Some people immediately like tofu. Not me. I flipped over tempeh at first taste and couldn’t get enough of seitan, but tofu left me cold. I’m not talking just a few times of trying it, I’m talking a matter of a few years when I first went vegetarian. The only way I’d eat it (notice I didn’t say I liked it, was when I cooked it with that old Fantastic Foods Tofu Scramble mix. The texture still creeped me out, but Jim loved it, so around year 3 of vegetarianism, we had that a handful of times. Even the recipes in The Farm Cookbook didn’t didn’t tempt me.
Also around year 3, we picked up a copy of Tofu Cookery at a really cool independent bookstore, Mac’s Backs, when we were living in a ‘hippie’ section of Cleveland. I was convinced I was missing out. Every vegetarian I knew liked tofu. The photo of Chinese Sweet and Sour Balls gave me hope. The first time we made it, Jim made the sauce and I made the balls. Of course, we had it over rice. And I was in love. Since then, I’ve tried many of the recipes in Tofu Cookery, but this one remains my favorite. People say you don’t forget your first kiss, but I did. That probably says more about my first kiss than my memory. But I’ll never forget the first dish that made me a tofu lover rather than a reluctant tofu eater.
The 25th Anniversary Edition has been updated. Recipes have been adapted to be more healthful in some cases, and some new recipes have been included. Louise Hagler is a pioneer in vegan cooking, and this book is a testament to that. The familiar recipes please vegans and meat-eaters alike. If you happen to have a thing about the texture of tofu like I do, you might want to press the tofu in some of the recipes to make them more pleasing. I don’t press the tofu for the Sweet and Sour Tofu Balls, but for some of the other dishes (especially the stir frys), I suggest it. If you do make the Tofu Balls, try adding a little parsley to them. Apparently, it was dropped in this latest edition, but it gives a wonderful, fresh taste.
Would you like to win a copy of this book? Just post a reply here telling me something about tofu. It could be your favorite way to eat it, what got you to like it (or not), your favorite brand or anything.
International readers are welcome to enter. Thank you to the Book Publishing Company for sending me this copy to review and giveaway.
Also, if you’re within driving distance to Erie, don’t forget the book signing on Sunday. Info is in the sidebar. I’m bringing snacks and would love to see you there. Thanks!
45 Comments
Ooh I would love this! Now that I have a tofu press I love to press my tofu, coat it in cornstarch, and fry it up so it becomes all crunch. May not be the healthiest but so yummY!
I became vegetarian when I was eight years old. I lived in a small farming community, so being vegetarian was quite a radical decision. At the time, there was no tofu sold in my home town. It was YEARS before the local grocery store stocked it. I still remember walking into the produce section of the small town store and seeing that package of tofu for the first time. It was like a gift from the vegetarian gods.
Oh, I have always loved tofu. I don’t know what it is, but I will buy the vacuumed packed, extra firm tofu Whole Foods and Trader Joe’s sells and eat it straight out of the package.
My favorite way to make it? General Tsao. Yummmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm.
I seem to eat most tofu in silken or soft form, blended up in sweet baking, and pie fillings, what have you! Especially at the moment. I love Extra Firm tofu baked in a marinade when it gets all chewy.
I am the same way as you! Though I now love tofu in it’s many more contemporary forms: lemongrass deep-fried, silken in an omelet, soft in miso soup…the first time I enjoyed tofu more than seitan or tempeh was just this past year when I ate the freshest house-made tofu ever in Japan. It was at a specialty tofu shop and oh my, I have no words. It was like nothing I’d ever tasted…AND it was simply sitting there, chilled, with a tiny garnish of scallions, spice, and sesame seeds. Amazing!
I love to eat tofu when it’s prepared well (read: not by me). One of my favorite meals is Szechuan Tofu from the Chinese truck right outside my office. I’m hoping to get up the courage to try and cook tofu myself again. Maybe this book will help!
Tofu frustrates me! I really want to be able to make it crispy all the way through, like how some restaurants do, but no matter how I freeze, press, and deep-fry it, it remains crisp on the inside but jiggly on the outside!
It is so much cheaper than tempeh, though, that I end up buying it anyway, and just dumping it in stir-fries. I would love this book, maybe it will turn me into a tofu-adorer as well.
I like tofu, but have never liked tempeh…maybe it will grow on me the way tofu grew on you?!
