Tofu and Green Beans With Chile Crisp

By Sam Sifton

Updated February 10, 2021

  • Christopher Testani for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Chris Lanier. Prop Stylist: Carla Gonzalez-Hart.
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Total Time
30 minutes
Rating
5(7,210)
Comments
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I love to cook with chile crisp, a fiery hot-pepper condiment born in the Sichuan Province of China that generally relies on fried shallots and garlic for texture, and on any number of umami-rich special ingredients for distinction and oomph. It’s magical: a boon to noodle soups and kitchen-sink stir-fries, to eggs and cucumbers, to plain steamed fish. Here, I use it as the base of a marinade and topping for baked tofu and green beans, with black vinegar, a little sesame oil, a wisp of honey, minced garlic and ginger, along with scallions and cilantro. But you could use the mixture on a mitten and have a very nice meal.

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Ingredients

Yield:4 servings

  • 3 tablespoons chile-crisp condiment, plus more for serving

  • 3 tablespoons soy sauce

  • 1 ½ tablespoons Chinese black vinegar

  • 1 ½ teaspoons sesame oil

  • 1 teaspoon honey

  • 2 garlic cloves, peeled and minced

  • 2 tablespoons chopped scallions

  • 2 tablespoons chopped cilantro

  • 1 (14-ounce) package extra-firm tofu, drained and sliced crosswise into 8 (½-inch-thick) slabs

  • ¾ pound green beans

  • 1 tablespoon neutral oil, like canola or grapeseed

  • White rice, for serving

  • 1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger

Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)

17 grams carbs; 192 calories; 4 grams monounsaturated fat; 3 grams polyunsaturated fat; 1 gram saturated fat; 10 grams fat; 4 grams fiber; 678 milligrams sodium; 12 grams protein; 5 grams sugar

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Heat oven to 450 degrees. In a baking dish or casserole, whisk together the chile crisp, soy sauce, vinegar, sesame oil, honey, garlic, ginger, scallions and cilantro.

  2. Step 2

    Add the tofu slices to the dish, and coat them with the sauce, then allow to marinate for as long as it takes to heat the oven and trim the green beans.

  3. Step 3

    Add the green beans to a large sheet pan, then drizzle the neutral oil on top and toss to coat. Slide the green beans to the sides of the pan, and arrange the slices of tofu in an even layer in the center of the pan. Pour remaining marinade over the tofu, and place in oven.

  4. Step 4

    Roast until the green beans start to blister, 20 to 25 minutes. Serve immediately with rice and extra chile crisp on the side.

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Ratings

5 out of 5
7,210 user ratings
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Comments

SLCatherine

“Best tofu I’ve ever had!” declared hubby, and I agree: it’s perfection! Instead of fussing with towels and plates and weights to drain the tofu, I took another reader’s tip (from a Japanese cooking show) and microwaved the sliced tofu in a bowl for three minutes on high. Amazing how much water drained out, leaving the tofu with perfect texture to soak up the delicious marinade.

Randy

I've been using jars and jars of Trader Joe's "Chili Onion Crunch" that I now realize is a knockoff of the chile-crisp described here. There's nothing better on eggs, tofu, shrimp, rice....

Leslie

Bon Appetit has a great recipe for chile crisp, you can make it at home yourself without any special equipment and it's not behind a paywall. It takes around 30 minutes to make and lasts for months.

LDuval

I make this almost once a week, it’s super easy and delicious.

Amy

After reading comments I chose to set the oven at 425 rather than 450, and probably could’ve lowered to 400. The marinade on the tofu started to blacken around the edges by about 15 minutes in my oven, so I took it out. The green beans needed 20 minutes at 425. I roasted them on a separate sheet pan. I also held the cilantro and scallions back and used them as fresh toppings when I served the tofu rather than mixing them into the marinade. Delicious and easy dinner with these minor adjustments!

Angela

a repeat in my household, especially in the cooler months. also, a suggestion -- spoon a bit of the marinade on top of the tofu and the rest over the green beans. please note that this means that you might have some burnt areas due to the honey in the marinade, but 95% of the beans will be edible and oh-so flavorful! i cook my tofu and beans at 400F for 15 mins + additional 3 mins if more blistering is needed.

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