Marinated Grilled Tofu Food

GRILLED OR PAN-FRIED MARINATED TOFU

Steps:

• Combine all of the marinade ingredients in a 2-quart bowl. Whisk together well.
• Drain the tofu and pat dry with paper towels. Slice into 1/2-inch thick slabs, and blot each slab with paper towels. Add to the bowl with the marinade, and gently toss to coat. Cover and refrigerate for 15 minutes to an hour, or for up to a day.
• To pan-fry the tofu, heat the oil over medium-high heat in a large, heavy nonstick skillet. When the oil is hot, add the tofu in one layer (you may have to do this in batches). Cook on one side for one to two minutes, until lightly colored. Using tongs, turn the tofu over and cook for another one to two minutes, or until lightly colored on the other side. Remove from the pan, and serve with additional marinade or soy sauce. To grill the tofu, prepare a medium-hot grill. Brush the grill with oil, and grill until grill marks appear, 1 1/2 to 2 minutes per side. Remove from the heat, and serve with additional marinade or soy sauce.

GRILLED TOFU

Steps:

• Arrange sliced tofu in a single layer on a paper towel-lined plate. Press top with more paper towels to remove excess water. Arrange tofu in a 9-by-13-inch baking dish, or any shallow dish that can hold the tofu in one layer.
• In a small saucepan, combine oil, garlic and ginger over medium; bring to a simmer. Cook, stirring frequently, until softened and fragrant, 2 minutes. Add soy sauce, sugar, pepper and 1/4 cup water, and cook, stirring to dissolve the sugar, about 2 minutes.
• Pour hot marinade over tofu. Gently turn tofu slices to evenly coat, then cover dish tightly with plastic wrap to seal in heat. Refrigerate for 6 hours (or up to 8 hours), flipping tofu slices halfway through.
• Heat grill to medium and grease grates well (or heat a cast-iron grill pan over medium and lightly grease). Grill tofu over direct heat until golden and caramelized, about 3 minutes per side.
• Meanwhile, transfer marinade to a small saucepan over medium and warm through, 1 to 2 minutes. Stir in scallions.
• Transfer tofu to a serving plate and spoon over the sauce. Serve warm.

PERFECT GRILLED TOFU

Steps:

• Wrap tofu in a clean dish towel and weight it with something heavy such as a large can; leave it to drain for 30 minutes.
• Meanwhile, mix together remaining ingredients in a bowl.
• Cut each piece of tofu crosswise into 6 thick slices and put it all in a baking dish. Pour marinade over tofu, turning to coat, and chill, covered, turning occasionally, at least 30 minutes or up to 48 hours. Longer is better, but shorter is totally fine.
• Preheat a gas grill on high heat (450 degrees F to 650 degrees F) 10 minutes, then reduce heat to medium (325 degrees F to 375 degrees F)--or do whatever the equivalent is if you're using charcoal. Oil grate.
• Transfer tofu from marinade (letting excess drip off and reserving marinade) to grill with a spatula. Cover grill and cook tofu, turning once, until well browned but before grill marks get black, 10 to 15 minutes total. Transfer tofu to a platter and cover with foil to keep warm.
• Bring reserved marinade to a boil in a saucepan and boil until it reduces to about 1 cup, about 2 minutes. Pour over tofu and serve hot, warm, or at room temperature.

SPICY GRILLED TOFU

Steps:

• Place the tofu slices on several layers of paper towels and cover with additional paper towels. Let stand 20 minutes, pressing down occasionally with your hands to squeeze out the water.
• Place the tofu in a single layer in the bottom of a 13x9 glass baking dish.
• In a small bowl, whisk together the lime juice, maple syrup, tamari, chile paste, garlic, and pepper.
• Pour mixture over the tofu, stirring to coat all the slices.
• Cover the baking dish with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours or overnight.
• When the tofu is marinated and ready to cook: Spray grill rack or pan with nonstick cooking spray. Heat grill or grill pan to medium heat.
• Place tofu slices on the grill. Reserve the marinade.
• Grill tofu 3 or 4 minutes on each side, or until the outside is browned and crisp.
• Return tofu to the baking dish and toss the slices with the reserved marinade.
• Serve immediately.

PAN-GRILLED MARINATED TOFU WITH TWO VARIATIONS

Steps:

• Cut tofu into 1-inch thick slices. Arrange tofu sliced in a 3 quart rectangular baking dish; set aside. If using dried mushrooms, in a small bowl combine dried mushrooms and enough hot water to cover; let stand for 5 minutes. Drain and rinse mushrooms; chop mushrooms.
• For marinade, in a blender or food processor combine all the ingredients for the chosen marinade and blend together until nearly smooth. Spoon mixture over tofu in dish. Turn tofu slices to coat with marinade. Cover and marinate at room temperature for 30 minutes, carefully turning tofu slices occasionally.
• In a large skillet heat remaining 1 tbsp of oilie oil over medium heat. Remove tofu slices from marinade, allowing excess to drip off; discard marinade. Add tofu to skillet. Cook for 6 to 8 minutes or util browned and heated through, turning once.