Lettuce Cups With Tofu And Cashews Food

LETTUCE WRAPS

Steps:

• In a small bowl, stir together the hoisin, soy sauce, rice vinegar, and sesame oil. Set aside.
• Press the tofu between paper towels to squeeze out as much liquid as possible. Refresh the paper towels and press again. Heat the 2 teaspoons canola oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high. Once the oil is hot, crumble in the tofu, breaking it into very small pieces as it cooks. Continue cooking for 5 minutes, then add the diced mushrooms. Continue cooking until any remaining tofu liquid cooks off and the tofu starts to turn golden, about 3 minutes more. Stir in the water chestnuts, garlic, ginger, red pepper flakes, and half of the green onions and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds more.
• Pour the sauce over the top of the tofu mixture and stir to coat. Cook just until you hear bubbling and the sauce is warmed through, 30 to 60 seconds.
• Spoon the tofu mixture into individual lettuce leaves. Top with remaining green onions, grated carrots, and additional red pepper flakes as desired. Enjoy immediately.

LETTUCE CUPS WITH TOFU AND BEEF

Steps:

• In a bowl, whisk together chili-garlic sauce, sesame oil, soy sauce, hoisin sauce, vinegar and sherry.
• Slice the tofu into 1/2-inch thick slabs and lay the slices on top of paper towels. Use more paper towels to firmly pat the tofu in order to remove as much water as possible. This should take about 2 minutes and use about 3 paper towels. Finely mince dried tofu and set aside.
• Heat the oil in a wok or extra-large skillet over medium heat. Add the ginger and scallion whites and cook until scallion whites are translucent and ginger is fragrant, about 2 to 3 minutes. Add ground beef and tofu and cook, stirring, until beef is opaque and just cooked through, about 4 to 5 minutes. Add reserved sauce. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook, stirring, an additional 3 to 4 minutes. Add water chestnuts and stir to incorporate.
• Fill each lettuce leaf with the filling. Serve garnished with scallion greens, red peppers and peanuts.

LETTUCE CUPS WITH TOFU AND CASHEWS

Steps:

• Separate the leaves to make "cups". Wash and pat dry.
• Make Chile-Garlic Dipping Sauce.
• Place cornstarch in a small bowl.
• Gradually whisk the chile puree with garlic and 1/4 cup of the dipping sauce. Set aside. Reserve the remaining sauce for serving.
• Heat a wok or large skillet over medium-high heat. Add oil and tilt pan to coat it evenly.
• Add ginger and garlic; stir-fry until fragrant (~30 sec).
• Add mushrooms and tofu; stir-fry for 2 minute
• Add carrot, apple, and water chestnuts; stir-fry for 30 sec.
• Add the dipping sauce-cornstarch mixture. Cook, stirring, until vegetables are heated through and sauce has thickened (~2 min).
• Add cashews, sesame oil, and scallions; toss to combine.
• To assemple cups: Spoon about 2 Tbsp of filling into each lettuce cup.
• Serve with the remaining dipping sauce.

THAI BASIL TOFU LETTUCE CUPS

Steps:

• Mix together the bell peppers and rice wine vinegar and marinate for 1 hour and up to a day in the refrigerator.
• In a heavy-bottomed Dutch oven over medium heat, add the vegetable and sesame oils. Add the shallots, garlic and ginger and saute for 10 minutes, stirring frequently to avoid burning. Add the tofu by crumbling into small pieces and saute for 15 minutes more.
• In the meantime, whisk together the hot sauce, salt, fish sauce, vinegar, sugar, soy sauce and hoisin and add to the tofu. Cook until the sauce thickens, 10 to 15 minutes. Turn off the heat and add the chopped Thai basil. Taste and adjust the seasoning, if necessary.
• To serve, spoon the tofu mixture onto a piece of lettuce and top with the marinated peppers, cashews, scallions, the chiffonade Thai basil and a couple dots of plum sauce. For more heat, add a few drops of hot sauce.