Simple General Tso's Tofu

I had originally planned on sharing the fall soup I posted on Instagram & Facebook last Friday night, but then I realized Roger had the recipe! So I quickly had to change directions & switch dates. So today I will share this Simple General Tso’s Tofu Over Steamed Broccoli that I shared on Instagram a while back & Thursday I will share the fall soup & you’ll get to see what name I chose for the soup based on all of your input!

I have shared a couple of other asian recipes before, but this is by far the easiest & my new go to asian recipe when we want it quickly without much work! No it isn’t a homemade general tso’s sauce – this time – which is why I added the word “simple” to the beginning of the name. This is one of those semi-homemade recipes that will make your life easier but will still leave you feeling full from a healthy & mouth-watering vegetarian meal!

In college my husband (then boyfriend) & I would frequent the little asian restaurant that was just down the road from our university. I would get General Tso’s Tofu & he would get their Sesame Veggie Chicken & now that we live in Birmingham we find we miss our little lunch dates more than ever! We have been once or twice since moving but neither of us can wait till we move back in (hopefully) a year & a half! So this recipe really helps us with our food homesickness!

Last night when I was asking him what he thought of my General Tso’s Tofu in comparison to where we use to get it he exclaimed that he like the shell of mine better! What a compliment!

Ingredients:

1 Container Extra Firm Tofu – sold in the fruit & vegetable section of grocery stores

1/2 – 1 cup Corn Starch

1/4 cup Vegetable Oil

General Tso’s Sauce – Right now our go to sauce is by Ty Ling Naturals sold at Publix – stay tuned for a homemade recipe

Steamed Broccoli

Cooked Rice

First, start cooking your rice since this is the part that usually takes the longest time. To quicken the cooking process of the rice I use hot water instead of lukewarm water. Preheat your oven to 450°, line a baking sheet with foil sprayed with oil.

Place a pan on the stove at medium high heat & pour vegetable oil into the pan so that it covers the bottom of the pan – about 1/4 of a cup. If you have a splatter guard I would highly recommend putting it on top of the oil. While the oil is heating up remove the tofu from the plastic container, place it on a towel, & dice it to your preferred size – if you want to cut them into triangles check out this other recipe.

Roll the tofu up in the towel & gently pat the top of it to remove any excess liquid. Pour 1/2 cup of cornstarch into a medium sized bowl, add the diced tofu pieces, & careful fold the tofu into the cornstarch until the tofu is well covered in cornstarch – add more cornstarch as needed to ensure it is well coated. The wetter your tofu the more cornstarch you will need.

Turn the heat down to medium for the pan with the oil & carefully add the tofu to the very hot oil – you might have to cook the tofu in 2 batches if your pan isn’t large enough. Fry until very lightly golden on all sides.

While your tofu is frying you can cut, wash, & steam your broccoli.

– This next step is optional – Place your fried tofu on the prepared baking sheet & bake it for 10 minutes. The reason I do this is because my husband likes spring rolls so I usually bake the tofu to make them extra crispy while his spring rolls cook. I also usually hold off on steaming my vegetables until after I place the tofu in the oven so that everything is done at the same time.

This is a great time to clean up the prep work & set the table – just don’t forget to keep an eye on your food.

Once the rice is done, & the vegetables are steamed to your taste, place the tofu back in the pan that you fried it in at medium heat & add enough general tso’s sauce to cover all of the tofu. Stir until the sauce begins to bubble – about 1-2 minutes.

Wasn’t that super simple & fast for general tso’s tofu! I just love the crispy shell around the tofu – can you believe it’s only corn starch?

I’d love to see your Simple General Tso Tofu Over Steamed Broccoli! Show off your Domestically Blissful inspired recipes on Instagram with the hashtag #DomesticallyBlissful for a chance to be featured on DB’s Instagram!

Check out these other Domestically Blissful recipes!