Tofu is something I want to like, but far too often I have had it and it is bad. There is a ramen place in Albuquerque that has great tofu. I have tried making it, and it always comes out bad for me.
The easiest way to make tasty tofu I’ve found is to press it (extra firm is the way to go) for at least ten minutes (I wrap it in a paper towel and stick a cast iron pan on it, it there’s tofu presses too), cube it, bake or air fry until crispy (I usually air fry at 400F for around 18 minutes), then cover in some kind of sauce.
That said, the tofu in this recipe turned out great in my opinion, so that could be worth trying too!
Yours looks thinner than what I typically cut mine. I may try again. I am working hard to go fully vegan.
I do the pressing, then cut into 1/4" max thickness slices. Then I pan fry them in a touch of olive oil (low-med heat) making sure to sear both sides. Play with how seared you want. I sometimes like 1/8" and just go full crisp (Iike potsticker skin)
Then you can dust with your favorite spice blend, or cinnamon sugar, or honey, or in your saucy whatever… Daal, stir fry, curry, soup…
Bad in what way?
Bad, as in like tofu.
Ah, yeah the after taste sucks.
Buy the firm style and freeze it, thaw it and then press as much water out as you can. I found the spring presses useless, so I just hold it between my palms and squish it.
Cut it up. Marinade in a mixture of stuff…like a small bit of soy sauce and a bunch of spices etc. Dab cubes or slabs into a mix of cornstarch and spices like garlic powder, pepper, paprika, salt, cumin,etc, and fry it.
It gets Crispy on the outside frombthe corn starch and has flavour inside.
Depending on what you mean by “bad”, another way I sometimes do tofu (not silken) is to freeze it ahead of time. When you thaw it to cook with it, it will have much less water and have a “chewier” / “meatier” texture.
