The tofu recipe to convert any tofu sceptic

(And I say that as a former tofu sceptic.)

Don’t listen to anyone who tells you tofu is ‘just like chicken’. No matter what you do to it, tofu will not be like chicken.

But that’s fine, because tofu doesn’t have to be like chicken. It’s tofu. It’s got its own thing going on.

Trouble is, that thing is off-putting to some people.

As a former tofu sceptic – now tofu devotee – I too have muttered the usual objections to tofu:

• ‘It tastes of nothing.’ Which is true, of course. It’s on you to bring the flavour. But if you use smoked tofu, as in the recipe below, it comes with a little built-in flavour.

• ‘It’s got a weird texture.’ Also true, if you’re not used to it, but this week’s recipe will help you out. Besides, over time, you get used to the texture and begin to love it.

• ‘I never know what to do with it.’ Oh boy, have I been there, bunging plain tofu cubes in a stir fry and thinking ‘This is what people do with tofu, right?’ Again, I’ve got you covered with this week’s recipe – a versatile way to cook tofu that you can adapt in lots of ways.

Then there are misconceptions around soy products being dangerous to our health and bad for the environment. See notes at the end if these concern you (spoiler: they shouldn’t).

All you need is one good tofu recipe to change your mind.

For me, that gateway tofu recipe was Ottolenghi’s black pepper tofu. It was the first tofu dish that made me think, ‘Wow, I could eat this ALL THE TIME.’ It’s a recipe I recommend to anyone who thinks tofu is boring. (You couldn’t possibly eat a mouthful of that dish and call it boring. For one thing, your mouth will be burning too much to speak.) However, it does require a bit of effort to make. And the texture is still rather … tofu.

So I offer you an alternative gateway tofu recipe. One that focuses on a major obstacle for tofu sceptics: texture. Turns out, when you finely shave and bake tofu, you overcome the bounciness that so often puts people off (at first). And no, you don’t need to press, freeze, or boil the tofu – all tricks that people use to alter tofu’s texture. Just shave it into thin slices, smother it with flavour and give it a short bake in the oven.

Tofu cooked this way gives serious doner meat vibes. It gives shawarma vibes. It even gives wafer-thin turkey ham vibes, if that’s your thing. I ate a lot of wafer-thin turkey ham in the 2000s and had a strange fondness for it, despite not really knowing what it was. (Turkey? Ham? Both?) That’s what a decade of dieting will do to you.

What to eat this week: gateway tofu

One look at this shaved tofu and you know – you just know – it’s crying out to be stuffed in a wrap or pita, loaded with yoghurt sauce, chilli sauce and salad. Or in a simple turkey-adjacent sandwich, with indecent amounts of mayo and mustard.

But why stop there? It would also work well as the protein in a stir fry, or in fried rice, or even – here’s a thought – atop loaded wedges. I’ve also draped it across pizza and had zero regrets. Plus, you can experiment with different flavourings (see notes).  

When I say this is THE gateway tofu recipe, I’m not joking. I would never joke about tofu. Once you’ve mastered this way of cooking tofu, the world is your soy bean.

This build-your-own-wrap situation was lunch today.

• 4 tbsp oil (olive oil is too £££ right now so I use sunflower)

• Juice of half a lemon

• 2 tbsp za’atar

• 1 tsp chilli flakes (or more if you like)

• 1 tsp onion powder

• 1 tsp garlic powder

• Salt and pepper to taste

• 400g smoked tofu (I love Lidl’s smoked tofu. Highly recommend)

Preheat your oven to 200°C and line a roasting tin.

In a large bowl, combine the oil, lemon juice, spices and seasonings (basically, everything except the tofu). Taste and adjust to your liking.

If you have a mandoline, that’s the best way to finely shave the tofu into thin strips. (Go carefully!) If you don’t have a mandoline, use a knife to slice the tofu into the finest strips you can manage – ideally, just a couple of millimetres thick. 

Add the tofu to the flavoured oil and mix to combine. It’s fine if it breaks up a bit – the little bits crisp up beautifully in the oven – but go as gently as possible.

Spread the tofu out in your roasting tin and pour over any of the remaining oil mixture. Bake for 10 minutes. Use a spatula to gently turn the tofu (again, some will break up and that’s fine), then bake for another 10 minutes.

Notes

• I like this recipe because it gives me leeway to use the tofu in different meals. But if you want to experiment with bolder flavours, I suggest using barbecue sauce, a spicy harissa-based sauce, hoisin sauce, or your favourite steak rub mixed with oil.

• If your objection to tofu is based on soy being bad for the environment because of deforestation and biodiversity, a little research can solve that. Just a simple Google search will tell you that, ‘More than three-quarters (77%) of global soy is fed to livestock for meat and dairy production. Most of the rest is used for biofuels, industry or vegetable oils. Just 7% of soy is used directly for human food products such as tofu, soy milk, edamame beans and tempeh.’ (From Our World in Data.) So while there are undoubtedly issues with soy farming in terms of deforestation and biodiversity, it’s a bit daft to blame tofu.

• Likewise, if you’re concerned about soy being bad for your health, a little research should put your mind at rest. Soy is not only safe for most people to eat on a regular basis – it’s bloody good for you.