Comments on: Home Style Tofu (家常豆腐)

By: David

David — Tue, 24 Jan 2023 21:02:34 +0000

So good! Even though I overcooked the tofu, it was still delicious. Thank you, Maggie. I’ll be making this again soon and I’ll try to get it entirely right.

By: Maggie Zhu

Maggie Zhu — Thu, 08 Dec 2022 19:18:16 +0000

In reply to David.

You can try it either way. The result will be different – air fry naked definite work. The tofu will have a chewy crispy crust and the inside remain tender.
If you use the seasoning and batter, the tofu will have a crunchy crispy crust and a more flavor taste.
Air fry naked would be easier and it will work with the recipe, because it uses a very rich sauce during the braising.

By: David

David — Thu, 08 Dec 2022 17:56:53 +0000

Haven’t made it yet. Wondering about air frying the tofu instead of deep frying. Would I still coat the tofu first with sesame oil, soy sauce, and cornstarch, or just air fry it “naked”?

By: Keith B

Keith B — Thu, 01 Dec 2022 21:35:06 +0000

In reply to Phil. Just chiming in here to say that it's probably more important to ensure that your oil is the proper temperature than to ensure the tofu is pressed. Unless you are going to marinate tofu directly after pressing it, you're not really going to get much out of doing so. Hot oil is drawn to moisture so pressing the tofu will result in a less airy texture after cooking, which imo is undesirable for this dish.

By: Susan W

Susan W — Tue, 12 Jul 2022 21:16:58 +0000

I tried doubling the sauce ingredients but found the double soy sauce over powered the dish. In the end, I was disappointed with the result and will go back to following recipe as written.

By: Susan W

Susan W — Tue, 12 Jul 2022 21:14:24 +0000

Great recipe. Homestyle Tofu is one of my favorite dishes and my go to at most restaurants. Like other commenters, I also like a little extra ‘sauce’ so have now tried recipe first as written and then again but doubling of sauce ingredients. To my surprise, I much preferred the result following the recipe as is. Doubling the sauce ingredients created a dish too heavy on soy and sauce ingredients overpowering the fresh vegetables, garlic, onion and ginger. I highly recommend this version of Homestyle Tofu. Would not change a thing! 🙂

By: Maggie Zhu

Maggie Zhu — Fri, 11 Feb 2022 15:10:08 +0000

In reply to Raz. You can simply double the sauce :)

By: Raz

Raz — Fri, 11 Feb 2022 07:42:38 +0000

Made this last night and it was fabulous! If I wanted more sauce in the dish would i just add more of the sauce ingredients or should i also up the aromatics?

By: Hi

Hi — Wed, 19 Jan 2022 17:04:49 +0000

Superb

By: Tecla

Tecla — Fri, 15 Oct 2021 18:48:54 +0000

This recipe is a real one! I’ve made it probably 10 times by now — it’s a perfect quick weeknight dinner, especially if you prep the veggies beforehand. I’ve used basically every veggie you can think of and it’s always delicious. I honestly find deep frying the tofu to be much faster and easier than shallow frying, baking, etc., particularly because there’s no need to press the tofu beforehand (which I hate doing) to achieve perfect tofu texture. I also use a mini food processor (an immersion blender attachment, super useful) to chop up the ginger and garlic together, which also cuts down on prep time, so I can get this into my mouth faster.

As another commenter noted below, the sauce genuinely does bring this recipe to the vaunted “better than a restaurant” status that so many blogs brag about but rarely actually achieve. Basically, if you like delicious Chinese food, make this!