This marinated tofu doesn’t even need to be cooked! Flavored with soy, sesame oil, and ginger, this easy tofu recipe will be your new favorite. (It’s ours.)
Alex and I don’t eat much tofu. But this marinated tofu: well, it’s something special. It’s packed with savory umami: toasted sesame oil and ginger, garlic and soy sauce. There’s a hint of maple to balance it out and it’s mixed with scallions and sesame seeds. Oh: and you don’t have to cook it! All you have to do is put it in the fridge to marinate: it’s almost completely hands-free. We don’t usually evangelize tofu. But with this simple tofu recipe: We are 1000% thrilled. You have to try it…we promise it’s a winner. Toss it in a bowl with quinoa, tahini sauce, and fresh veggies, and you have a healthy lunch or dinner.
Other ways to serve tofu? Fried tofu and grilled tofu.
How to make this easy marinated tofu recipe
Where did the idea for this marinated tofu recipe come from? Well, we got it at an airport. AN AIRPORT? Yes I know I can say with confidence that this is the first and only recipe on A Couple Cooks ever to be inspired by airport cooking. NEVERTHELESS. Alex and I were staying at the Chicago Midway and needed a quick healthy dinner. Somehow Alex found some sushi and a box of pickled tofu. Before that, we were a bit skeptical at first. But after the first bite, none of us could stop eating it: Larson included! It was really tasty and filling, but tasted fresh and healthy at the same time.
This marinated tofu is the definition of easy: there are basically two steps. Squeeze and marinate. Why do you have to press the tofu? Well, there’s quite a bit of water in tofu, so you’ll have to squeeze it to add flavor. But: We have developed a quick way to do it!
Squeeze tofu: fast!
Many tofu recipes call for the tofu to be pressed for about 1 hour to drain before beginning the recipe. It doesn’t really fit our workflow, so we decided to explore faster ways to extract water from tofu. There’s actually a surprising trick to speed up the pressing of tofu. The microwave!
Oddly enough, if you microwave tofu for 2 minutes, it pulls out quite a bit of the liquid. Then place the pieces on a dry towel, place a cutting board on top and cover with a heavy object. The weight extracts more water in just 15 minutes.
How to marinate tofu
After pressing the tofu, you only have to marinate the tofu for 30 minutes. When marinating, you simply leave it in a bowl with the marinade: you only have to stir it once. The flavors are balanced with salty, sweet, hot and spicy: soy sauce, garlic and sesame oil, hot rice vinegar, maple syrup and a hint of hot gochujang sauce for a touch of spiciness.
Add to this some sliced scallions and sesame seeds and it’s so flavorful you won’t know what hit you. How really. We served our 2 year old this marinated tofu and he devoured it all! It’s really magical.
Expect! It’s not cooked.
And that’s it! With this easy marinated tofu, you don’t cook it. This makes it 100% easier than any cooked method. Because it’s firm tofu and you squeezed out all the water, the tofu has great texture. Of course, if you want to cook it, you can always do that! You can pan fry it or bake it (we recommend our friend Ali’s method of preparation). But this easy marinated tofu recipe really doesn’t need to be cooked: it’s delicious without any fuss.
Is tofu healthy?
Yes! Tofu is part of a healthy diet. According to the Harvard TH Chan School of Nutrition, soy is a nutrient-dense source of protein that is safe to eat several times a week. It likely has health benefits, especially when eaten as an alternative to red and processed meat. See Straight Talk About Soy for more details.
How to serve marinated tofu
This marinated tofu is so easy because most of the time it’s homemade: there’s really only about 10 minutes of active time. This gives you enough time to prepare the rest of a meal. And because it keeps in the fridge for up to 5 days, it’s perfect for lunch!
How would you serve this marinated tofu? We’ll have a pasta bowl recipe that includes it soon, or you can make this a meal bowl with quinoa and roasted broccoli…ok, let’s just start with a list! Try with:
How would you serve it? Let us know in the comments below.
This marinated tofu recipe is…
Vegetarian, vegan, dairy-free, gluten-free and plant-based.
The description
This marinated tofu doesn’t even need to be cooked! Flavored with soy, sesame oil, and ginger, this easy tofu recipe will be your new favorite. (It’s ours.)
- 12 at 16 ounce block of extra firm or firm tofu
- ¼ cup soy pasture
- 1 tbsp rice vinegar
- 1 teaspoon maple syrup
- 1 Garlic clove, finely grated
- ½ teaspoon fresh ginger, finely grated
- 1 teaspoon Gochujang sauce
- 2 tablespoons toasted sesame oil
- 1 teaspoon sesame seeds (or toasted sesame seeds)
- 1 tbsp chopped spring onion
- Take the tofu out of the packaging and drain off the liquid. Halve the tofu lengthwise and place in a large bowl. High power microwave 2 minutes; This will help extract the liquid.
- Drain the excess liquid that is released in the microwave. Place both parts on a towel; Place another folded towel on top and add a cutting board and a heavy object. Leave on for 15 minutes until the water has drained.
- Cut each square into 16 pieces, for a total of 32 squares. Add everything to the bowl with the marinade and stir very gently. Add the marinade and place in the fridge for at least 30 minutes, stirring gently halfway through cooking. Keep refrigerated for 5 days.
- Category: main course
- Method: marine
- Kitchen: Asian
