Crispy fried tofu with mangetout

Tofu doesn't always get the best rep, but hopefully this recipe can be a start to making us all fall in love with this protein packed soy bean!

Prep time: 30 minutes Cook time: 40 minutes Serves: 4 people Cuisine: South east Asian

What you'll need

• 2 blocks of firm tofu

• 4 tbsp Cornflour (add some more if you're running out when coating)

• 2 tsp Chinese 5 spice

• 1 tsp Chilli powder

• 1-2 tsp Garlic powder

• 1 pack mangetout (roughly 150g)

• 1 medium onion

• Garlic and ginger

• 2-3 tbsp Soy sauce (dark or light)

• 2 tbsp crunchy or smooth peanut butter

• 1/2 tbsp Sriracha (or any hot sauce)

• 1 tbsp rice wine vinegar

• 2 tbsp teriyaki sauce (or honey)

• 1 tsp Chinese chilli paste*

• Salt to taste

• Oil of your choice

*You can buy this from a Chinese supermarket but don't worry if you don't have it. It can be substituted for some chilli flakes

Step 1

1. First things first if you don't have pre-pressed tofu, try and press it to get rid of some of the water. This will help create a much drier tofu to work with. Just place some kitchen paper on top of your block of tofu and place something heavy on top. Leave this for round 15-20 minutes (Don't worry if you don't have much time and have to skip this step, it will still become crispy if you make sure to buy extra firm/firm tofu).

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Step 2

In the meantime, chop up your onion, garlic and ginger. There’s no precise way of doing this, just whatever way you prefer or find easiest!

Slice your mangetout into wide diagonal strips. If you want some extra spice, cut up some fresh red chillies at this point too

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Step 3

Your tofu should be ready now. Cut the tofu into roughly 1x1 inch, bitesize pieces. In a bowl, mix together the corn starch, Chinese 5 spice, garlic powder and salt (and chilli powder if you want an extra little kick!). If these spices don't take your fancy, you can add other dried spice to your mix. Place your tofu cubes into your cornflour mixture and give it a good ol' mix- make sure all the sides are generously coated

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Step 4

Prep nearly done I promise. In a separate bowl, mix together the peanut butter, soy sauce, siracha, chinese chilli paste, rice wine vinegar and teriyaki sauce. Leave it on the side, we'll come back to it later

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Step 5

Right, finally for some frying! Add a good few tablespoons of oil (whatever you have at home is fine, whether its rapeseed oil, sunflower oil, ground nut oil etc.) into a non-stick pan. When the oil has had enough time to heat up, add your tofu pieces in. Trick is to spread them out, they need to crisp up on each side so if you've got too many for the pan, then just fry in two batches

Leave them to crisp up on each side until they look golden brown. Once they're ready place them in a bowl and set aside till later.

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Step 6

Using the same pan, with a little more oil added if needed, add in your onion, garlic and ginger (and red chillies). Add roughly a tablespoon of your peanuty sauce to the pan. This will soak into your onions and help them caramelise!

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Step 7

Add your mangetout and cook until you’re happy with the crunchiness (they don’t need long, roughly 5-7 minutes). Add in the rest of your sauce mixture now and mix everything together

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Step 8

Final step. Once everything is mixed together, add your crispy tofu to the pan and just give everything a quick mix so that your sauce has incorporated with everything. Have a taste and season to your liking

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Step 9

You’re ready to plate up! You can serve this dish with some rice or noodles. I made an aubergine dish to go with mine (recipe coming soon). Don’t forget to serve up a little Chinese chilli paste on the side!

Hope you enjoy x