Spicy Eggplant Tofu

This spicy eggplant tofu will definitely be your next comfort food. Whether as an appetizer or as an ulam, these soft slices of eggplant tossed with crispy tofu, and sprinkled with chili flakes is one of the best and newest veggie recipes. Make sure to add the spicy eggplant tofu on your meal plan for the week! Best partnered with hot steaming rice. Yum!

SPICY EGGPLANT TOFU RECIPE

Ingredients:

• 2 pieces eggplant
• 3 pieces tofu
• 1 onion (sliced)
• 1 tablespoon ginger (minced)
• 1 cup water
• Chili flakes to taste
• 1 thumb ginger (minced)
• 1/8 cup soy sauce
• 1/8 cup oyster sauce
• 1 tablespoon cornstarch

Directions:

1. Wash and prepare the eggplants. Then, cut into desired pieces. Transfer them to a large bowl and then add the cornstarch. Mix until well coated. Set aside.
2. Prepare another bowl. Combine the water, soy sauce, oyster sauce and cornstarch. Mix well then set aside.
3. Wash and prepare the tofu. Cut into desired sizes. Dry them a bit using paper towel.    Heat a lot of oil in a pan. Fry the tofu in batches until golden brown and crispy. Transfer them to a strainer or paper towel to drain excess oil.
4. Using the same oil, fry the coated eggplant pieces for 2 minutes. Flip to cook the other side. Transfer them to a strainer or paper towel to drain excess oil.
5. In the same pan, add the onions, ginger and garlic. Saute for a minute until aromatic. Sprinkle some chili flakes for some kick.
6. Add the fried tofu and gently saute them together. Add the soy sauce mixture. Let it simmer until the sauce thickens. Them add the fried eggplant. Season with salt and pepper.
7. During the last minute, sprinkle some chopped spring onions and mix a bit. Turn the heat off.
8. Transfer the spicy eggplant and tofu to a serving plate. Enjoy this as an appetizer or with a big bowl of hot steaming rice. Yum!

Why We Like Spicy

Levelling up a dish or making it more exciting can be done in just one hack: MAKE IT SPICY.

Spicyness can be defined as “hot flavor” (while ‘mint” is its opposite, with a cool/cold flavor). A spicy food can be associated with “burning the tongue”. If we feel like burning, then why do a lot of people love spicy foods?

Have you noticed that you are drooling whenever you think of a spicy dish?

For a quick science, our body responds to spicy foods in a similar way when we got burned. In this case, the capsaicin from the chili triggers your tastebuds. Your heart beat will increase and there will be an adrenaline rush. As this is happening, certain parts of the brain releases the happy hormones called the “endorphines”. This is why eating spicy foods is associated with happiness.

Not all people can tolerate spicy foods. For reference, the spice level of the food is measured in Scoville Heat Units (SHU). Here is a quick list of the most common spices and their SCUs, check out your favorite spice here!

• Dried chili flakes – 35, 000 SHU
• Siling haba – 50, 000 SHU
• Siling labuyo – 80, 000 – 100, 000 SHU
• Tabasco hot sauce – 2,000 – 4,000 SHU
• Sriracha hot sauce – 1, 000 – 2,500 SHU

Spicy Eggplant Tofu

Unlike other food items, both the eggplant and tofu have a mild flavor and taste. Instead of looking this as a disadvantage, this is actually a strength of the two since they are best to be flavored, seasoned and filled with flavors. Tofu and eggplant are usually seasoned with oyster sauce and soy sauce just to enhance its natural flavors. 

Sauteed eggplant and tofu is one of the dishes I prepare whenever I only have a limited time to spend in the kitchen. Since both of them cooks fast with just simple frying, they are best to be prepared during busy days. Instead of the simple eggplant and tofu in oyster sauce, seasoning them with extra spices help add more flavor and more challenging to the appetite.

If you want a convenient way of making your dishes spicy, chili flakes can come in handy!

