I think that this picture alone can speak to the tastiness that you will experience when you make this dish. It can take a lot for me to be really wowed with a meal, but this dish did just that. It left me satisfied, impressed, and wanting more! Oh, and for those who are curious, despite the name, this dish does not contain any liquor…sorry! 😉
Bourbon Tofu and Vegetables with Whole Brown Rice
*Inspired by this recipe for Bourbon Chicken.
Servings: 2
Ingredients
water, for cooking
EVOO cooking spray or 1 TB extra virgin olive oil
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 yellow onion, cut into small strips
1/2 small red bell pepper, cut into small strips
1/2 small green bell pepper, cut into small strips
2 carrots, peeled and sliced
1 cup sliced baby bella mushrooms
1/2 cups broccoli, chopped
1/2 block extra-firm tofu, drained, pressed, and cut into cubes
yellow corn meal (enough to coat tofu)
1/3 cup low-sodium soy sauce
1 TB barbecue sauce
1 TB apple cider vinegar
1 TB chili sauce
3/4 cup water
2 TB ketchup
1/3 cup light brown sugar
3/4 tsp red pepper flakes
1/4 tsp ground ginger
2 servings whole brown rice, cooked
Directions
1. Line a large pan with a thin layer of water. Heat over medium-high heat until very hot. Lower heat to medium and add garlic, onion, peppers, and carrots to the pan. Cook for approximately 10 minutes, or until the vegetables begin to soften. Add additional water, as needed
2. Add mushrooms and broccoli to the pan. Cook an additional 8-10 minutes, or until all of the vegetables are cooked through. Add additional water, as needed.
3. While the vegetables are cooking, place the cut tofu into a plastic bag. Pour yellow corn meal (I probably used about 1/2 cup) into the bag. Seal the bag and gently shake the tofu until it is well-coated with the corn meal. The corn meal will help give the tofu a crispy texture, once cooked.
4. Heat a medium skillet over medium heat. Spray the skillet with EVOO cooking spray or use 1 TB extra virgin olive oil. Place the tofu into the skillet. Cook the tofu for approximately 20 minutes, flipping it every 5 minutes until each side of the tofu is golden brown. Resist the urge to flip the tofu more than four times.
5. As the vegetables and tofu are cooking, combine soy sauce, barbecue sauce, apple cider vinegar, chili sauce, water, ketchup, brown sugar, red pepper flakes, and ground ginger in a medium-sized mixing bowl. Stir until well-combined.
6. Once the vegetables and tofu have been cooked, add the tofu and the sauce mixture to the pan of vegetables. Turn the heat down to medium-low. Stir and simmer for approximately 5 minutes.
7. Serve the Bourbon Tofu and Vegetables over whole brown rice.
I was more than thrilled with the end results of this recipe. The vegetables were perfectly tender, the tofu was crispy, and the sauce was flavorful with a happy balance between spicy* and sweet.
I could not get enough of the flavors and textures that came together in this dish. My leftovers for lunch the next day tasted just as good (always a plus!), and the only thing that I regretted was not having made more. Take my advice and double the recipe!
This dish could certainly be made with chicken, but the crispy texture of the tofu combined with the vegetables and the flavorful sauce was delicious. I highly encourage you to use tofu. And if you have never tried or cooked with tofu before, then this is the perfect simple recipe to give it a shot!
*The sauce has a slight spicy kick to it, so if you do not like spice at all, I would recommend reducing the amount of red pepper flakes.
