Salt & Pepper Tofu!

This is my staple favorite at a Chinatown spot on the South Side, the tofu takes the edge off the sort of greasiness of it all.

Serves 2, with leftovers (yay, leftovers!)

Price per serving: about $2

Ingredients:

1 lb. fried tofu
2 tsp. salt
2 tsp. garlic powder
1 tsp. black pepper
3 tbsp. corn starch
3 tbsp. (olive) oil

2 cups water
1 cup jasmine or basmati rice

Supplies:

Wok

If you aren't lucky enough to find your tofu already pressed (I am! More on this later...), you will need to place it between two towels (or paper towels) with a heavy plate, probably an additional book, on top of it for a few hours. Cut the tofu into halves, and then into little triangles. Place them in a large enough bowl to mix with all of the dry ingredients, you want them to be completely covered with the mixture! After mixing, place the bowl in the fridge for at least 15 minutes, and up to an hour.

Once the tofu is in the fridge, you can start cooking the rice. I love to use jasmine or basmati, and I've found an almost fool-proof way of making it: bring two cups of water to a boil, with a dash of olive oil to prevent the rice from sticking. When it begins to boil, immediately dump in a cup of rice, cover, and reduce the heat to low. Allow it to cook by itself, checking and stirring every 6-8 minutes. When its done, just turn the heat off, and keep it covered -- it should be okay like this for at least 15 minutes (at the most).

Add the oil to the wok, on a little lower than medium heat. Once its hot, add the tofu. Stir continuously, you want all of the tofu to be covered in oil so it can begin to crisp. Fry it until its just crispy, you certainly don't want it soggy with oil. If you want a little extra heat, add sliced chili peppers or red pepper flakes.

Serve the tofu over the rice -- yum!

You can also substitute the tofu with shrimp, or squid. Salt and pepper squid rocks my SOCKS, especially after a particularly difficult time at the Indiana casinos... sigh... It's simple, but it's so good, and I guarantee you will have a vege-phobe who loves at least one tofu dish once you serve it -- just don't tell them it's tofu until after they've tasted it. ;)

I served mushrooms on the side, in a nice chicken broth with sugar, sesame oil, soy sauce, and rice wine vinegar.