I wish I lived somewhat near you, Tami, so I could come to your book signing and cheer you on! Good luck and have fun
Courtney
The first time I had tofu – I was a newly vegetarian 14 year old who knew nothing about cooking. Especially about cooking with tofu. I bought a box of silken tofu (I had no idea!) sliced it, and baked it with some marinade. It was soooo gross and slimy! It was years and years before I tried tofu again. Now I love it.
The first time I got tofu, I didnt know you had to press it. I tried to bake it with a marinate and forced myself to swallow it. I like a tofu scramble the best. Its easy and it cooks the tofu as thoroughly as possible. It took a lot of will-power to get myself to eat it however its made. It would be nice to have an arsenal of recipes. Thanks
I make baked tofu as a snack all of the time. I also love to use softer tofu to make agedashi tofu (using vegetarian dashi). There’s a crispy tofu recipe at my favorite Thai restaurant that I would love to recreate, but I’ve never figured out how they do it. It’s probably the best thing I ever ate.
My favorite ways to eat tofu are pretty much simple, comfort food ways that my grandmother used to serve when I was little- small tofu cubes in miso soup or tofu (again, cubed) with grated ginger root and shoyu.
I’m not going to lie, had heard the name tofu poer never probe. Latest reading your post find out a bit and discovers she has high nutritional value and may be a substitute for meat in meals in addition to being rich. What proves.
I had to laugh at your having to come around to tofu as I also had to learn to enjoy eating it! Now, I am trying to learn how to cook/prepare it. Curried tofu is my favorite so far.
Any suggestions for using silken in sauces??? I am at a loss!
I love tofu and am always learning new ways to use it (especially some of the more healthy options). We really like to do the ‘dry fry’ method but I know there are zillions of ways to use this marvelous substance!
I love tofu. I like it best in scrambles with plenty of greens and loads of turmeric, paprika, pepper, curry, ginger. It’s also great marinated in olive oil and lemon juice with freshly ground rosemary and thyme.
Growing up Asian meant being raised with tofu, so I’ve always liked it, but even more when I went vegan. It is a beautiful thing!
I was never a great fan of tofu until I realised that you need to marinade the hell out of it to get some flavour. None of this ‘let sit for one hour’, I stick mine in the fridge for at least 6, if not overnight, to make sure that it tastes of something when I cook it. I am still looking for a tofu press over here in England so I can get even more flavour in it!
I have always loved tofu! I will even eat the extra-firm straight out of the package. I love it broiled, I love it fried, I love it baked. I put it in my smoothies every morning. My least favorite way to eat tofu is scrambled–it’s too watery. I really want a tofu press. That’s my next present to myself.
This post made me laugh. I have been working on being vegan the last few weeks and have been a “mostly” vegetarian for the last 6 months. I also can not stand tofu. However, after reading your experience with this cook book, I am very excited to give it a new try.
I’m with you on the texture of tofu skeeving me out. I am not the biggest fan, but there are a few recipes that work for me. I like it best firm and chewy after a good pressing. I must get me a tofu xpress one of these days. This book might be just what I need to appreciate all the ‘fu can offer.
I like to freeze it, press the crap out of it, and make a delicious stir fry. sure it’s pedestrian, but sometimes the classics are classic for a reason
I’ll put it in any rice dish for protein. I like to simply fry it up with some lemon juice, just until the sides are crispy. But I’ve used silken tofu to make vegan bread puddings that have turned out deliciously, too!
How funny you didn’t like tofu but you liked Tempeh! I was the other way around. As far as my husband Dave goes, it was better to use a firm/extra firm tofu and then bake it to get a crispy coating on it, so it wasn’t mushy at all. Now he’ll eat it steamed.
Sounds like a great cookbook!
My first tofu experiences also were anything but enthusiasm-inducing. But then I had some tofu at a Chinese restaurant which hat a most wonderful texture unlike the stuff I had bought before. This is how I found out that it makes a huge difference where you get your tofu. My first bought tofu was from the supermarket, came cubed in a water-filled jar and tasted like old feet (also had that texture), now I try to get fresh tofu straight out of a big water filled tub at the Asian store. It’s a world of a difference! So now tofu is my favourite out of the trinity of tofu, seitan and tempeh.
