Sticky tofu with soba noodles makes a perfect mid-week dinner and it's a great meat- free alternative for the whole family!
Hey folks!
How have you been? I hope the Easter weekend treated you to many chocolate eggs and bunnies, with pretty blossoms all around! As you may have noticed, I'm slightly behind with my posting at the moment, hence the midweek post... I will keep it short, as I'm struggling for words today 😉
Today's recipe is adapted from Delicious Magazine, which (along side with few more magazines) I often refer to, when I'm a bit at lost in my kitchen (yeah, I do get lost in my own kitchen sometimes!). So without further ado, I introduce you to sticky tofu cubes, covered in lovely sesame seeds, served on a bed of noodles with some pickled zucchini and spring onions! Phew, sounds like a mouthful, doesn't it? But believe me, it's worth it!
So it's worth mentioning, that I'm not a huge fan of tofu. With an exception of silken tofu, when added to desserts or sweet things (like my Tofu Pancakes, for example). But this sticky marinade, simply made out of maple syrup and miso paste (I've used brown miso paste, as white one seems to be impossible to find), gives the tofu lovely flavor. It's a combination of sweet and sour, along with pickled zucchini, that creates that fresh, exciting taste in your mouth. And it's almost got that exotic vibe about it...
So, if you are not 100% convinced about tofu, you need to give this a try! Plus, in case if you wondering what is so good about tofu, here are just few benefits: naturally gluten free, low calorie, no cholesterol and a great source of calcium, iron and protein. So no reason not to like it, really! 🙂
Hope you enjoy it!
A.
📖 Recipe
Sticky Tofu with soba noodles
Ingredients
- 1 small zucchini
- 100 ml rice wine vinegar
- 2 tablespoon golden caster sugar
- 100 ml vegetable oil
- 200 g firm tofu (cut into small cubes)
- 2 tablespoon maple syrup
- 4 tablespoon brown or white miso paste
- 40 g sesame seeds
- 250 g soba noodles
- 2 large spring onions
Instructions
- Cut thin ribbons out off the zucchini (use a peeler). Put the ribbons into a bowl and set aside. Gently, heat the vinegar, sugar, ¼ teaspoon salt and 100 ml water in a small saucepan over a medium heat for 3-5 minutes, allowing the sugar to dissolve, then pour over the zucchini and leave to pickle in the fridge while you prepare the tofu.
- Save about 1 tablespoon of oil, then heat the rest of it in a large frying pan. Make sure the oil is really hot, then add the tofu and fry for about 7-10 minutes, turning it around to ensure it's golden brown. Remove from the frying pan and set aside on a kitchen paper.
- In a small bowl, mix together maple syrup and miso, until well combined. Spread the sesame seeds out on a plate. Cover fried tofu with the sticky maple and miso mixture (save any leftovers). Coat the tofu evenly in the seeds, sprinkle with a little salt and leave in a warm place.
- Cook the noodles according to a package instructions, then drain and rise in a cold water. Return to a frying pan to the heat, toss the noodles with the reserved 1 tablespoon of oil, any remaining sauce and 1 tablespoon of the liquid from zucchini pickle. Cook for a couple of minutes until warmed through. Divide the noodles between two bowls, top with the tofu, pickled zucchini and the spring onion. Enjoy!
Please note that all my recipes are developed and tested in metric grams. I recommend that you use digital scales for a more accurate results. I have provided a conversion to US customary in the recipe but please note that I haven’t tested using this method.
Notes
- You can swap zucchini for cucumber or carrots (radish will work quite well too).
- If you don't have any golden caster sugar, white will be fine too.
- Soba noodles can be swapped for any other type of noodles
Nutrition
Remember to let me know if you tried any of my recipes! Leave me a comment below or tag me with your creations on social media #anna_banana_co
Amber says
Crazy salty and I didn’t add any extra salt, other then that it was ok. Loved the zucchini, if it wasn’t for the zucchini to calm all the salt from the miso paste the dish would have been trashed.
Anna says
Hi Amber, sorry to hear the recipe wasn't to your taste.
Sarah | Well and Full says
This looks fantastic, girl!! What really caught my eye are those perfectly cut zucchini ribbons - I love turning them into noodles! 🙂
Rebecca de Silva says
This Sticky Tofu quick dish is delicious! Xx
annabanana says
Thanks so much Rebecca!
Glad you like it chick, and thanks for stopping by 🙂 xxx
Laurel says
That sesame crust on the tofu looks AMAZING! And the fact that you glazed it in maple syrup and miso... heaven. Making this one for dinner ASAP!
annabanana says
Hey Laurel!
Thank you so much for stopping by and for your awesome comment! Yes, you so right, that combo in the glaze works wonders and gives the tofu great taste, and sesame seeds are adding nice crunch to it! So happy that you will be trying out! Let me know how did it go! 🙂