Saturday nights are made for takeaway and one of my absolute favourites is Chinese. I love the flavours and textures that Chinese food brings and the simple use of ingredients that delivers every time.
Whenever I get a Chinese menu, I always look for one dish: Salt and Pepper Tofu (or Bean Curd). I just love it. Even though it is usually seen as a starter, I think it goes really well with Egg Fried Rice and makes a truly satisfying meal. This recipe does take effort, but it’s so worth it, and can be used as a starter, finger food or as a wider buffet!
45 minutes prep | 25 minutes cooking | 6 hours marinading
Ingredients to serve 2:
For the Tofu
- 140g Tofu
- 1tsp salt
- 1tsp pepper
- 1 tsp ginger crushed
- 1 tsp garlic crushed
- 1/4 to whole chilli (dependent on spice preference)
- 1 tbsp sesame oil
For the Egg Fried Rice
- 4 tbsp basmati rice
- 3 spring onions chopped
- 1 carrot chopped
- 80g peas
- 3 tsp light soy sauce
- 2 medium free range eggs
For the Spicy Broccoli
- 12 tenderstem broccoli pieces
- Leftover marinade from Tofu
Step 1: Marinade the tofu (11am)
Slice the tofu into even cube pieces and add to a bowl. Then, add the salt, pepper, ginger, garlic, chilli and oil and rub into the tofu. You need to get your hands stuck in here to really make the most of the flavours! Cover and place in the fridge.
Step 2: Boil the rice (5pm)
Cook your rice as stated on the instructions. Once cooked, drain and wash with cold water until the rice is cold. Place in a bowl, cover and put it in the fride.
Step 3: Preheat the oven (7pm)
Preheat the oven to 200ºC and prepare your vegetables for the rice.
Step 4: Cook the tofu and marinade the broccoli
Put the tofu onto a cold frying pan, leaving the majority of the marinade in the bowl (it should be mainly salt and pepper on the tofu by now). Place the broccoli into your steamer and smother in the marinade. Set to one side.
On a medium heat, gently fry the tofu for 10 minutes, continuously turning until golden brown. Once golden brown, put the tofu in the oven.
Step 5: Make the Egg Fried Rice and steam the brocolli.
After putting the tofu into the oven, beat two eggs into a bowl and add 1tsp of soy sauce, salt and pepper. Then, fry the spring onion, carrot and peas of two minutes on a high heat. Add the rice and stir, continuing to fry on a high heat. After two more minutes, add the remaining soy sauce, reduce the heat and make a well in the middle of the bowl.
After making the well, steam the broccoli for five to seven minutes (depending how crunchy you like the broccoli).
Back to the rice. Pour the egg into the well and leave to cook. You’ll be tempted to mix but the key to good egg fried rice is to leave the egg. After about one minute, start to break up the egg and let it cook through. Once it’s cooked, mix with the rice and continue to cook until the broccoli is ready.
Once the broccoli is steam, remove the tofu from the oven and serve!
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