General Tso’s Tofu Adventure

Hanging out with friends from around the world has taught me many things. One is that Americans sure do love foods that are intensely sweet and salty. Think chicken and waffles, fluffernutter sandwiches, and chocolate peanut butter cups.

So it’s no surprise that, as a nation, we can’t get enough of General Tso’s chicken. However you want to spell it in English and whatever its connection to the actual military man from Hunan province, this syrupy dish that combines fried chicken with blanched green broccoli florets is ridiculously American.

Guillaume has never had General Tso’s, and honestly I can’t remember ordering any since my sleep-deprived grad school days in New York City. Our favorite local Chinese restaurant serves amazing street food. General Tso’s doesn’t fall into that category. But I’d been having a craving for some.

The thought of frying chicken at home isn’t pleasant, though, especially on a weeknight. We’re not vegetarian, but try to be purposeful about eating meat. What if I could make a meat-free version of General Tso’s that doesn’t involve deep frying and actually tastes good? Challenge accepted.

In her latest Smitten Kitchen cookbook, Deb has a recipe for crispy tofu and broccoli with sesame-peanut pesto that we make regularly in the cooler months. It calls for pressing firm tofu, coating it with a cornstarch slurry, and baking it on a sheet. So I started by combining that method with Lev Grossman’s General Tso’s tofu recipe. Grossman, however, sometimes uses silken tofu, which I still don’t understand. To me, having crispy pieces is essential to the dish.

The result was… boring. Blanching the broccoli and relying on the sauce to impart flavor wasn’t the right move. Sweating the whole dried chile de árbol peppers didn’t give the sauce noticeable heat, either.

For a subsequent attempt I seasoned and roasted the broccoli next to the tofu, as Deb does. And cut all the dried chiles in half before sweating them. That was, uh, too far in the other direction. Guillaume enjoyed the heat, but the dish was super spicy and, to me, still lacked depth.

Some General Tso recipes call for tomato paste. Others say to add hoisin sauce. Kenji suggests dark soy sauce, but I was too lazy to drive over to the huge Asian market for a bottle. Instead, our container of white miso paste helped everything along. But I did follow Kenji’s advice on heating the aromatics over medium for a few minutes to let the flavors develop — and soften the scallions. Another change: doubling the coating for the tofu. Yes, some slides off in the oven, but the overall result was more crispiness.

The components came together magically this time. It was sweet and spicy and salty and yummy. And as good as any takeout version I’ve ever had. Guillaume thought it could be spicier, but agreed that the dish was tasty. After storing some leftovers, I licked the spoon.

By the way, I highly recommend the documentary “The Search for General Tso.” It’s a fascinating look at the origins of Chinese food in America.

Note: By using dried chile de árbol peppers, you can control the heat level for this dish. Leave all of them whole for mild, cut four or five in half for medium, and cut all eight to 10 in half for hot.

General Tso’s Tofu

Makes four modest portions.

Sauce:
1 Tbsp. white miso paste
4 Tbsp. soy sauce
⅓ C. brown sugar
2 Tbsp. sherry
2 Tbsp. rice vinegar
3 Tbsp. vegetable broth or water
1 tsp. sesame oil
1 Tbsp. cornstarch

Tofu:
1 block firm tofu, around 1 lb.
2 Tbsp. soy sauce
2 Tbsp. vegetable oil
2 Tbsp. cornstarch

The rest:
Vegetable oil
3 garlic cloves
1 tsp. minced ginger
3–4 scallions
8 – 10 dried whole red chiles, such as chiles de árbol
1 large head of broccoli
Sesame seeds, for garnish
Cooked rice, to serve

Wrap tofu in paper towels and press on a rimmed plate with a heavy pan or in a tofu press for 10 to 30 minutes. Meanwhile, in a medium mixing bowl, mix together the vegetable oil, soy sauce, and cornstarch coating for the tofu. Unwrap the pressed tofu and cut it into 1-inch cubes. Put cut tofu in the bowl and coat the pieces evenly.

Preheat oven to 400°F.

Cut broccoli into florets and with around a tablespoon of vegetable oil. Spread the broccoli on a foil-lined sheet. Season it with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Spread the tofu on a parchment-lined sheet (do not use foil for the tofu or it will stick and make a mess). Bake both sheets for 20 – 30 minutes or until crispy. Remove pans from oven and set aside to cool slightly.

Starting with the miso paste, whisk the sauce ingredients together in a bowl. Sprinkle with a little salt at the end, especially if you use water instead of vegetable broth.

Mince the garlic. Cut scallions into half-inch pieces. Cut some or all of the dried peppers in half, for medium to hot spiciness (see note above).

Add tablespoon of vegetable oil to a nonstick frying pan and heat over medium. Add the garlic, ginger, scallions, and dried chiles. Sweat them for around 3 minutes or until the scallions soften.

Pour in the sauce, allow it to bubble and thicken, and stir for about 1 minute. Remove the pan from the heat, and gently stir in the tofu and broccoli. Serve with rice and finish with a sprinkle of sesame seeds.