I used to be convinced that the only way to get truly crisp tofu was to fry it.
I’d roasted it and broiled it, but I was never able to achieve those burnished, crisp corners that a pan full of screaming-hot oil reliably delivered.
Then I tried a technique from Jenny Rosenstrach’s excellent cookbook, “The Weekday Vegetarians,” and everything changed.
The method involved coating tofu cubes with a mix of oil and cornstarch before roasting them at high heat. It was the cornstarch that made the difference. When roasted without it, the tofu turns brown but stays soft. It’s the starch that adds the crunch, without splattering oil all over my stove and floor the way frying would. I was hooked.
The beauty of this recipe, other than the crunch, is how adaptable it is. You can spike the cornstarch mix with all kinds of seasonings. Ms. Rosenstrach uses soy sauce. For this recipe, I added a mix of garlic powder and oregano. I’ve also tried preparing it with other spices or citrus zest, a dash of fish sauce or another of chile oil, and they worked beautifully, too.
Similarly, you can use either extra-firm or firm tofu. Extra-firm gets crunchier on the outside, but stays more rigid inside. Firm has a more pillowlike and squishy core. Just avoid soft tofu, which holds too much moisture to really brown.
Once you’ve got the crisp and salty tofu cubes, there’s loads of ways to use them — as croutons on a salad, stuffed into sandwiches, mixed into stir-fried vegetables, eaten by the handful when no one is looking (try to save some for dinner).
In this version, I added tomatoes and onions to the baking pan. Then, to lend a fruity, bright note, I drizzled the vegetables with balsamic vinegar, which condensed into a sweet-tart glaze.
You can swap other vegetables for the tomatoes and onions, just as long as they’ll cook in the same amount of time as the tofu — 25 to 35 minutes. Try chunks of mushroom, cauliflower florets, red pepper strips or thin slices of winter squash.
This recipe serves two hungry people or three moderately hungry ones. If you double it, use two baking sheets, and add a few extra minutes to the roasting time. All in all, this does take longer than frying, but any extra cooking time is made up for by less cleanup time, a trade-off I’m always willing to make for a dinner this good.
