To-Fooey

Bar-B-Fu

ToFu.... Can't say I was excited about this at all. Not to mention the way it would be prepared. BBQ in a sandwich. Can't say it sounded good at all. But, as Symon pointed out, if its in the book then I must do it. At least I knew I could find all the ingredients at one store.

So the first thing was to dry out the tofu by draining it on a paper towel and then putting more paper towels with a cookie sheet over that. Then you put cans on top to put pressure on the tofu. Then leave it for 30 minutes. Basically you are sucking the liquid (water) out of it so it can soak up all the flavors you want. In this case, BBQ sauce. I created a BBQ sauce (by following the directions in the cook book) with "My favorite BBQ sauce", apple cider vinegar, garlic, and serrano chilies. I marinated them for 3 hours and then on to the searing.

For this searing application (I sound like Alton Brown right there) a non-stick pan was used to create the sear on the outside of the tofu "steaks". I use this term very loosely because it does not look AT ALL like a steak nor create the mouthwatering sensation that a REAL steak does. Throughout this entire process, I keep telling my self that this does NOT look good and I don't even want to eat it. But I continued this culinary journey of trying tofu.

After searing the tofu, you place it on a hoagie roll and then take the marinate and add it to the pan with some dark beer to make a sort of sauce. Maybe it is to make it taste it better. Hopefully! Who knows. After you reduce the sauce (which means just thicken up and reduce the amount in the pan), you pour it on the sandwich and top it with coleslaw. And there you go. Bar-B-FU!

Tasting did not go well. It started with giving Reagan some tofu. She immediately did NOT like it. This says a lot because she eats everything. Next up was Symon. He says that it just taste like BBQ sauce and if you don't think about the texture then it is ok. (Note: He ate the whole sandwich) Unfortunately, I can not say the same for me. After talking myself into taking a bite (Ryan was watching so I needed to show him that you have to give food a chance) I instantly felt nauseated. It was purely a texture problem. The flavor was good but I just could not get past the texture of the tofu. I ended up eating 1/2 of the sandwich and all of the chips. (of course)

Things I learned:

1. Tofu must be drained so it can soak up any flavor you want

2. Tofu does NOT belong in a sandwich

3. Not sure I want to eat it again

Symon and I did talk about the fact that some people eat tofu almost every day. If you have a good tofu recipe, please send it to me and maybe, just maybe, I will try again and post the results. Next up... Going to the sea, Tuna Steak style!