Day 187. I was so excited to see that our grocery store has started carrying La Choy brand sweet and sour sauce.
So I bought a bunch.
La Choy uses soy instead of wheat starch to make it's soy sauce, and the sweet and sour sauce is labeled the same way. So there's no gluten! yippee!
We hadn't had tofu in a while, and after the french dip sandwiches, needed some lighter fare.
The Ingredients.
-1 lb extra firm tofu, drained - 4 cups fresh vegetables (I used 2 bell peppers, carrots, and broccoli)
- 1/2 white onion, chopped
- 1 T corn starch
- 10 oz jar of La Choy sweet and sour sauce
- 1/2 T water
- 1 T butter
The Directions.
You know how in Chinese restaurants the tofu is always really crispy on the outside and has a nice texture? I learned a trick last week to help create that at home without deep-frying. Cube your tofu, and put it in a zipper bag with 1 tablespoon of cornstarch. Shake the tofu until it's coated completely in cornstarch. Then fry on the stove on medium heat in a tablespoon of butter. Resist the urge to flip the tofu often. Let it get a nice crusty coat before turning.
While that's cooking, wash and trim your vegetables and add to the crockpot. When the tofu is done, put it in also. Pour the entire bottle of sweet and sour sauce on top of the tofu and vegetables.
Add a 1/2 tablespoon of water to the "empty" jar, and shake. Pour the contents on top. Toss gingerly.
Cover and cook on low for about 3 hours.
This is finished when the vegetables have reached desired consistency. We like the veggies to have a crunch, so I didn't let it cook very long. The broccoli was not very crisp, but the onion, bell pepper, and carrot still were al dente.
The Verdict.
My kids each ate 2 helpings. They didn't eat the onion or bell pepper, but happily ate the tofu, carrots, and broccoli. T
he sauce is a good flavor; it tastes like take-out. I might add red pepper flakes to the adult servings next time.
We ate this over white rice, outside. It was a really nice night.
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