Honey Mustard Glazed Tofu

Here is another easy to prepare, easy to cook dish. Best of all, it is made from the very popular and healthy tofu!

Tofu, Doufu (Chinese Pinyin spelling) or Beancurd (English), is made by coagulating soy milk and pressing the resulting curds into blocks. It is a very good source of protein, low in calories, no saturated fat and no cholesterol. It also contains iron and a very significant amount of calcium. Not only does the soybean itself contain calcium, but the process of coagulation needs additional calcium sulfite. This addition of the calcium sulfite is the most widely used so that tofu manufacturers can market their products as a good source of calcium. But this is actually the traditional way of making Chinese tofu. How do I know this? Because when Hubby and I were newly married, we lived with my in-laws for a while. They have a very good neighbor and friend who manufactures tofu from his backyard!

There are three kind of tofu: the soft silken tofu, usually used in soups are appetizers, which most people call Japanese tofu. There's the medium firm tofu, which most people call Chinese firm tofu. And the firm tofu (tokwa) or the dried tofu. In our family, we prefer the soft silken tofu and the Chinese tofu. We only use the dried tofu for frying, which we do not cook a lot.

It has been a while since I have cooked tofu again (since we have moved to a house on our own, that is.) But when I saw Maggie of Dog Hill Kitchen's recipe, Honey Mustard Glazed Tofu, I knew I must rekindle my tofu love affair. The recipe sounds delicious. What can go wrong with honey and mustard? And it looks so easy to prepare, easy to cook. So, I tried it.

And the result? Truly delicious! Hubby said it is the best tofu he has ever tasted. Tofu in itself is bland and flavorless. But with the addition of honey and mustard, the kids want to eat more and more. Since it is made from healthy tofu, I knew I am one happy mom. Thanks Maggie for the wonderful treat! This recipe is a keeper. :)


Some tweaks:

I do not have mustard powder, so I used the "liquid" Dijon mustard. It still tasted good. Maggie mentioned that it might be vinegary, which is okay with us. We like spicy things.

As usual, I was too lazy to fire up the oven, so I pan fried the tofu instead. I used non-stick skillet, and I only used a little canola oil. So, this dish is still considered healthy, right? :)

Since I am pan frying the tofu, I added a sprinkling of flour to the tofu. This gave the cooked tofu a nice crunchy texture on the outside. (Soft in the inside. Need I say more?)


1 block Chinese medium firm tofu
3 T Dijon Mustard
3 T honey
salt and pepper to taste
flour
dried parsley, optional

1. Cut the tofu into bite-sized cubes. Pat dry. Sprinkle with salt and pepper on both sides.

2. Combine honey and mustard in a shallow bowl. In another bowl, put in some flour.

3. Dip the tofu pieces in the honey mustard. Make sure all surfaces are covered. Then dip both sides in the flour. Fry in a hot skillet with a little canola oil. Turn over once one side is cooked and golden. Dish up once both sides are cooked. This takes only a little time (a minute or two) so you have to watch over the tofu carefully.

4. Dish up and sprinkle with some dried parsley leaves (optional).




Sharing this delicious and healthy dish to Bookmarked Recipes, a foodie event launched and hosted by Ruth of Ruth's Kitchen's Experiments. This week's guest host is the lovely Indian blogger Deeba of Passionate About Baking. To see last week's delicious round-up of tried and tested recipes, please click here.


Guess what? I will be guest hosting the next edition of Bookmarked Recipes! I feel honored that Ruth would invite me to host. I am so excited as this will be my first time to host any foodie event. Bookmarked Recipe is a world-wide foodie event....where anyone from anywhere can blog about a recipe they had bookmarked from a cook book, food magazine, food blog, food website, from TV etc, make it and submit it to a weekly roundup. It is so easy to play! If you have any recipes you got from another source, you cooked it, and want to share your cooking experiences with it, please blog about it and post it anytime between Sept 15 to 21. Email me or at bookmarkedrecipes@gmail.com and I will do the round-up on Monday, Sept 22. Will be waiting for your entries! :)