Sluttishly Savoury: Ma Po Tofu

If I called this Pock Marked Old Lady Tofu, it wouldn't sound half as exotic or appetising, but that's what Ma Po Tofu translates to! Legend has it that the dish was created by an old lady with leprosy. Don't let that put you off though.

This is a simple version that's easy to knock up in a wok. Despite being a tofu dish, it does contain meat and, being Szechuan, it's spicy enough to make you sweat. Don't do what I did and rub both eyes after cooking this dish. You'll regret it, trust me.

I got my chilli bean paste from a local Chinese supermarket. If you can't find any near you, try Wing Yip.


Ma Po Tofu (serves 4)


You'll need:

• 425g pork mince
• 375g firm tofu
• 3tbsp chilli bean paste
• 3 cloves of garlic, crushed 
• 1tbsp soy sauce
• 3tbsp water

Make it!

• Start by pressing the tofu to make it firm for frying. Put a couple of sheets of kitchen roll on a board, then put the tofu on top. Cover the tofu with another couple of sheets of kitchen roll and another chopping board. Rest a couple of cans of beans, or anything moderately heavy, on top to squeeze the water out of the tofu. Leave for 10 minutes.
• Meanwhile, fry off the pork in a wok until it's cooked through and starting to brown. Remove from the wok and set aside
• Peel the kitchen roll off the tofu and cut it into bitesized pieces.
• Heat some oil in the wok and stir fry the tofu pieces for around 5 minutes, until they are starting to go golden.
• Add the garlic and stir fry for a minute more.
• Add the pork, chilli bean paste, soy and water, and stir to heat through and distribute the sauce.

Sluttishly Vegan: Passionfruit tofu salad

Hindsight is a wonderful thing. I always seem to think of a pithy retort days after an argument has finished, get a brainwave moments after I've submitted my copy to an editor and suddenly figure out the answer to a brain-numbing question as I walk out of the exam hall.

Recipe writing is no exception to this rule - it's often when I'm eating the spoils of my writing that I think of something fabulous that would partner it perfectly. This salad is very, very simple. It's just something I bodged together for lunch one day. Pomegranate seeds would make a great addition - both for sweetness and for their pretty pink looks. Unfortunately, as you can tell from the picture, I only thought of this after I'd made (and wolfed down) this salad.

You could add any vegetables you liked really, although this dressing is quite punchy so it's great for livening up shy little vegetables like lamb's lettuce. Just make sure you think of them before you make it!

Passionfruit tofu salad (serves 1)

You'll need:

• 1tsp olive oil
• 1tsp white wine vinegar
• 1tsp pomegranate molasses (optional)
• 1tsp soy sauce
• Seeds and pulp of 1 ripe passion fruit
• A small bag of lamb's lettuce
• A handful of tofu pieces (I used Cauldron marinated tofu)
• Some mint leaves, torn up
• Pomegranate seeds (optional)

Make it!

• Stir together the oil, vinegar, pomegranate molasses, soy and passion fruit.
• Dress the leaves with the passion fruit dressing. Sprinkle over the tofu and mint leaves. And some pomegranate seeds, if you thought to buy them.

Sluttishly Vegan: Crispy Japanese Spiced Tofu with broccoli and cashew nuts

Due to a growing obsession with Japanese cuisine I have recently been treating myself to a whole range of weird and wonderful ingredients to play with in the kitchen.

On one of my recent food shopping trips it would seem I decided to throw in some tofu. Despite consuming plenty of the stuff when I was a vegan I always found it quite bland, so I was curious to see what my Japanese spices and I could come up with to tickle the taste buds.

The resulting recipe is not only super quick and easy to make but, quite frankly, so tasty that I have already eaten it four times in the last week. I made it for one but please do play around with the quantities if you want it to serve a few of you

Crispy Japanese Spiced Tofu with Broccoli and Cashew Nuts (serves 1)

You will need:

• 1 tsp of Shichimi Togarashi (Japanese Seven Spice Powder)
• 15g fine polenta
• 150g firm tofu, cut into large cubes
• 1tsp Sesame Oil
• 1 tbsp Groundnut Oil
• Handful of Broccoli Florets
• 25g Cashew Nuts
• 1tbsp Soy Sauce
• 3 tbsp Rice Wine
• portion of cooked noodles (I used udon noodles)

Make It!

1. Mix the Shichimi Togarashi and fine polenta in a bowl and coat the tofu cubes thoroughly on all sides with the polenta and spice mix.

2. Heat the sesame and groundnut oil in a frying pan. Fry the tofu until crispy and golden on all sides, remove from the frying pan and set aside.

3. Throw in the broccoli and cashew nuts into the frying pan, along with the soy sauce and rice wine. Stir fry for a couple of minutes and then add in your drained, cooked noodles being sure to coat with the sauce.

4. Put the noodles, broccoli and cashew nuts in a bowl and top with the tofu. Eat, enjoy and let your love affair with tofu commence.

Sluttishly Vegan: Scrambled Tofu

When we asked our Facebook group about tofu, you all had an opinion from 'it rules!' to 'ewwwww'. It's one of those foods that tends to polarise opinion, and it's easy to mess up. Chances are that you've had at least one bland and tasteless tofu-based dinner. Maybe you're a vegetarian who thinks of tofu as something you had to choke down in the 1980s before Quorn and Linda McCartney came along to save us all.

Tofu is only tasteless when it doesn't have a chance to pick up more interesting flavours. The trick is to squeeze the moisture out of the tofu, freeze it, defrost it and then squeeze it again to get as much water out as possible. It's so much more manageable once it's been frozen and defrosted. Try the freeze-squeeze-freeze method and see how much spongier your tofu gets - it will soak up flavours effortlessly, the way it's meant to.

Scrambled tofu is the dish that finally won me over to the joys of tofu. It's the best way to cook it and means you can finally join the omnivores in your life with a cooked breakfast. Serve with fried halloumi (if you're not vegan), hash browns and toast for an excellent start to your day. This recipe is endlessly adaptable so mix it up with whatever vegetables you've got kicking around in the fridge.

Scrambled tofu (serves 2)

You will need:

• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 garlic clove, crushed
• 1 tsp paprika
• 1/2 tsp turmeric
• 1 tsp thyme
• Half a red pepper, diced
• 200g firm tofu, crumbled
• 50g mushrooms, sliced
• 50g spinach

Make it!

1. Fry the garlic in the olive oil over a medium heat for about a minute. Sprinkle in the spices and stir for 30 seconds.
2. Crumble your tofu, keeping it chunky as it will crumble more as you cook it. Add it to the pan along with the red pepper and mushrooms. Add a few tablespoons of water if it's sticking or, if water is cooking out of your tofu, turn up the heat to let it evaporate. Let it cook for 10-15 minutes until the tofu is browning and slightly crispy.
3. Throw in the spinach and stir until it's gently wilted. Season to taste and serve up while it's hot for breakfast.

Flickr image from jules:stone soup's photostream and used under Creative Commons license