Volunteering at a library bookstore does has its perks.
Most importantly, I get them half off. Secondly, I get first pick of some
beautiful cookbooks (and other books) for gifts and personal use. At two
different library bookstores I’ve found editions of Food & Wine Magazine’s
series, Best of the Best. I love the series because it is literally a
collection of the best recipes from the top cookbooks of the year. That means
you get an incredible variety of recipes from some of the best chefs and
writers around. This one from the simply titled Recipes by Susan Spugen is no
exception.
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Peanut Noodles with Mango is a simple Asian inspired dish
that is easy to recreate at home. The recipe as is really good as a side dish
but I wanted to make an entree for two hungry people. So crispy fried tofu
seemed like a good fit. Chicken, or shrimp would also be delicious in place of
the tofu. I like how crispy thinly sliced tofu gets in a shallow oil bath
inside a dutch oven. That baby makes frying TOO easy. You can also pan fry the
tofu in a skillet with just a couple tablespoons of olive oil.
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I was afraid this recipe would be a little out of our
normal dinner comfort zone as it is served cold. To my delight and surprise,
Aaron loved this unconventional dish and promptly scarfed it down in about a
minute. He also called dibbs on the leftovers. That’s how I know I have a hit
on my hands.
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I just happened to have a lovely soften mango and sugar
peas on hand, so luckily this dish came together quite easily. I often keep
toasted sesame oil on hand because it adds so much flavor. Try to get if you
can. I also recommend a couple dashes of Thai fish sauce if you want to add a
little umami to a dish, which is slighlty the sweeter side.
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Another adaption I made to the original recipe was the use
of PB2 instead of peanut butter. You can definitely use regular smooth peanut
butter if you have yet to discover PB2. One reason that I recommend the former
is the addition of flavor with only a ¼ of the calories of regular fatty peanut
butter. The addition of 45 calories per tablespoon versus 200 calories of the
traditional condiment makes this a little lighter for a weeknight meal. If you
are serving this as a side dish at a barbeque, go ahead and use the regular
stuff. I don’t believe in reduced fat peanut butter. There, I said it.
This is a crowd pleaser and perfect for when the weather gets a little warmer and the produce gets fresher. For kids, the mango and tofu are
optional. They’ll love the peanut sauce! I’m sure you will too.
Peanut Noodles with Crispy Tofu
and Mango
(Adapted from Recipes by Susan Spugen featured in
Food
& Wine’s Best of the Best, Volume 9)
For 2-3 entrée sized portions
Ingredients:
For the Peanut Sauce
½ cup PB2 peanut butter prepared with ¼ cup water, or ½
cup regular smooth peanut butter
3 tbsp. warm water
1 ½ tbsp. rice vinegar
3 tbsp. soy sauce
2 tbsp. toasted sesame oil
1 tbsp. grated or finely chopped fresh ginger root
½ tsp. red pepper flakes
¼ tsp. garlic powder
½ tsp. vegan sugar
¼ tsp. black pepper
For the Noodles
½ lb. spaghetti noodles (thicker, not thin noodles are
best)
1 cup sugar snap peas or snow peas, chopped into 1-inch
pieces
1 lime, juiced
1 ripe mango, peeled and chopped into 1-inch pieces
½ cup cilantro leaves, roughly chopped
1-2 green onions, chopped
salt
optional: ¼ cup roasted peanuts, chopped for garnish
sriracha and sesame oil for serving
For the Tofu
½ block extra-firm tofu, sliced into ½ inch strips, then
cut in half
¼ cup all-purpose flour
½ tsp. garlic powder
½ tsp. onion powder
¼ tsp. chili powder
¼ tsp. black pepper
¼ tsp. salt
water and salt for soaking
Vegetable oil
Gluten-free version: Simply replace tamari sauce for soy
sauce, don’t flour the tofu, and use your favorite gluten free spaghetti
noodles.
Directions:
Add all ingredients for the sauce to a small food
processer or blender and blend until smooth. Refrigerate until ready to use.
(you can make this 2-3 days ahead of time)
In a small bowl, mix chopped mango with lime juice and a
pinch of salt. Chill until ready to serve.
For the noodles, bring a pot of salted (2 tsp.) water to a
rolling boil. Add spaghetti and cook according to package instructions. You don’t
want soft noodles, so cook just a little more than al dente since you will
chill noodles until allow them to rest to doneness.
At the last minute of cooking time, stir in snap peas to
pasta water, cooking for no more than 1 minute until bright green and softened.
Once pasta and peas and cooked transfer to a large colander and rinsed well
with cold water at least twice so noodles do not get gummy with the chilled
toppings and peas do not get over cooked.
Toss noodles and peas in the peanut sauce until well
coated.
For the tofu, add slices to a shallow baking dish with
warm water and 2 tsp. salt. Soak tofu for at least 15 minutes. Pull slices out
and place on a plate or cutting board lined with paper towels. Cover slices
with more paper towels and gently press down to press out water. Repeat one to
two times until tofu is no longer soaking wet, only slightly damp.
In a shallow bowl, combine flour, garlic powder, onion
powder, chili powder, and peppers.
If deep-frying, heat a large dutch oven or cast iron pot
over medium heat with enough vegetable oil to cover bottom by about two inches.
Test by dropping a piece of green onion into the oil. It is ready if the onion
begins to sizzle on impact.
Once oil is hot, bread tofu slices in the flour mixture on
both sides. Working in batches, carefully place slices in the hot oil and fry
for 3 minutes, then flip for an additional minute, until both sides are lightly
brown and crispy. Carefully take pieces out of the oil and place on paper
towels. Sprinkle slices with the salt.
Serve dish as soon as the tofu is cooked. Spoon noodles
and peas on plates, top with chopped cilantro, green onions, mango and tofu
slices. Drizzle plates with additional sesame oil and top with chopped peanuts.
Serve with sriracha.
Enjoy!
