Tofu Stir-Fry

Scene: my apartment, empty Ikea boxes, screws on the loose, hungry men. What's for dinner? Tofu stir fry with quinoa. Umm what? The look on my friends faces I will never forget. However, by now I have gained their trust as a chef (I mean it wasn't too hard to attain when Two Brothers Pizza seems to be my competition) and they sat, beer in hand, anxiously awaiting their grub. You know the true test? Seconds. If a crowd of boys unanimously want more tofu and quinoa (however they may have pronounced it), rest assured the dish was well liked. However, I was not yet convinced that my tofu stir fry is for everyone. Thus, I had another guy friend come over and tried him on for size. Seconds please!

Ingredients:

1 package lite-firm tofu

1 package fresh assorted stir fry vegetables*
1/3 cup frozen peas

1 yellow onion
4-5 pieces garlic

Small piece fresh ginger, sliced thin

1/3 cup TJ's Orange Muscat Champagne Vinegar

1/3 cup sesame seeds

2 tbsp. sriracha chili sauce (can add more or less, taste as you go depends on your spice preference)**

1 tsp. sea salt

1 tsp. pepper
2 tbsp. olive oil

*Here, you can also buy an assortment of fresh vegetables and chop/prep them yourself but that will significantly increase the amount of time that goes into this dish. Also, you can use frozen stir-fry veggies, which cook a lot faster too.

**Note: I was congested when I prepared this dish, so I used quite a bit of sriracha chili sauce so I could really get that spicy kick I crave. If you do not have a tolerance for spice, please please add in a little at a time and taste as you go.

Procedure:

Cut the onion into small wedges, set aside. Peel the ginger and cut into small thin pieces, whatever odd shape the pieces may be, and set aside. Peel the garlic wedges and mince or use a garlic press, set aside. Cut the tofu brick into 3 planks heightwise, and then 5 planks lengthwise, and then again 6 planks widthwise to get smaller tofu squares.

Heat a large frying pan or wok (if you happen to have one lying around) with two tablespoons olive oil on medium heat. Once the pan is hot, add the onions stirring frequently so they do not burn. About 3 minutes in, add the ginger and keep stirring. Then, add the garlic.

When the onion is approaching a more clear color add in the tofu and stir well with the onions, ginger and garlic. Then, add half of the required orange vinegar, sriracha chili sauce, salt, pepper, and sesame seeds. Mix well to coat the tofu with the flavors, until the tofu starts to brown. At this point add in the fresh vegetables, and the remainder of the ingredients, mix well again. After it is well mixed, throw in the peas, stir it again, and put a cover on the pan/wok and let the veggies steam through a bit to get soft. After about 5-7 minutes, remove the cover, raise the heat and stir for an additional 3 minutes. Serves 4 (2-3 with seconds, wink wink). Enjoy!