Culinary Adventures on a Budget: Tofu!
A word about me. I'm an independent contractor. I don't make hourly wages. That and the economy is so bad that even I'm freaking the fuck out about how I'm going to pay for gas to get to and from just work and nowhere else, and groceries, at that. What's my solution? Deeming meat to be a luxury. I've been cutting back on it for years, so the transition hasn't been brutal. It turns out I can buy a brick of tofu (that's roughly four servings) at a local Asian market for the princely sum of $1.40. SOLD!
But as of late, I had to figure out how to hell to cook tofu, since I've only ever just paid other people to cook it for me. It's not rocket science, but I still had to be told how. I just ate my special buttered curry ramen (yes, I do mean Maruchan brand) with mixed vegetables and pan-fried tofu. All you have to do is pour some milk in a bowl, half a ramen spice pack, some of your own spices (mine is just fresh-cracked pepper, curry powder, paprika, cayenne, and parsley), some hot sauce of your choice (I dilute Blair's top 5 hottest sauces with Tabasco), stir, throw on the hot, drained noodles, slap a pat of butter on top, and stir again. Then add steamed, stir-fried vegetables and pan-fried tofu. (I cut the finished product into rectangular segments.) You'd be amazed how far you can stretch baby carrots if you pare off shreds of them with a vegetable peeler. It was actually pretty decent. If I had to guess, the tofu at bona fide Asian grocers (not white-bred chain supermarkets) is probably cheaper. I think I got a whole brick of tofu for less than $2 at mine, and that's at least 4 servings.
Here's how to pan-fry slices of tofu to give them a nice crust. You don't need a damn thing but oil. I have one of those gallons of canola/olive blend from an Asian market.
But as of late, I had to figure out how to hell to cook tofu, since I've only ever just paid other people to cook it for me. It's not rocket science, but I still had to be told how. I just ate my special buttered curry ramen (yes, I do mean Maruchan brand) with mixed vegetables and pan-fried tofu. All you have to do is pour some milk in a bowl, half a ramen spice pack, some of your own spices (mine is just fresh-cracked pepper, curry powder, paprika, cayenne, and parsley), some hot sauce of your choice (I dilute Blair's top 5 hottest sauces with Tabasco), stir, throw on the hot, drained noodles, slap a pat of butter on top, and stir again. Then add steamed, stir-fried vegetables and pan-fried tofu. (I cut the finished product into rectangular segments.) You'd be amazed how far you can stretch baby carrots if you pare off shreds of them with a vegetable peeler. It was actually pretty decent. If I had to guess, the tofu at bona fide Asian grocers (not white-bred chain supermarkets) is probably cheaper. I think I got a whole brick of tofu for less than $2 at mine, and that's at least 4 servings.
Here's how to pan-fry slices of tofu to give them a nice crust. You don't need a damn thing but oil. I have one of those gallons of canola/olive blend from an Asian market.