The other day my mom called me sounding a little defeated. She wanted to substitute tofu for paneer in a particular dish but had no idea how to cook the tofu to achieve the texture she wanted.
Can we just take a moment here…my mom, one of the greatest cooks on the planet (no bias here!), asked ME for help in the kitchen.
Ok, I’m done.
There are probably a bunch of delicious ways to prepare tofu, but my favorite method involves a grill pan (or any large frying pan), cooking spray, tofu, and the stovetop.
I used to be a baked tofu person but became a stovetop convert rather quickly when I tasted the difference between the two cooking methods.
Baked = slightly more chewy and tough.
Stovetop = crispy on the outside and soft on the inside.
So here’s what I shared with my mom…stovetop tofu in 10 easy steps!
1. Remove extra-firm* tofu block from packaging.
2. Wrap tofu in paper towels to create a wrapped package of sorts.
3. Press down on block with body weight.
4. Place a heavy object (I always use a text book) on the wrapped block and let sit for 15 minutes.
5. Unwrap tofu and cut into whatever size you desire.
6. Spray grill pan (or large frying pan) with cooking spray and place over medium-high heat.
7. Arrange cut tofu pieces on pan and allow to cook for 3-5 minutes until brown.
8. Flip over and cook on the other side for another 2-3 minutes until brown.
9. Remove from pan and let cool.
*No pic for this step because the tofu basically went from pan to mouth. 🙂
10. EAT UP!
Tofu pieces can be used in curry, on a salad…whatever you want really! This method create delicious tofu that comes out perfectly every time.
And I must thank my talented in-house photographer for these pictures! He did an amazing job! Thanks, Vishnu!
*I have only used this method with extra-firm tofu.
What’s your preferred way of preparing tofu?
Aparna B. says
March 4, 2014 at 7:57 amWe are all about stovetop tofu in our house! I tried baked tofu for the first time a few weeks ago, and that was delicious too! It just takes more time than I usually have, so we usually opt out of that. I thought about buying a tofu press from Amazon, but I think cutting board, paper towel, kitchen scale and canned goods work as a press for now 😉 This looks great, though! Glad the new camera is working out!
Aparna B. recently posted…Book Reviews Part 3
myinnershakti says
March 4, 2014 at 10:00 pmWho needs a fancy tofu press when you have heavy books lying around?!
Laura @ Sprint 2 the Table says
March 4, 2014 at 8:14 amThat’s how I press mine too! It’s the only time cookbooks get used in my house. 😉
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myinnershakti says
March 4, 2014 at 10:01 pmLOL! This is the only reason I keep that textbook around. 🙂
Shraddha says
March 4, 2014 at 8:24 amThis looks great Parita!! Love stove top tofu (in moderation) and I only buy ORGANIC!!! Great pix!!!
myinnershakti says
March 4, 2014 at 10:01 pmThanks! And yes, organic, non-GMO tofu is a must for us too.
Shashi @ http://runninsrilankan.com says
March 4, 2014 at 9:00 amI am a hooge fan of stove top tofu too – using a grill pan made that tofu so pretty!
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myinnershakti says
March 4, 2014 at 10:01 pmLove grill marks!
Dixya @ Food, Pleasure, and Health says
March 4, 2014 at 9:51 amgreat pictures photographer V 🙂 I do the same thing with my tofu and always try to get extra firm for stir fries and curries..
Dixya @ Food, Pleasure, and Health recently posted…Starting Whole30..
myinnershakti says
March 4, 2014 at 10:02 pmI’ll pass along the compliments to my photographer!
Arman @ thebigmansworld says
March 4, 2014 at 2:21 pmOhhh P You’ve sparked a tofu craving….and soy is one of the things I had to eliminate from my diet because it gave me terrible stomach pains! Although I think you know my favourite way of eating it (after yonks ago commenting on my insta picture where I put my tray, blender and random pots on it to get the liquid out) by baking it- Although I never tried it stove top. One day I’ll test it out again.
Extra Firm or nothing- the others turn out like jelly!
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myinnershakti says
March 4, 2014 at 10:03 pmI hope you get to try this out at some point. It’s so easy and tastes great the next day as well.
Davida @The Healthy Maven says
March 4, 2014 at 8:34 pmThis is so helpful!!! I just acquired a grill pan so I know what I’ll be making on it first 🙂
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myinnershakti says
March 4, 2014 at 10:03 pmOoh – let me know if you do. 🙂
momma says
March 6, 2014 at 8:53 ampumkin I am one of the greatest cook because of you all have an extraordinarius taste!! BTW pictures are looking crisp too:)!!
myinnershakti says
March 6, 2014 at 10:58 amYou are so cute!! 🙂