Glazed Tofu With Chile and Star Anise

By Yewande Komolafe

Updated Feb. 2, 2023

Glazed Tofu With Chile and Star Anise
Bryan Gardner for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Barrett Washburne
Total Time
30 minutes
Rating
4(2,009)
Comments
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This sauce — a dark, star anise-spiced caramel intermingled with rice wine, soy sauce, ginger and scallions — builds sweet, acidic and umami notes as it coats and infuses tofu. Sichuan hui guo rou, or twice-cooked pork, inspired the technique used here with tofu: The blocks are first seared whole, then torn into bite-size pieces and returned to the pan, where the craggy edges absorb the sauce. Additions from your pantry, such as a spoonful of doubanjiang, or fermented broad bean paste, fermented black beans or chile oil can invite deeper, more complex flavors. Serve warm with steamed rice and stir-fried greens.

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Ingredients

Yield:4 servings
  • 2(14-ounce) packages firm tofu, drained
  • 2tablespoons neutral oil, such as canola or grapeseed
  • Kosher salt
  • ¼cup granulated sugar
  • 1whole star anise
  • 1cup vegetable broth or stock
  • ¼cup Shaoxing wine
  • ¼cup dark soy sauce (see Tip)
  • 2garlic cloves, thinly sliced
  • 1(½-inch) piece fresh ginger, scrubbed and thinly sliced
  • 1small hot dried chile
  • 6scallions, whites cut into ½-inch pieces, greens thinly sliced
  • Steamed rice, for serving
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)

496 calories; 25 grams fat; 3 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 8 grams monounsaturated fat; 12 grams polyunsaturated fat; 36 grams carbohydrates; 6 grams dietary fiber; 13 grams sugars; 38 grams protein; 917 milligrams sodium

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

    Place the tofu blocks between paper towels and press gently to remove excess liquid.

  2. Step 2

    In a large skillet or cast-iron pan, warm the oil over medium-high heat until shimmering. Season both sides of the tofu with salt and place in the pan; sear without moving until the contact side is browned, about 4 minutes. Turn the pieces over and sear the other side until browned, about 3 minutes. Transfer the tofu to a plate.

  3. Step 3

    Carefully add ½ cup water, the sugar and star anise to the pan. (The mixture will sputter and steam.) Cook, stirring, until the syrup is reduced and turns deep amber, 4 to 5 minutes. Pour in the stock carefully (again being mindful of sputtering), along with the Shaoxing wine, soy sauce, garlic, ginger and chile, and cook, stirring frequently, until reduced, syrupy and glossy, 5 to 7 minutes.

  4. Step 4

    Use your fingers to break the tofu into ½-inch pieces, return to the pan and add the scallion whites. Toss to coat with the sauce and cook until warmed through, 2 to 3 minutes. Remove and discard the star anise and dried chile. Garnish with scallion greens and serve immediately with steamed rice.

Tip
  • To replicate ¼ cup dark soy sauce using regular or light soy sauce, combine ¼ cup regular or light soy sauce with 2 teaspoons molasses.

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Ratings

4 out of 5
2,009 user ratings
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Comments

Jesse

You can dry tofu by cooking it in a microwave-safe dish for 3 minutes. Once it's cooled you can just use your had to push the last little bit of water out, and it creates no waste.

Ron

Shaoxing wine is a Chinese cooking wine that you might find in the same area as cooking sherry in the supermarket, or in the Asian foods section. It apparently comes in a drinkable version but I've never seen that. It is salty in the cooking version, and is typically used as a flavoring in small quantities, as here. You can sub dry sherry, the bonus being you can drink it while cooking! I think cooking sherry would work, but that is usually sweet so you might want to adjust the recipe.

Larry Canaday

At age 82 I'm forced to learn cooking. I made this without the wine or chile. Very good and I'm looking forward to the leftovers. If I were to make this again, I'd halve the tofu (more sauce to marinade the tofu) and add the white scallions earlier. But I won't: this makes a terrible mess of the gas cooktop.

Halle

Flavors are delicious!! Pretty easy weeknight dish that does not require much chopping. My notes: - I liked the method of sautéing the tofu as a block instead of in any pieces as it gives the tofu more craggy edges to soak up the sauce once you break it up. It also saves the step of cutting the tofu. - admittedly I love sauce, but I halved the amount of tofu and cannot see a world in which there would be enough sauce for two blocks of tofu - I turned the heat down so the sauce took longer to reduce, but made no mess of my cooktop - similarly, I let the pan rest between removing the tofu and adding the water & sugar so there was no splatter - I’m sure the wine improves the flavor, but I did not use it and didn’t miss it - tamari instead of dark soy sauce was perfectly fine, in fact I would not want any more sweetness - subbed red pepper flakes for the chile - blanched broccoli on the side and added it at the end and it brought welcome color and crunch to the dish

bgsaito

I love this recipe and my mom really loves it. That said, she is super spice sensitive, so I cut out the chili. I also sometimes use cooking sake instead of Shaoxing Wine for her. But it works great.

Bebe

Have made this a number of times! Craveable!

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