Rubbishy Cookery

  This is a Japanese-ish light dinner that is simple, but will knock your socks off with the subtle complexity of its flavours and textures. I didn’t invent it by any means, but it’s a mish-mash modification of actual recipes and deconstruction of dishes I’ve had at Japanese restaurants. Ingredients: The broccoli isn’t really part of the recipe, I’m just making it as a side dish. Directions: First, prepare your mise en place: Finely chop the ginger and chop the scallion into fine rings as above. Try to handle your extra firm silken tofu gentler than I have so it emerges from its packaging in a solid block rather than two iceberg shaped pieces with extra bits. Chop the silken tofu into delicate bite sized cubes. I’m saving half of my block for another day, possibly for a miso soup (see Recipe #2): Meanwhile, as I heat up a pot of water in which to cook my soba noodles, why not take advantage of the resultant steam for my broccoli side: After a few minutes, I have perfectly steamed a...

  Back in my vegetarian student days, long before I had a good handle on rubbishy cooking from scratch, I relied on a lot of prepackaged meals and mixes. One such favourite was a boxed mix to add to tofu as a seasoning and binder to make “homemade” tofu burgers. It wasn’t just easy to use, but it was extremely tasty. I believe the brand was “Casbah” but who knows, because it’s long gone… Even though I’m no longer a vegetarian, I still love many of the vegetarian standbys from that phase of my life. I really loved those tofu burgers and have been determined to recreate the flavours I remember from the boxed mix. Many failed attempts, experiments, and 25 years later, I think I’ve done it! Behold! Ingredients: Missing from the above photo: neutral cooking oil, I use canola. Directions: Drain, then pat and squeeze dry your block of firm or extra firm tofu, using a clean tea towel. Then put the dried tofu into a shallow bowl and smash it up real good with a potato mashing device: Add a ...

  This is my version of a beloved dish from another favourite long-gone restaurant from my youth, Young Lok in Toronto. Young Lok was a classic semi-authentic Szechuan Chinese restaurant, located in the Village by the Grange plaza near downtown Chinatown, and a family favourite all through the 1980s and 90s.  When Young Lok closed its doors, I thought I’d never have anything like their braised tofu (or as their menu called it, “bean curd”) in black bean sauce again, and I haven’t. But I think this version comes pretty close—thanks  to a special ingredient, without which this recipe would be a mere shadow of its aspirations. I’m going to split this recipe into two parts: the pre-cooking of the tofu, and the final braised dish. Part I: pre-cooking the tofu, or “bean curd”. Ingredients: Directions: First, pat dry and squeeze some moisture out of your firm tofu with a clean tea towel. Then slice the tofu into serving size cubes: Next, line a cookie sheet with parchment paper ...