Glazed Miso Tofu

• Draining the tofu on paper towels eliminates excess moisture, ensuring a crisp, browned crust. 
• Dusting the tofu with potato starch creates a nice crust that absorbs the glaze, helping it to stick.
• Shallow frying the tofu allows you to get even browning, and then you can use paper towels to soak up the excess oil safely before adding the miso glaze.

Ingredients for  Glazed Miso Tofu

• Firm Tofu Block -It’s substantial enough for the tofu pieces to hold their shape through the cooking process, and they take on a meatier texture as the surface forms a golden brown crust. Extra-firm tofu will work for more protein, but it tends to be a bit more dense and dry. On the other hand, silken tofu has a higher water content, giving it a creamy texture that makes it harder to keep the slices from falling apart.
• Aromatics -Dusting the tofu with dried aromatics like garlic powder or ginger is a great way to add more flavor to this protein. Grated fresh ginger or garlic cloves will work, but they can make the starch coating sticky and difficult to handle.
• Potato Starch – This is the secret to creating the crispiest tofu, which the glaze will cling to. If you can’t find potato starch, other types of starch, such as cornstarch, will work. 
• Sake – Sake is a Japanese rice wine made by brewing rice with koji and yeast. The process creates amino acids which give food the taste of umami. In this recipe it acts a liquid to help dissolve the miso paste while adding a savory taste to the miso sauce. The alcohol burns off during the cooking process. 
• Miso – Red miso paste is the star ingredient for this glazed tofu. A longer aging period gives red miso a deeper and more robust flavor than white miso paste, contributing a nutty complexity that makes this dish stand out. 
• Sugar – Dark brown sugar adds an earthy molasses-like sweetness to the miso glaze while contrasting the savory miso. You can substitute granulated sugar, honey, maple syrup, or other sweeteners that are easy to dissolve. 
• Garnishes – Green onion adds a fresh, crisp bite to the dish while providing a beautiful visual contrast, but other chopped herbs like parsley, spring onions, or chives will work. Toasted sesame seeds are another nice garnish, adding a nutty flavor and slight crunch for another layer of texture and taste to this miso-glazed tofu.

How to Make Glazed Miso Tofu

Slice the block of tofu into 3/4-inch thick steaks and place them on a baking tray with several layers of paper towels to drain as much excess water as possible (about 30 minutes). Moisture will cause the tofu slices to steam instead of crisp, which is why it’s so important to drain them thoroughly first.

While you wait for that to drain, make the miso glaze in a small mixing bowl by whisking the sake, red miso paste, and dark brown sugar into a smooth sauce.

Pat the surface of the tofu dry with additional paper towels, and then season with garlic powder. Then, coat each piece in an even layer of potato starch by dipping each side into the starch and dusting off any excess. You may not need all of the starch.

Heat a generous amount of vegetable oil in a skillet over medium heat. Carefully lay the tofu in the pan in a single layer with space between each piece, allowing them to shallow fry undisturbed until they’ve formed a golden brown crust on one side. Flip them over to brown the second side. Now, you want to remove as much oil from the pan as possible using paper towels to soak it up. This keeps the pan-fried tofu from getting greasy and ensures the glaze will stick to the crisp coating.

Pour in the miso sauce and flip the bites of tofu repeatedly until no extra glaze remains in the pan. Garnish your miso-glazed tofu with chopped green onions and toasted sesame seeds, and serve.

How to Serve

For a balanced meal, serve this miso-glazed tofu on a bed of rice or as a topping for a salad or noodles. Brown rice and quinoa are great alternatives if you want a more nutrient-dense option, and if you’re watching your carbs, cauliflower rice will work as well. Along with some steamed veggies like broccolini, green beans, or edamame beans, miso tofu makes for a delicious, easy weeknight meal.