Okay, readers, I'm a bit behind with my recipe reviews, and I need to clean out my queue before I regale you with stories of travel feasting in the near future. I will try my best this week. First up, pan-fried tofu with spicy lemongrass sauce!
So, I know a lot of people don't like tofu. I'm not really sure why...it kind of reminds me of a square omelet, and it's fun when it's crunchy on the outside. Plus, you can pair it with pretty much any sauce, although I'm partial to ones with a bit of sweetness in them. This recipe was good for both the crunch and the sweet, although I had a little bit of issue with each.
First, the crunch. This would have totally worked if I actually owned a non-stick pan. I don't, because I don't want whatever diseases Teflon is supposedly imparting this week, and I'm too cheap to buy myself a nice cast-iron skillet...as with pretty much all nice cooking supplies, I think these are best reserved for a wedding registry. With my non-non-stick pan, all the crunchiness (get ready for it) STUCK to the pan. And not to the tofu. In theory though, this would have worked with the right tools.
Second, the sweet. This sauce was actually a bit too sweet. I used a tad bit less sugar than the recipe called for, and it was still too sweet. Granted, I also didn't use the chile because Thai chiles scare me, and maybe the sweetness would have balanced out the spiciness had there been any. If you also omit the spiciness, though, I recommend reducing the sugar to half. And maybe adding a touch of rice vinegar?
The other weird thing was the texture of the lemongrass, which was, well, grassy.
All of these caveats aside, though, the dish was pretty decent, and with the low calorie states (180 per serving), I ate 1.5 servings and was nicely satiated. I served this over steamed/sauteed baby bok choi, the slight bitterness of which also helped temper the sweetness.
Captain obvious, signing off.
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