If there's one complaint I hear about tofu, it's about the taste, or rather the lack of it. But I think that's the great thing about tofu - it is a blank canvas that will absorb any flavours you care to paint upon it!
So here's a guaranteed delicious way to prepare tofu for you. You might have checked out some of my other Katsu recipes (Tonkatsu, Chicken, Menchi etc) and this one follows the same basic method - prepare and season your Katsu (in this case firm tofu), dip into your batter and deep fry. Garnish with brown sauce, sesame (or lemon juice) and you've got a healthy and hearty meal that's meat free but full of protein and easily digested.
All the mainstream supermarkets stock tofu nowadays - just make sure you buy "firm" or "cotton" tofu which will stand up better to being handled and prepped. Another advantage of using tofu in a katsu dish is that it doesn't need much deep frying so once you start, just keep an eye on the colour of the panko breadcrumb crust and once that's a nice golden brown all over, remove your Tofu Katsu from the pan.
If you are planning a meal for family or friends and you need a non-meat alternative for one or more of your diners, try this with some of my other Katsu recipes - meat for the meat eaters, tofu for those who prefer vegetable protein - you'll make everyone happy!
(BTW: my batter for this recipe doesn't use egg so it's vegan friendly and lighter to the taste.) This is one you must try!
You can find the written recipe for this dish just below and for the Youtube tutorial click Tofu Katsu or scroll to the bottom of the page.
Happy cooking! Kurumi XXXX.
For a vegetable katsu recipe to partner this, why not try out my Aubergine Katsu recipe here.
Tofu Katsu
ingredients:
(makes 2 portions)
400g firm tofu
some salt & pepper
80ml water
40g plain flour
70g “panko” breadcrumbs
1 tsp toasted black sesame seeds
Bull-Dog sauce
veg oil for deep frying
some kitchen papers
how to:
wrap the tofu in some kitchen paper and leave for 30 mins to absorb excess water
cut the tofu into 4 “steaks”
sprinkle over the salt & pepper
mix the flour & water into a paste
coat the tofu pieces in the flour mixture, then roll in the breadcrumbs
fill a saucepan with 2-3 cm of veg oil and heat to 180’C
deep fry the tofu, turning once until the panko breadcrumb crust is golden in colour
drain the tofu on sheets of kitchen paper
your tofu katsu are ready - garnish with the Bull-Dog sauce & sesame seeds before serving