Sweet and Spicy Tofu With Soba Noodles

Sarah Copeland

• Yield 4 servings
• Time 30 minutes

Thuss + Farrell for The New York Times 

If you don’t cook tofu often (or, even if you do), this unfussy tofu dish is for you: There’s no flour-dredging or shallow-frying, and no marinating at all. As long as you pat the tofu dry (a bit fussy, but not by much), the high smoking point of the canola oil yields crisp edges, and the sesame oil imparts flavor, so you’re already well on your way to making tofu taste great. What’s more, a ginger-and-garlic-laced soy sauce coats noodles and tofu alike, giving you chopstick after chopstick of toothsome pleasure. Serve these warm or cold, and be generous with the cool, crispy vegetables on top, especially for summer picnics where you can stretch this to serve 6 or even 8 as a side.

248 ratings

Ingredients

• 1 ½ (14-ounce) packages firm tofu, drained
• 2 tablespoons canola oil
• 2 tablespoons sesame oil
• 1 (8-ounce) package all-buckwheat soba noodles
• 4 garlic cloves, smashed
• 1 (1-inch) piece ginger, peeled and thinly sliced
• 1 small bunch green onions, white and green parts separated, cut into 2-inch matchsticks
• ⅓ cup soy sauce or tamari
• 3 tablespoons dark brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon black pepper
• Pinch of red-pepper flakes
• 4 mini or 1 large, thin-skinned cucumber, thinly sliced
• 4 radishes, thinly sliced
• Handful of cilantro leaves, for serving
• 1 lime, cut in wedges, for serving

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Preparation

1. Drain the tofu in a colander, or dry on paper-towel lined plate while you prep the remaining ingredients, about 10 minutes. Meanwhile, bring a small pot of water to a boil for the soba noodles.
2. Cut tofu into 1-inch cubes. Heat a cast-iron skillet over medium-high heat. Add the vegetable oil and 1 tablespoon of the sesame oil. When the oil shimmers, add the tofu in a single layer, in batches if needed and cook until golden on all sides, turning as needed when the tofu releases easily from the pan, about 8 to 10 minutes total. Lift the tofu out of the pan with a spatula and transfer to a new paper-towel-lined plate.
3. Meanwhile, cook the soba in boiling water for 5 to 8 minutes (or according to package directions), until just al dente, stirring frequently. Drain and rinse in cold water until the noodles no longer feel sticky.
4. Add garlic, ginger and whites of the onions to the skillet, along with the remaining tablespoon sesame oil, reduce the heat to medium, and cook until the oil is fragrant, stirring constantly, about 1 minute.
5. Add cooked and drained soba noodles to the pan, along with soy sauce, sugar, black pepper, red pepper and reserved green onions; toss together until the noodles are coated. Gently toss in the tofu until all the pieces are covered in the sauce.
6. Remove from the heat, and sprinkle cucumber, radish and cilantro on top. Serve warm or at room temperature, with lime.

Tip

• Some cast-iron skillets come with a matching lid, which is useful for making the skillet operate a bit like a mini stove-top oven, cooking evenly and basting the food with flavor and steam. If you don’t have one, use a lid from another pan, or two layers of thick foil, folded at the center and large enough to cover your pan.

Japanese Beef and Rice Soup

• Time: 10 minutes
• Yield: About 8 cups

 Evan Sung for The New York Times

When the chef Marco Canora was told to cut back on coffee, soda, wine and beer for health reasons, he found himself sipping cups of broth from the stockpots at his restaurant, Hearth, instead. Soon he had designed an entire system of healthful eating (and drinking) around the stuff. This soup, wintry but light, is a satisfying example. At Brodo, a takeout window that he opened in 2013, a to-go cup of broth can be customized in as many ways as an espresso at Starbucks — with ginger juice, mushroom tea and other aromatics and add-ons. This is easy to pull off at home, too.

Ingredients

• 7 cups beef bone broth (see recipe)
• 10 to 12 ounces shredded cooked beef short ribs (from making broth, or use 1 pound shredded braised beef)
• 1 teaspoon finely grated fresh ginger
• 3 ½ ounces fresh shiitake mushrooms, stems discarded, caps thinly sliced (about 1 1/2 cups)
• 1 cup cooked brown rice
• ½ cup nori crinkles (or slice up toasted nori sheets into 1/2-inch squares)
• 2 tablespoons tamari
•  Juice of 1/2 lemon
• 1 bunch scallions, white and pale green parts only, thinly sliced (about 1/2 cup)

Preparation

1. Bring broth to a boil over high heat. Stir in meat, ginger, shiitakes, rice, nori, tamari and lemon juice; cook 2 minutes. Stir in scallions. Ladle into bowls and serve.

Adapted from “A Good Food Day” by Marco Canora

Japanese-style Curry (Kare Raisu) in a Hurry

My son went on a vegetarian diet for four weeks as part of a school project, which ended yesterday. This is one of the dishes he's been wanting to try. (The first one we made a few months ago wasn't quite like this), so I made it for him today. I'm not good with roux, so instead of making it from scratch I used instant roux. This recipe is a good one.

• Serves: 2
• Prep Time: 5 minutes
• Total Time: 15-20 minutes

Ingredients

• 1 packet Japanese curry roux
• 100-200 grams meat cut into cubes
• 1 diced medium potato
• 1 diced carrot
• 1/2 copped white onion
• 1 tablespoon cooking oil

Instructions

1. Saute the chopped onion in a tablespoon of oil in a saucepan. Once they turn soft and translucent, you can add the meat.
2. Once the meat has browned/cooked, add the diced potatoes and carrots.
3. Add about 2 cups of water and let it simmer. You can skim off the fat that rises to the surface.
4. Add the curry powder / paste / roux.
5. Let the sauce simmer until it thickens to your desired consistency. Serve beside rice a la Japanese style curry rice (kare raisu). Enjoy!