What's thousand layer tofu?
It's actually a thawed frozen tofu that looks like it has many many layers inside. The outer parts of the tofu seem to have better layers and the inside ones has tighter layers.
I didn't come up with this idea, but got to know about it through Wikipedia and googled for more information on it.
You can use it for steamboat, pan fries or what ever sauces. I tried it with Miso sauce.
How to make this?
I used a block of Japanese Style Tofu (not egg tofu) and froze it. It looks yellowish when frozen.
Then, I thawed it over night in the fridge and it went all pock marked
Then slice it
Then I placed one piece on my palm, and gently press with the other palm to remove excess water
Then pan fry it, and arrange it nicely on a serving dish. Dilute some miso paste in boiling water, making it a lot more concentrated than your regular miso soup and drizzle it over the fried tofu. Top with sliced spring onions.
Next week,
6 Days of Cookies :)
Wah, another interesting dish. The final presentation sure looks good. How does it taste like? Still soft or has it become a little chewy? My family eats tofu product twice to thrice weekly, so it's great to have another new recipe. :)
ReplyDeleteBee,
ReplyDeleteI think if the water is not squeezed out, then layer effect in the mouth would've been better. I squished the water out, and I also sort of broke the "layers".
But I was scared if there is so much water, frying will be scary. Explosions all around!
Try it to find out the texture urself, not gonna tell. LOL.
I have never tried frying this. Have only braised or cooked it in soup. I like the texture.
ReplyDeleteThis looks interesting. First time heard or seen this. :) Thanks for sharing, Wendy.
ReplyDeleteoh, i've seen this before in discovery channel (or was it other channel ahh can't remember). anyway, the monk from whichever country (izzit china or japan or s.korea argh lupa) buried few large block of tofu in the snows outside their temple for a fraction of time. then, they dug it out and like yours frrooozen hard and slice it and stir-fry it. it was amazing, seriously! at first i thought *shite* no snow so how to freeze it but never thought of using the freezer (honestly my brain cell is slowly decreasing) and now i saw your post, got hyper and wanna try. your method totally 'monk-ish style'...looks like those vegetarian gluten bean curd! yeah, this coming CNY's eve, so gonna make this for the steamboat dinner...hope my poor fridge got enuf space lor n_n
ReplyDeleteLooks very delicious:) would love to try this but my boys don't like tofu dishes sigh!
ReplyDeleteYou're right to squeeze out some water or there would be a lot of splatter. I did this before and didn't squeeze out enough water and my kitchen was like a war zone!
ReplyDeleteI like the arrangement, very attractive!
Once the temperature of my fridge was too high and my tofu got freeze up and it look just like that too. Guess what, I threw it away thinking that is not good to eat. I didn't know you purposely stick it in the freezer to get this effect ha ha.. now I know not to throw it away and make this dish.
ReplyDeletethis looks like one of the vegetarian meat i find here. wah, from smooth tofu also can become wrinkled tofu overnight..luckily our skin is much more resistable, if not if we live in the artics, we can grow old overnight, hoho!!
ReplyDeleteHaha..Gertrude and myself same same, threw away when it turned to ice...now we know it can be made into this dish :) Thanks for sharing this Wendy :)
ReplyDeletehi wendy..thanks for coming by..what a lovely blog u have here..i've tried yr cendol jelly..we really enjoyed it..will try more next time..thanks for sharing :))
ReplyDeleteYummy looking dish there :)
ReplyDeleteShirley,
ReplyDeleteI'll try it braised next time then:)
Hanushi,
You're welcomed
Lisa.L.
Haha, sometimes we just tend to overlook. I do that at times too.
Jeannie,
Try to cook the tofu in a strong tasting sauce, maybe with braised pork, then maybe they'll like it.
Busygran,
Oh, you must have had a tough time cleaning up.
The tofu after being thawed was dripping wet.
Gert,
LOL, next time u know lor. Hope to see your creative creations with this accident tofu.
lena,
Haha, that's why angmoh looks older than we do.
LOL
Elin,
Any tofu dish can use this tofu. Try it next time, if accidents happen in the fridge again. Or maybe make it not an accident.
Deliah's Deli,
Glad you liked it. Hope to see you around more often.
WyYv,
Thanks
Whua, like this oso can?? Hmm, maybe I'll try putting my MIL's tofu in the freezer "accidentally"...
ReplyDeleteMeldy,
ReplyDeleteCan, then use it for steamboat or soups also can, if don't want to fry it.
I love this tofu texture. My China girlfriend introduced this to me few years ago and I have been putting this into steamboat and my salted veg & tofu soup. Love your new idea as I love miso too! :)
ReplyDeleteHi Wendy. Wow, another discovery for me. Must be nice served with yong taufu sauce...!
ReplyDeleteThks for the interesting tips to make the tofu pock marked!
ReplyDeleteI ate this only for steamboat, never try frying, sound interesting and delicious.
ReplyDeletevery cool. Thanks for sharing this. Simple and really quite beautiful. What oil did you use for frying?
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing this... this is an interesting dish. Will buy some tofu and put it in the freezer... :)
ReplyDeleteThis is so interesting!! I never know that frozen tofu can have such effect and turn into another wonderful dish. Definitely going to try it out soon. Thanks for sharing! ;)
ReplyDeleteThis is the kind of tofu that is prepared at most places where the Chinese soup "hot pot" is served. Question: In order to get the "spongey" texture that allows for the tofu to absorb all of the sauces, etc. (like in your picture above), should I drain the water before freezing it? Or do I need to keep the water in the tofu while it is freezing (as perhaps the water will create the ice crystals which make for the spongey texture)? Not sure. Thanks.
ReplyDeleteAnonymous,
ReplyDeleteDid you mean the water content inside the tofu or the water the tofu is sitting on?
The reason why silken tofu is used and not pressed tofu is because silken tofu has a higher water content, and thus, more layers are formed when more ice crystals are being formed and thawed, compared to pressed tofu.
Yeah, I mean to say the water that's inside the tofu itself, not the water it comes it. So did you use silken tofu in your images above (sorry if I missed that detail)? Thanks. :)
ReplyDeleteAnonymous,
ReplyDeleteAny tofu with high water content will be great.
It's when the water freezes and thaws that creates those layers of pure curds. Only atfer thawing you will need to remove the water by gently pressing, or let them drip on towels.