Tag Archives: tofu

by | March 5, 2013 · 4:17 am

Karl’s Twice-Cooked Tofu

Fun question: I was watching A Taste of History and I found out a bit of American history.

Who introduced tofu to America?

(hint: It was not Thomas Jefferson. Answer below the recipe.)

This dish is not what I went to the store to prepare. As I was sitting and thinking about dinner I remembered the stir-fried lettuce stem I was served in Chengdu.  When I got to Lion Market, I found that they did not have it.  I had seen it there before, so I guess it simply is not in season.  What was in season was Chinese broccoli (gai-lan in Mandarin). What I normally do with this vegetable is make Spice Chicken and Noodles, but that is a real production number and takes hours to prepare.  I wanted something simpler for a week day meal.

Twice-Cooked Tofu

Twice-Cooked Tofu

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by | January 10, 2013 · 10:14 pm

Karl’s Miso Soup

Miso soup is an almost daily staple of a Japanese diet. In the West many soups start with a base of chicken broth. In Japanese most soups start with dashi. The dried soup base, Hon Dashi, is sold in most supermarkets (at least on the West Cost). I have never been sure how much to use so I think I have been using too little, because if there are instructions on the bottle they are all in Japanese. One of the websites I was on while researching this meal was recommending 1 tsp. of Hon Dashi per cup of water. Since the bottles only contain about three tablespoons, it would take almost a whole bottle to make a soup for the family. See Karl’s Yosenabe for instructions on making it from scratch.

Karl’s Miso Soup

Karl’s Miso Soup
at the bottom

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by | October 10, 2012 · 3:38 am

Karl’s Fresh Tofu with Bonito Shavings

One of the things I love about J-town is San Jose Tofu. This is a small (if there are more than three customers someone has to stand outside), unpretentious shop with one goal—making fresh tofu daily. The difference between today’s fresh tofu and the stuff everyone buys in the plastic tubs is the difference between a fresh-picked, vine-ripe tomato and what you get at the supermarket, technically the same, but not.

Karl’s Fresh Tofu with Bonito Shavings

Karl’s Fresh Tofu with Bonito Shavings

Our favorite restaurant, Gombei, is right next door and you know where they get the tofu for their Cold Tofu sidedish. The following is my attempt to replicate something close to their dish.

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