Indo-Chinese chili tofu
Crispy tofu tossed with charred peppers, onion and green chilies in a tangy, spicy soy and ketchup sauce, the Indo-Chinese street favorite that disappears fast over rice.
- 55 min total
- 35 min hands-on
- A little more hands-on
- Serves 2
- About $3.10 a serving
- 890 calories
- Vegan
- Dairy-free
Dolly says: Read the steps once before you start. Everything goes smoother after that.
Ingredients
For 2 servings.
- 1 package extra-firm tofu, drained
- 1 cup long-grain white rice
- 2 tbsp ketchup
- 1 tbsp chili garlic sauce
- 1 green bell pepper, cut into 1-inch squares
- 1 yellow onion, cut into 1-inch squares, layers separated
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tbsp fresh ginger, minced
- 2 serrano peppers, thinly sliced
- 2 stalks green onions, thinly sliced
From your pantry
- 1¾ cups water, divided
- ½ tsp salt, divided
- 2 tbsp soy sauce
- 1 tbsp rice vinegar
- 1 tsp sugar
- 3 tbsp cornstarch, divided
- 3 tbsp vegetable oil, divided
Each serving has about 890 calories, 35 g protein, 114 g carbs and 34 g fat, and costs about $3.10 at typical US grocery prices. Both are estimates from what the recipe uses.
Missing something?
- No extra-firm tofu? Firm tofu works.
- No long-grain white rice? Jasmine rice or basmati rice works.
- No green bell peppers? Red bell peppers or yellow bell peppers work.
- No yellow onions? White onions or red onions work.
- No green onions? Chives work.
Steps
Tap an underlined word for a quick explanation.
Wrap the tofu in a clean towel and press it under something heavy for 15 minutes.
Timer: 15 min
Dolly’s tip: Dry tofu fries crisp and stays crisp once the sauce goes on.Meanwhile, the rice and bring it in a small with 1½ cups water and ¼ teaspoon salt over high heat.
Rinse. Rinsing means running cold water over rice or canned beans in a strainer while you swish them around. It washes off loose starch and can liquid, so rice cooks up fluffy and beans taste clean.
How you’ll know: The water running out goes from cloudy to mostly clear; it doesn’t have to be perfect.
Bring to a boil. It means heating a liquid on high until it’s fully boiling before you move on. A lid on the pot gets it there faster, which makes it a good moment to chop something.
How you’ll know: Big bubbles break all over the surface, and they keep coming when you lift the lid.
Saucepan. A saucepan is a pot with tall, straight sides and one long handle. It’s for things that need depth, like rice, sauces or a few boiled eggs.
How you’ll know: The food fills it about halfway, leaving room to bubble without spilling over.
High heat
Stir once, cover, and cook on low for 15 minutes. Take it off the heat and leave the lid on.
Low heatTimer: 15 min
the soy sauce, ketchup, chili garlic sauce, vinegar, sugar, ¼ cup water and 1 tablespoon cornstarch in a small bowl.
Whisk. Whisking means beating quickly with a whisk or a fork to blend things together. It smooths out lumps and mixes eggs, oil or sauces evenly.
How you’ll know: It all looks one even color and texture, with no streaks or lumps.
Cut the tofu into 1-inch and with the remaining 2 tablespoons cornstarch and ¼ teaspoon salt.
Cube. Cubing means cutting food into chunky, even squares, usually three quarters of an inch to an inch. Same-size cubes cook at the same speed and brown on every side.
How you’ll know: Your pieces look like a handful of sugar cubes, a little bigger than diced, all close to the same size.
Toss. Tossing means gently lifting and turning food so everything gets coated, like pasta in sauce or vegetables in oil. It coats every piece evenly without mashing anything.
How you’ll know: Every piece looks glossy or evenly coated, with no dry spots hiding underneath.
Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a large nonstick over medium-high heat until it .
Skillet. A skillet is a frying pan: wide and flat with low, sloped sides. The shape lets steam escape, so food browns instead of stewing.
How you’ll know: It’s the pan you’d fry an egg in, and a 10 or 12 inch one handles most recipes.
Shimmering oil. Oil shimmers when it’s hot enough to cook: its surface looks rippled and wavy, like heat over a road. That’s your cue to add the food, just before the oil would start to smoke.
How you’ll know: The oil looks wavy and runs thin like water when you tilt the pan, with no smoke yet.
Medium-high heat
Fry the tofu, turning every few minutes, until and on most sides, about 12 minutes.
Crispy. Crispy means the outside is dry, firm and crunchy. It comes from high heat, a little oil and room in the pan, because crowded food steams and goes soft.
How you’ll know: It sounds crunchy when you tap or bite it, and it doesn’t flop when you lift it.
Golden brown. Golden brown is the color of good toast, somewhere between yellow and light brown. It means the outside is cooked and crisp but not burnt.
How you’ll know: It looks like toast and smells toasty; dark brown with a bitter smell means it went too far.
Medium-high heatTimer: 12 min
Food safety: Tofu is safe to eat straight from the package; cooking is only for texture and flavor.
Move it to a plate.
Turn the heat to high, add the rest of the oil, the pepper and onion, and 2 to 3 minutes, until at the edges but still crunchy.
Stir-fry. Stir-frying means cooking small pieces fast over high heat in a little oil, stirring almost constantly. It moves quickly, so have everything chopped and ready before the pan gets hot.
How you’ll know: It sizzles loudly the whole time, and the vegetables turn bright and tender-crisp in minutes.
Char. Charring means cooking over very high heat until some spots turn black. Those dark spots add a smoky, slightly bitter flavor that balances sweet or rich food.
How you’ll know: You see black spots and blisters in places, while most of the surface keeps its own color.
High heatTimer: 2 min 30 sec
Dolly’s tip: Indo-Chinese vegetables should stay crisp. Let them blister, not soften.Add the garlic, ginger and serranos and stir 30 seconds, .
Fragrant. Fragrant means cooking until you can clearly smell it, usually garlic or spices, often in about 30 seconds. That’s the moment the flavor is ready, just before it can burn.
How you’ll know: You can smell it from a step back, and garlic is pale gold, not brown.
High heat
Stir the sauce and pour it in. Let it bubble about 1 minute, until glossy, then add the tofu and green onions and to coat.
Toss. Tossing means gently lifting and turning food so everything gets coated, like pasta in sauce or vegetables in oil. It coats every piece evenly without mashing anything.
How you’ll know: Every piece looks glossy or evenly coated, with no dry spots hiding underneath.
Medium-high heatTimer: 1 min
Dolly’s tip: Stir the sauce right before it goes in. The cornstarch sinks while it waits.Spoon over the rice and serve right away.
Plan this in Dollop, and get the grocery list
Dollop puts this dinner on a night that suits your week, lists only what you still need to buy, and walks you through each step while you cook.
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