Having grown up in California and then lived in both Saigon and Sydney, I have a serious taste for Asian food of every kind. In Saigon, I was a devoted customer at my neighborhood banh mi stand (and pho stand, and sidewalk dessert setup). In Sydney, you could set your watch by my cravings for the hand-pulled noodles at Chinese Noodle House. And when I visit my parents in the Bay Area, I insist on at least one stop at our favorite Vietnamese joint.

Now, however, I am living in a college town in the American South. While it sometimes has its charms, and while it certainly has excellent barbecue, there is a major downside to my living situation: the Asian food selection here is downright bleak.

Since flying to California every time a craving strikes isn’t exactly an option, I came up with this recipe. It absolutely scratches the itch for really good Americanized Sichuanese food: salty, sticky, sweet, and a bit spicy.

First, you crisp up the tofu by pressing out its extra moisture, tossing it in cornstarch, and frying it over high heat. Then you cook the tofu quickly in the sauce. The crispy layer that you’ve built in the initial frying prevents the tofu from getting soggy or falling apart in the sauce. It also gives the tofu a toothsome resistance when you bite into it, which then gives way to the hot, almost meltingly soft interior.

Not sold? Let me fix that: this recipe is quick to make, and if you cook Asian food regularly, you probably already have most of the ingredients in your cupboard. (If you don’t, it’s worth buying them, because I promise you’ll be having this often.)

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Previously:
One year ago: Anglo-Australian Scones
Two years ago: Squash Toasts with Goat’s Cheese and Caramelized Onions

And for my Australians:
Six months ago: Ratatouille
One and a half years ago: Sweet Corn Tofu Frittata with Roasted Cherry Tomato Compote

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Takeout-Style Crispy Tofu

Inspired by the Minimalist Baker and Bon Appétit
Serves 4 generously with rice and a veg

Ingredients

Tofu
30 oz (850g) extra-firm tofu
6 tablespoons (48g) cornstarch
a few tablespoons of neutral oil, to fry (like vegetable oil)
5ish green onions, sliced into 1/2″ or so portions (plus a few sliced thinner, to garnish)
sesame seeds (optional, just for sprinkling over top to serve)

Sauce
4 teaspoons (11g) cornstarch
1 teaspoon chili garlic sauce, or a generous pinch or red pepper flakes
4 teaspoons sesame oil
3 tablespoons rice vinegar (can substitute white wine vinegar)
7 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons water
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons (12g) ginger, minced
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons (77g) brown sugar

Instructions

Cut the blocks of tofu in half, so as to decrease their depth by half. (Confused? See picture in notes section, below.) Place the tofu on clean kitchen towels or several layers of paper towel. Cover with more towels. Press on the towel-covered tofu firmly, but not so hard that the the tofu falls apart. You’re looking to extract water, which helps ensure maximum crispiness.

Then cut the tofu into 3/4″ to 1″ cubes. Place in a big bowl and toss gently with 6 tablespoons of cornstarch. This keeps the tofu nice and dry—which, again, helps it crisp up.

In another bowl, mix all of the sauce ingredients together. Whisk until sugar dissolves.

Heat the neutral oil in a nonstick pan over medium-high heat. Once hot, place the tofu in the pan. Cook the tofu, flipping in batches, until golden brown on all sides. (You may have to do this in batches, depending on the size of your pan.) In the last 30 seconds or so before the tofu is done, add the green onions.

Reduce heat to medium. Whisk the sauce quickly to make sure the cornstarch hasn’t sunk to the bottom. Add the sauce to pan and cook until the sauce forms a glaze, turning the tofu once, gently, to make sure it’s equally covered in sauce. This should happen pretty quickly, in about 1-2 minutes. Remove from heat and garnish with more green onions and sesame seeds, if you have them.

Serve hot with rice and steamed broccoli or your choice of vegetable.

Notes

Cooking for leftovers? You have two options: cook everything up at once, and just reheat the leftovers the next day. They won’t be as crispy, but they’ll still be good. Alternatively, you can press and cube all the tofu and make the sauce, but only fry half of the tofu in half of the sauce. The leftover cubed, uncooked tofu and sauce you can keep in the fridge overnight, and then just fry them immediately before dinner the following evening.

Slice the tofu like this before pressing it out on the towels:

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