How to Bake Tofu

Yes, seriously; it's a baked tofu tutorial.  It's really easy, but there are about a bazillion different opinions on how it should be done.  Just Google "how to bake tofu", and you'll see what I mean.  I'm fond of tofu, and I'm not terribly picky, but Drew likes his "chewy like they make it at the Thai restaurant".  This is easier said than done when you're working with packaged white tofu, as opposed to the home made yellow stuff that they're using at the Thai restaurant.

Through much trial and error, I finally managed to produce baked tofu that suits everyone in the house.  This is how we eat it all the time now. 

First you need a block of extra firm tofu that has been frozen/thawed/pressed and drained.  Then you cut the tofu into whatever shape suits you.  Make cutlets for sandwiches, sticks for dipping or "wings", cubes for salad toppings or stir fries, etc.  I made mine into cubes, because I'm going to serve them on top of Sesame Peanut Noodles.  When choosing the size of your cut, keep in mind that they shrink up considerably during the baking process.

Next, mix up your marinade of choice.  Go easy on the sodium though.  I learned the hard way that too much of a salty ingredient makes the tofu inedible, because it really soaks up the marinade.  This can be tailored to meet your personal taste.  Use your imagination, or keep it really simple.  The marinade for this batch is a bit of garlic, ginger, chili, a couple of shakes of seasoned rice vinegar, a couple of shakes of soy sauce, and about a cup of water. 

Place the tofu in the marinade and leave it for at least two hours.  Gently shake it about or flip the tofu every so often so that all of the pieces get equal marinade time.  If you can, leave it over night.  The longer it sits in the marinade, the richer the flavor will be.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.  Cover a cookie sheet with aluminum foil or a silpat and spray liberally with olive oil or cooking spray.  Lay the tofu pieces out flat and bake them for 20 minutes, then flip them over.  Yes, one piece at a time.  Yes, I know this is a pain in the butt.  Yes, it is required! 

After flipping, return to oven and bake for 20 minutes more.  After the second 20 minutes, remove from oven and flip again.  Continue cooking and flipping, every TEN minutes, until tofu pieces are as done as you like them.  I cook ours for about an hour, sometimes just a bit more, to get the texture that Drew likes.  If it were just me, I'd call it good at about 45 minutes or so.  Just taste them, because it's a matter of personal preference as to when they're done.

Enjoy!