It’s been brisk in the Bay Area, putting me in the mood for comfort food. Enter tofu and broccoli fried rice – a cozy, quick and delicious dish packed with protein and veggies.
The key to good tofu and broccoli fried rice is prepping all the ingredients in advance as the process moves fast. This means:
- Cooking the rice a day ahead so it has time to dry out.
- Pressing the tofu to remove excess liquid.
- Cutting up the veggies and aromatics and gathering the seasonings.
Once that’s done, assembly is a breeze. Tofu and broccoli fried rice is plenty flavorful as is but even better drizzled with Fly By Jing’s Sichuan chili crisp.
Recipe adapted from The New York Times.
Tofu and Broccoli Fried Rice
Makes 4 servings
Ingredients
- 1 14-oz. package firm tofu
- 5 tablespoons canola oil, divided
- 2 tablespoons minced garlic, divided
- 2 teaspoons minced fresh ginger, divided
- ⅓ cup low-sodium soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- ¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro
- ½ cup diced yellow onion
- 2 carrots, peeled and cut into ⅛"-thick rounds
- ½ pound broccoli, stems peeled and cut into ⅛"-thick rounds and florets cut into bite-size pieces
- 4 cups cooked and cooled jasmine rice, preferably day-old
- ½ cup frozen peas, thawed
- 1 serrano pepper, thinly sliced crosswise (remove seeds for a milder dish)
- 4 large eggs, lightly beaten
- ½ cup thinly sliced green onions
Instructions
- Remove tofu from package and place on a double layer of paper towels. Place two more paper towels on top of tofu and gently press with a fry pan (or another weight) to remove excess liquid. Let stand for about 15 minutes. Cut tofu into small cubes (about ¾ inch) and set aside.
- In a 12-inch nonstick fry pan, heat 1 tablespoon canola oil over medium heat. Add half of the garlic and ginger and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add tofu, soy sauce and sugar and season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes or until sauce reduces by half. Stir in cilantro. Transfer tofu and sauce to a shallow dish and set aside.
- Heat 2 more tablespoons canola oil in the fry pan over medium heat. Add onion and carrots and season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until soft, about 3 minutes.
- Add remaining garlic and ginger and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds.
- Add broccoli and season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until soft, about 3 minutes.
- Add rice, peas, serrano pepper and 1 more tablespoon canola oil; toss to coat. Season with salt and pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, until rice starts to crisp, about 3 minutes.
- Push rice to one side of the pan. Add remaining 1 tablespoon canola oil and eggs to the other side of the pan and cook, stirring occasionally, until almost set. Fold in the rice.
- Add half of the prepared tofu (and all of the sauce) and green onions and stir gently to combine. Season with salt and pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, for 2 minutes. Top with remaining prepared tofu and green onions and serve.
