Baked tofu crumbles.

[CrispyQ]

I took 3 tubs of tofu, drained it, & crumbled it into a bowl. I added about a half a cup of Bragg's amino's, a mixture of herbs & some vegan parm -- that stuff you turned us onto, Robeson :D -- & mix it all together. Spread the tofu out over a large cookie sheet - mine is 11"x17".

Bake at 325°. Every 20 minutes stir the tofu & bake for about one hour or until the tofu is the texture you like.

My husband tosses this in with his rice or pasta. I'm going to use this recipe for a base for Shepards Pie. :9

[Ellen Forradalom]

1. Duly noted

Sounds yummy.

We were just wondering about Bragg's Aminos last night. The Natural Cafe, a veg*an-friendly restaurant chain in the Ventura county area, has big bottles of this in every location. I also noticed the company is located in Santa Barbara, where I lived for a year.

So what else do you use it for?

[CrispyQ]

2. It's very salty, so use sparingly,

& cut back on any other salt in the recipe. It has a nice flavor & fills the house with very nice aroma when baking tofu. You can sub it for soy sauce in most recipes. I use Braggs in stir fry, gravy, sauces.


http://www.bragg.com/products/liquidaminos.html

[flvegan]

3. I'm SO going to make this

and put a layer of it in some veggie lasagne.

[Exultant Democracy]

4. Sounds yummy. n/t

[mzteris]

5. any particular type

of tofu?

I've tried and tried to "make tofu" and it's always lousy. This sounds pretty good, though.

I wish we had a sticky for HOW TO COOK TOFU and HOW TO COOK SEITAN! I can't do either, it seems.

[CrispyQ]

7. I use White Wave water pack tofu.

When you say you tried to make tofu, do you mean you tried to make it from soybeans?

The great thing about the baked tofu is that you just keep baking it until it's the texture you like. If you want it chewier keep it in the oven longer. The key is to bake at a slightly lower temp so you don't have to keep such a close eye on it. I've found that 325° is perfect.

Another thing about tofu, & maybe others will disagree, but I have never found it to be true that you can marinade a block of tofu & it picks up the flavor. My experience has been that only the very outer layer of the tofu is flavored. Perhaps if you have ultra-thin slices of tofu it would work.

Keep trying! Tofu is such a great food! Cheap, full of protein & versatile.

[mzteris]

8. soft or firm or extra firm?

I picked up some White Wave just last night - weird, huh? - and I think I got the firm (middle of the road choice. lol) Of course, now the weather's gone back to warm and I don't want to use the oven.



I probably should have said "when I try to COOK with tofu" - not make tofu. I wouldn't even begin to know how to do that!

I like it when we've had it out, but never seem to get it cooked right at home. The recipes I read seem so daunting, too. :(

[CrispyQ]

9. A funny anecdote:

A man was grocery shopping & saw a woman put a tub of tofu in her basket. He approached her. "Excuse me, but what are you going to do with that tofu?" She replied, "When I get home, I'll drain the tofu & put it in a plastic container with fresh water. Everyday for the next two weeks I change the water until the tofu goes bad. Then I throw it out. " He gave her a sad smile. "That's the same recipe my wife has. I hoped you had a better one."

;)

I get the firm tofu, but you can use whatever you have. I have never noticed much difference in the various water packed tofus. However, there is a huge difference between water packed tofu & the Japanese style tofu in the aseptic container. That kind of tofu is usually better for sauces, dips, & pies.

And don't forget, you can freeze tofu, so if you aren't going to use it, just toss it in the freezer. I drain the tofu first, then wrap in plastic wrap, but, I have a friend who puts the whole tub, water & all in the freezer & says that works fine.

Good luck & let us know how it goes.

[CrispyQ]

6. Fantastic casserole!

So I did that Shepard's pie type thing with the baked tofu crumbles. Wow! This casserole rocks!

Layer:
baked tofu crumbles
veggies -- I used sauteed onion, celery, carrots & potatoes -- I steamed the carrots & potatoes to make sure they would be fully cooked.
bisquit topping

gravy, on the side

I pre-heated the oven to 450° then lowered to 375° when I put the casserole in. I baked for about 25 minutes. Next time, though, I'll just mix the tofu with the veggies. Also, I would have put the gravy over the veggies, then the biscuit topping, but my husband doesn't like gravy.

This was delicious & very filling!

[Ellen Forradalom]

10. dang

sounds good. I have just the little Le Creuset casserole for it, too.

[6000eliot]

11. How do you make the gravy?

[CrispyQ]

12. I make a roux with Earth Balance & whole wheat flour.

When it gets all thick & bubbly, I pour in my veggie broth, stirring constantly until it's all mixed in. Let it boil to thicken. If I'm using a beefy flavor veg broth I'll add a little wine & some mushrooms. Sometimes I substitute a little bit of nutritional yeast for some of the flour.

BTW, if you have How It All Vegan, the miso gravy recipe rocks! :9

[nam78_two]

13. Oh that sounds good!

Do you use any particular brand of tofu?