Hi Tami, This is Louise Hagler, author of Tofu Cookery 25th Anniversary Edition and I thank you for this review. You have offered the highest compliment I can think of in saying that tofu was something that initially you really didn’t care for, but this recipe changed your mind–or perhaps won over your taste buds would be more accurate. I don’t know what happened to the parsley in the current edition. I agree it should be there. I am constantly experimenting, and there is more to come!
You can follow some of my experiments at http://blog.louisehagler.com/
¡Buen Provecho!
Tofu scramble FTW!
Great competition!
We seem to have different tofu available in Australia because I’ve never needed to press it.
I love firm tofu – my favourite tofu recipe so far is the Sleepy Morning Scramble (?) in La Dolce Vegan, which was one of my first ever vegan cookbooks. I’ve never managed to get on with the silken tofu though.
Not like tofu?…and like tempeh?…how is this possible?…one of my favorites it marinated tofu baked and then added to stir fried veggies…yum
whenever I cook tofu, there’s always something left to be desired. But the best tofu I ever ate was at this chinese restaurant that had a vegetarian section on the menu in Lexington, KY. The place is called Asian Wind. They have this sesame tofu that’s encrusted in honey. DELICIOUS.
That resturant and Pazzo’s Pizza are my fondest memories of that city.
Here’s the VEGETARIAN PAGE of the menu, plus many other veggie dishes throughout the menu. http://www.asianwindrestaurant.com/files/menu4.pdf
I too needed tofu to grow on me. I love The Bridge tofu and I dig the tofu Xpress. In fact, I might make some tofu thai curry tonight.
I like to put my tofu in the blender with a little water, olive oil, garlic, nutritional yeast, and whatever herbs I feel like at the moment. Makes a great salad dressing or topping for baked potatoes.
Have fun at the book signing Tami!!! I wish I was visiting my family in Erie so I could stop by and meet you. But, it’s probably too late to try and get a ticket now, huh?!
Ha, yesterday I talked to someone about tofu. He told me he hated it, but had only eaten it almost plain, raw, and not really well prepared as I found out. I wasn’t such a huge fan of tofu myself, until I found some great preparation methods that suited me. This book sounds like I could learn a lot from it.
Today was my first time to see your blog, and imagine how happy I am to see a book-giveaway that welcomes international readers! I live in Japan, the land of tofu, and have always loved it in just about any way, shape, or form. Some years ago a good friend loaned me her copy of Tofu Cookery for a few weeks and I had such fun trying everything out in my vegan family! I would LOVE to be the lucky one! I teach vegan cooking classes and enjoy amazing my students with tofu cheesecakes, dressings, puddings, etc., and telling them how most Americans, if they eat tofu at all, need it all doctored up, and how surprised I was when I first came here and saw cold, simple tofu served with just soy sauce and a few green onion slices or grated ginger. Now I love it like that too!
I LOVE tofu sandwiches. Fresh baked bread, nice grilled tofu, sliced avocado, sprouts, salsa and some roast potatoes on the side. YUM!
I love tofu in a Thai Green Curry with lots of coconut milk.
I can’t remember ever not liking tofu. It’s just so versatile! I love it baked, scrambled, stir-fried, blended, you name it!
I remember my first tofu cooking experience. I attempted a stir fry and added the tofu cubes in at the end. They crumbled up and had the consistency of cottage cheese. My tofu tip for new vegans is to stir fry the tofu separately, or bake it in the oven first. This prevents crumbling.
– Jessambu at hotmail dot com.
This is definitely one of my favorite ways to eat tofu, in Crunchy Chocolate Truffle Pie: http://www.vegetariantimes.com/recipes/9651
Thanks for the contest! I’d love the recipe for Chinese Sweet and Sour Balls – and chance you can share it with your blog readers?
i just saw the link to the contest i would love to get a copy!
tofu: right now i want to get a tofu xpress, but just haven’t convinced myself to spend the money.
My favorite way to enjoy tofu is in a tofu omelette. I like the texture much much better than I ever liked “real egg” texture and taste.
Since I am a vegan out here in the wilds of New Mexico finding resources for vegan are a bit slim. Having practical vegan cookbooks are great things to have.
The easiest recipe is to chop the tofu into cubes and boil them with my noodles.
The first time I had tofu it was raw in a salad bar. I knew that vegans were supposed to eat tofu so I tried some and spit it back out. I thought it was disgusting and wouldn’t try tofu for a long time after that!