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6/26/10

Marinated Tofu | Pineapple, Orange and Spinach Salad

This was the original menu: Marinated Tofu | Pineapple, Blood Orange and Spinach Salad w/ Habanero and Lime . I couldn't find any blood oranges at my grocery store. I tried to make a habanero and lime vinaigrette but it was waaayyy to spicy. I only used a quarter of the habanero but apparently they are really spicy peppers. My lips were burning for over an hour. This isn't the first time I've had issues with peppers in the kitchen and I'm sure it won't be the last. I really wanted to recreate that yummy salad I had for dinner on Father's day. Oh well, I try again another time.


So I went with a standby. But I used a different method for cooking. My husband does not like Tofu at all. So it's not on the menu that often and of course I'm always looking for a way to cook it so my husband likes it. Normally I bake it in the oven for about 45 minutes so it gets a little crispy on the edges. This time I tried frying it in coconut oil. Because what guy doesn't like fried food?


If your not using coconut oil you should try it! It's a great healthy fat and it can replace any fat in a recipe: canola oil, butter, shortening, etc and is much better for you. 


Island Soyaki marinated Tofu
I always have this stuff on hand it's great on almost everything! It's from Trader Joe's, there are two types regular Soyaki and Island Soyaki, I prefer Island it has pineapple juice in it.
  • 1 block of extra-firm tofu 
  • 3/4 cup TJ's Island Soyaki
Press your tofu for excess liquid. Dry with paper towels. Cut into 1/2" slabs and then cut the slabs into triangles. And then watch this great video on frying tofu!
This is a great website for cooking whole foods: Cookus Interruptus. They use whole ingredients and fresh local organic foods. I have used their site many times for referrencing how to make different whole grains, tofu, etc.
Pineapple, Orange and Spinach Salad
  • Bag of Organic baby spinach
  • Half of a fresh pineapple, cut in chunks
  • 3 navel oranges, cut up in chunks
  • 2 cups warm brown rice
  • Citrus vinaigrette
    • 1/4 cup orange juice
    • 1/2 cup rice wine vinegar
    • 1/2 tbsp dijon mustard
    • 2 cloves of garlic, minced
    • 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
    • 1 tsp honey
Whisk vinaigrette ingredients together, taste and adjust as necessary. Toss spinach with the pineapple, oranges and vinaigrette, put on a plate. Add a 1/4 cup brown rice sprinkled on top of salad. Add fried tofu on top. Enjoy!
This was not like the salad I had on Father's day but it was delicious and different. Sweet and savory together which is usually not my bag of chips but I enjoyed the change. My husband said that the fried tofu was better than the baked but it doesn't count as fried food because... it's tofu.
If you've never tried tofu and want to this is a great method to try. It was quick and easy and I thought it was very good.

Do you make tofu often? What's your favorite way to cook tofu?