When we used to live in Berkeley one of our favorite dishes at our neighborhood Chinese restaurant was called “Fire Glazed Tofu.” The tofu in this dish was delightfully crispy and coated in a sweet sauce that had a fiery kick. It was served simply on a bed of fresh spinach and was delicious when paired with some nutty brown rice.
I have not seen anything similar to our old favorite around here, so I recently set out to try and recreate it at home. I was inspired by this recipe, but made some modifications to the sauce to make it more like the dish I remember. While I still have not been able to make an exact replica, we are both big fans of what I was able to come up with. I really love how quick it is to make too!
Sweet and Spicy Orange Tofu
To prepare and pan fry the tofu, I highly recommend following the Tofu 101 instructions laid out so well on the Herbivoracious blog .
- 1 15oz package of extra firm tofu, cut into triangles
- 4 tablespoons orange marmalade
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons orange juice
- 2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
- 1 heaping tablespoon of chili garlic sauce or sriracha
Cut and drain the tofu, and in a large skillet or wok, pan fry the tofu until golden (click here for detailed directions).
While the tofu is cooking, stir together the marmalade, soy sauce, orange juice, vinegar and chili garlic sauce in a medium-sized bowl.
Once the tofu is golden on both sides, pour the sauce over the tofu in the skillet and cook over medium heat until sauce has thickened and fully coats the tofu. Serve over a bed of brown rice and fresh spinach.
Tasty Easy Healthy Green Recipe Ratings:
| Recipe Report Card | Notes About Recipe Ratings |
|
Tasty Rating Four Chefs (Delicious!) |
Not quite our old favorite, but we love the flavors and textures of this dish! |
|
Easy Rating
Four Easy Chairs (“ABC, Easy as 123…”!) |
The process for preparing and pan-frying the tofu may seem a little bit involved, but it doesn’t take too long and it is definitely worth it. The rest is really easy! |
|
Healthy Rating
Four Apples (Healthy, Wealthy, and Wise) |
When served with brown rice and fresh spinach this dish can be a really quick and healthy meal. |
|
Green Rating
Four Leaves (Mother Earth Approved) |
Mostly organic ingredients. |
This is easy! We never have tofu alone as an entree because I can never find a dish that makes it flavorful enough. However, this one looks very tasty! I really, really like the use of the orange marmalade and the chili garlic sauce. Great little dish!