Noodle Salad with Crisp Tofu

The thermometer on our back porch shows the current temperature is 107 F. It’s been like this at this time of afternoon for several days now, and because of that, I’ve been in the mood for salads. In fact, every dinner meal I have planned for this week involves a main course salad. The crazy thing, though, is that I’m not opposed to baking or roasting or long simmering in this weather. Once it’s this hot, the added heat from cooking is neither here nor there to me. I’ll happily bake cookies or roast chicken in the summer, but the issue is that what I want to eat in this weather is really just salads. And, ice cream, but more on that later. I issued a warning the other day about how much I’m enjoying Donna Hay’s Off the Shelf, and how I’ll be cooking from it a lot. That’s where I found this noodle salad. The ingredient list is rather short for a salad, but the key element is fried tofu.

I don’t love frying food, and it’s always at least a little messy, but frying tofu might be the messiest of all things to be fried. I started by pressing the block between plates lined with paper towels to remove moisture. Then, after cutting thin pieces, I placed them on paper towels and blotted with more paper towels to remove more moisture. Still, as soon as the tofu pieces hit the hot oil, splattering ensued. I did use a splatter guard, but just in getting the tofu into and out of the pan, there was opportunity for oil to jump its way onto every surface in my kitchen. Before sitting down to dinner, I quickly wiped down the stove and neighboring countertop because it’s so much easier to clean oil before it dries. I was proud of my fast-acting homekeeping action until after dinner when I noticed the floor. So, yes, this dish asks a little of the cook’s patience for frying and cleaning, but I have a solution. If you really don’t want to fry the tofu, you can broil it. I do this all the time to make tofu fries. Coat a baking sheet with spray oil, spread one layer of slivered tofu, then also spray the tops of the tofu with oil, and broil for about three minutes before turning. Continue broiling and turning until the tofu attains the crispness you desire.

The rest of the salad preparation was as simple as can be. Bean thread noodles were briefly cooked and then tossed with carrots, chopped peanuts, cilantro leaves, and a dressing of sesame oil, soy sauce, and lemon juice. That combination was layered onto sliced cucumber and topped with the tofu. I added some chopped hot chiles just because, and I forgot all about the frying ordeal when I tasted the salad. It’s a great mix of textures and the noodles nicely absorbed the flavor of the dressing. I really liked the delicateness of the bean thread noodles which contrasted with the crunchy vegetables and peanuts. For dinner, the salad was served at room temperature, but for lunch the next day, I found it delightful and possibly even better chilled from the refrigerator. Although, that could just be the heat wave talking.

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