Do not overthink on how to make your dish spicy as a dash of chili flakes can already make a big difference. These chili flakes are just dried and dehydrated red chilies, but are basically the same thing. Since they are dried, they have a longer shelf life, and are also more convenient to use since you do not need to refrigerate them.

How to Cook Spicy Eggplant Tofu

If you wanna know how to prepare some quick and easy spicy eggplant tofu, read and follow the simple steps below. Happy cooking!

Making this quick and easy spicy eggplant tofu is just like your other sauteed dishes but with your favorite tofu and eggplant together.

Start by preparing the eggplants. For this recipe, you can use either the long violet ones or the green short ones. Slice the eggplant into desired pieces but do not remove the skin so the the eggplant won’t crush in the pan later. If you will be dealing with a large batch of eggplants, soak them in water to prevent darkening. To make it crispy later when fried, coat them with cornstarch.

For the tofu, simply dry them first with a paper towel. Excess liquid can cause oil splattering later when fried. Cut them into your desired size. For the soy sauce slurry, simply combine the soy sauce, oyster sauce and cornstarch in a bowl.

Fry the tofu and the eggplant separately until brown and crispy. Do not overcook the eggplant as it might become too mushy.

Reduce the oil in the pan and then saute your aromatics and some chili flakes. To make a non-spicy one, simply omit the chili flakes. (You can also use hot sauce  or chopped red chilies instead). Saute the fried tofu and eggplant for a few minutes then add the soy sauce slurry. The last thing is to let it cook until the sauce thickens and coats each piece well.

Transfer the spicy eggplant and tofu to a serving plate. Don’t forget to garnish them with some freshly chopped spring onions (you can also try toasted sesame seeds).

I really love eating the spicy eggplant and tofu as an appetizer. Having both protein and veggie component, this dish is a great ulam to a big bowl of hot rice. Yum!

Spicy Eggplant Tofu Recipe

Mga Sangkap:

• 2 talong
• 3 tokwa
• 1 sibuyas (hiniwa)
• 1 kutsara ng luya (hiniwa ng maliliit)
• 1 tasang tubig
• Chili flakes
• 1 hiwa ng luya (hiniwa ng maliliit)
• 1/8 tasa toyo
• 1/8 tasa oyster sauce
• 1 kutsara cornstarch

Paano Gawin:

1. Ihanda ang mga talong at hiwain ito sa malalaking piraso. Ilipat ang mga ito sa malaking bowl at lagyan ng cornstarch. Haluin ng mabuti at isantabi.
2. Sa isa pang bowl, paghaluin ang tubig, toyo, oyster sauce at cornstarch. Isantabi.
3. Hugasan ang tokwa at hiwain sa maliliit na piraso. Tuyuin muna ito gamit ang paper towel. Magpainit ng maraming mantika. Iprito ang mga tokwa hanggang maging golden brown at crispy. Ilipat ang mga ito sa strainer o paper towel para tumulo ang sobrang mantika.
4. Gamit ang parehong mantika, iprito ang mga talong ng 2 minuto. Baliktarin ang mga ito para maluto ang kabilang side. Ilipat ang mga ito sa strainer o paper towel para tumulo ang sobrang mantika.
5. Sa parehong kawali, ilagay ang sibuyas, bawang at luya. Igisa ang mga ito ng isang minuto hanggang bumango. Budburan ng konting chili flakes.
6. Ilagay ang mga pritong tokwa at igisa. Sunod na ilagay ang ginawang mixture. Hayaan itong maluto hanggang lumapot ang sauce. Saka ilagay ang mga talong. Timplahan ito ng asin at paminta.
7. Bago matapos maluto, budburan ito ng spring onions at haluin ng konti. Patayin ang apoy.
8. Ilipat ang spicy eggplant at tokwa sa serving plate. Enjoyin ito bilang appetizer o samahan ng mainit na kanin. Yum!