage.
4. Finally add the fried tofu and mix well. Simmer for a minute or so, remove from fire, garnish wtih cilantro / spring onions and serve warm with steamed rice, vegetable fried rice, or even roti.
Anonymous
O_O Wah! I'm gonna try & make this one day. I love tofu but I usually just eat it raw; I have been dying for a good tofu recipe & this looks really good. I shall try my best to make it even though I have horrible cooking skills haha.
Nagalakshmi V
Thank you so much for the tips on making tofu taste better, Lynda 🙂
Lynda
Boy, was this good: thank you! We used only half the onion called for and had no tamarind paste in the house, but it didn't seem to matter. Great stuff.
If any readers think they don't like tofu, try freezing it first. Then thaw and squeeze out All the liquid, which leaves the tofu with a totally different texture from before. Rather chewy, which for some of us is waaay preferable…
Nags
yay! i am so glad the recipe worked for you! 🙂