Sweet and Spicy Tofu With Soba Noodles

Made for the 4th or 5th time last night - my whole family loves this dish. Baked the tofu w cornstarch and panko per another crispy tofu recipe in this site. Cooked the sauce including green onion for about a minute before adding the noodles. Scooped out the “sauced” noodles into bowls then added the tofu to the pan and tossed in leftover sauce. Much easier than trying to toss with the noodles, I’ve found. Adding lime juice to the finished bowls (plus cuke etc) is key to the delicious sauce!

Use the hack of tossing the tofu w cornstarch and the oils and baking on parchment paper covered cookie sheets at 400 degrees for 20 minutes. It makes the dish even simpler to cook.

You can get very dry tofu (extra firm) in most stores now. Broiling the tofu makes it crisp without oil.

If you don't have time to dry/press the tofu, cut into slabs and microwave for 2 minutes. The heat causes the proteins in the tofu to constrict and expel water. Then you can drain and pat dry. I do this whenever I stir fry tofu and it takes much less time.

Make the dressing first as a marinade and put the tofu in it: 20 minutes is long enough. I watered down the dressing a little and did this. Then cooked the tofu in coconut oil (I had put the sesame oil in the dressing, could also use peanut oil) after sautéing the garlic in the oil. Tofu had tons of flavor. When noodles done, I added some of the noodle water to dressing to make sure sugar was dissolved. Then added this mix to cooked, rinsed noodles. Really good. Oh, and added bok choy. Yum.

We loved this dish - the noodles are so tasty. But when (not if) I make it again I will do the following: -sear the tofu in less oil in a non-stick pan. -add the tofu to the pan with the sauce ingredients first, not after the noodles, so the tofu also tastes flavorful. I also might use slightly more soy to allow for the flavoring of the tofu.

I don't understand the tip - I don't see anything in the instructions about covering the pan.

Final product is delicious, however tofu is a bit plain on it’s own, tastes good with the noodles though. Would highly recommend seasoning the tofu prior to cooking it, maybe some ginger powder, red chili flakes and maybe some soy sauce.

This was fabulous. Follow the other commenters and marinate, then roast your tofu on parchment paper in a 400-425 degree oven for 30 minutes. (I marinated mine in a garlic chili oil.) Lime and cilantro elevate this and round out the flavors, so don’t omit the freshness!

I pressed the tofu for a couple of hours and had great success following the frying instructions as written. I upped the veg by adding a few cups of thinly sliced green cabbage and a thinly sliced green bell pepper along with the cucumber to make it more like a salad than a pasta dish. Used a couple tsp of chopped lemongrass (tender part) added with the garlic and ginger, and probably went heavy on the green onion. I didn't have soba on hand so I used some whole wheat spaghetti. Lime is a must.

I only used 2 of the 3 tablespoons of sugar and added shiitake mushrooms to the garlic and ginger step. Yumm.

Excellent. Marinated tofu for a few minutes in mix of soy, mirin, and a dash of sriracha. Then tossed with a bit of cornstarch, baked in 400° oven for 20 minutes, as others suggested. Maybe not as crispy as frying, but much less "fussy". Stir-fried some broccoli and red pepper while tofu in oven, set aside. In final assembly (step 5), tossed tofu and veggies in sauce before adding noodles. Once you add the noodles to pan, it's harder to toss/mix everything well. Will make again.

I liked this better the next day cold for lunch.

This recipe requires two pans—one to boil the soba and and the other for the rest of the prep

I couldn't get ahold of soba so I used packaged yakisoba noodles and it was still very good. The noodles have a nice richness from the soy and the sesame and the veg are fresh and bright, especially with the lime.