TOFUTORIAL: Part Deux

This one’s a heater, literally.

Fried Chickpea Tofu w Spicy Dipping Sauce

Hello to our lovely, endlessly gracious, and sexy supporters. Last week in our general newsletter we shared our new favorite technique for cooking tofu and it was a big fucking hit. And that got us thinking about our other favorite kinds of tofu and we thought it was about damn time to share one with y’all: Chickpea Tofu. 

Don’t freak out. It’s goddamn delicious and you can make it from scratch at home.

fermented tea leaf salad or laphet thoke, one of the national dishes of Myanmar and one of Michelle’s favorite meals

Chickpea tofu hails from Myanmar where it’s a staple in their national cuisine. If you’ve never had the pleasure of trying Burmese food, hurry the fuck up and get on it. Chickpea tofu, Burmese tofu- no matter the name- is a food you’ll want in your repertoire. It’s an easy way to dip your toe into Burmese food and a great way to mix up your protein sources. 

When our beloved Daw Yee Myanmar Corner closed here in LA we had to start cooking this addictive dish for ourselves because living without it was not a fucking option. Similar to socca and polenta in preparation, tofu made from chickpea flour will taste both familiar and better than anything else you’ve had like it before. 

We’re going to show you how to fry it into little bite-sized pieces but there are a thousand ways to use the completed tofu whether you’re folding it into noodles or topping a salad with it. The tofu will need about an hour to set in the fridge but honestly, that’s the hardest part of the recipe.

Chickpea flour (also known as besan and gram flour) should be easy enough to find these days either near the other flours or in the gluten-free baking section of your grocery store. No luck? Try a local market specializing in Indian or Caribbean groceries or ya know, online.

Chickpea Tofu with Spicy Dipping Sauce

makes about 12-16 pieces, enough for 4 people

1 cup chickpea flour 

½ tsp salt

½ teaspoon garlic powder

¼ tsp ground turmeric (this is mostly for color so you can leave it out if you want)

3 cups water

Mix the chickpea flour in a large bowl along with the salt, garlic powder, and turmeric. Add 1 ½ cups of the water to the bowl and whisk until the batter is smooth. There’s no gluten in here so the risk of over mixing is basically zero, so don’t be scared to be thorough. Let this sit for about 10 minutes so that the flour can absorb some of the water and work any remaining chunks out.

Lightly oil an 8 x 8 inch square baking dish or something similar in size and set it to the side.

Now in a medium saucepan bring the remaining 1 ½ cups of water to a boil. Add the chickpea flour mixture and reduce the heat to medium. Keep whisking until the mixture becomes thick and kinda glossy. It should feel somewhere between polenta and mashed potatoes when it comes to thickness. This should take about 5-8 minutes.

this needs about one more minute to get a little thicker

Once it’s nice and thick, pour the batter into the prepared baking dish, leveling out the top and kinda smoothing it. Leave this to cool at room temperature or in the fridge for at least 1 hour. This allows the tofu to firm up so it's easy to slice and throw around. Waiting for it to set is the hardest part of the recipe, we swear.

When the tofu is firm into whatever size and shape you like. We like little rectangles, but you do you.  This is ready to eat in whatever way you like. Store in the fridge and this should last you 3-5 days. But our favorite way to eat it is below.

To pan-fry: Heat 2 tablespoons of a neutral, high heat oil like peanut in a large skillet over medium-high. Carefully add several pieces at a time to the pan and cook until the tofu looks crisp and is starting to brown in some places, about 2-4 minutes a side depending on your pan. Finish cooking the rest of the tofu just like this. Place on a plate and serve with our spicy dipping sauce.

Spicy Dipping Sauce

3 tablespoons sriracha

3 tablespoons lime juice

1 tablespoon water

2 teaspoons agave or your favorite liquid sweetener

2 cloves of garlic, grated

Chopped green onions or cilantro to top

Mix everything up in a small bowl until well combined then top with green onions. Serve right away.

We know we say this every week but we sincerely appreciate your support. Trust us, if we could take over your kitchen and cook these recipes while telling you jokes, we would. But until we’re able to harness Santa’s powers or something, this newsletter is gonna have to do.

See y’all next week, same time, same place?

Matt & Michelle