Sesame Crusted Tofu

It's for you, fellow vegetarians! Sesame Crusted Tofu is just another way to prepare tofu "steak" - full of nutrients, fun and flavor!

Blog's Category: My Own Fast and Easy,  Vegetarian

Intro

Are out there those who doesn't like sesame seeds? None? Then, let's continue. These tofu steaks are loaded with sesame seeds! At the time, the idea to coat tofu with sesame seeds come to me when I was craving something sesame-ed especially badly. So, why not to dip my tofu in a pile of sesame seeds? Results was very pleasing and satisfying. Here it is.


What is it?

Thick sesame coat covers generously seasoned tofu blocks. Then tofu steaks are skillet fried until  golden-brown. Don't be scarce on spices to make bland tofu and subtly flavored sesame seeds to shine bright!

Taste Description

All your flavors will come from spices - you will get a lot of it from cumin, coriander, dry onion powder and garlic powder. Also there is some spicy kick coming from chili powder and black pepper. All these middle eastern notes are delivered to you through a beautiful crunch and tender flavor of abundance of sesame seeds as well as wonderful texture of fried tofu. 

How to Serve/Store

Serve right away when sesame crust is at its best! 

Sesame Crusted Tofu 

• 2 blocks of firm tofu, each sliced across into 6 steaks
• 1.5 cup of raw sesame seeds (I buy them raw, unroasted, at chinese store)
• 1 tbs korean chili powder (or 1/2 tsp of regular chili flakes) - for medium spicy
• 1 tsp black pepper, ground
• 1 tbs coriander powder
• 1 tbs cumin powder
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tsp onion powder
• 1/3 tsp salt
• 2 eggs
• light olive oil for frying

- Cover sliced tofu with a couple of layers of paper towels to absorb the extra moisture. I put some weight on it such as heavy wooden cutting board.

- Mix all spices and salt together. Generously cover tofu pieces with spice mix.

- In a bowl, beat eggs just until they stop to be stringy, or are "liquefied".

- Poor sesame seeds onto large shallow plate.

- One by one, dip tofu pieces in egg, then tap into sesame seeds and fry on both sides in a skillet with a pre-heated olive oil until golden-brown. Watch your heat level to avoid sesame seeds to be burnt - it should be about medium low.

- Remove to a plate with a paper towel to absorb extra oil.

- Enjoy when it still warm and crusty!



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IN PICTURES

As Jacques Pepin tought, for coating, beat the egg just until the string, coming from the fork, is thin and steady. It's better to do with a fork, with movements side-to-side, not circular folding ones. This technique is different from whipping the egg, which also is done not with a fork but rather with a whisk. 

Use roasted sesame seeds if you couldn't get raw. This time I used sesame seeds I roasted previously and kept around.

It's a little bit messy job, and it's not easy to calculate exact amount of seeds it will take but don't be discouraged by this. Reward will come! Worst case scenario - your tofu steaks won't be evenly coated - not a big deal IMHO :)

I served it with a simple carrot and red pepper stir-fried rice..