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Tofu Stir Fry with Charred Onion

A stir-fry of tofu, onion, snow peas, and soy sauce served over rice.

From the Recipes Wiki (Fandom) · 12 ingredients
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Why it works: Sesame and tofu match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 250 recipes. Both carry 2,4-decadienal, which smells seaweed. The science ↓

Tofu Stir Fry with Charred Onion

Time15 to 20 minutes

Ingredients

Directions

Cook the rice

  1. Bring 4 cups of water to a boil in a medium saucepan over high heat. Add rice and salt. Reduce heat to low, cover and simmer 15 to 20 minutes, or until water is absorbed and rice is tender.

Make the stir-fry

  1. Meanwhile, heat an iron skillet or wok over high heat for 1 minute. Add sesame seeds and stir constantly for 2 minutes or until they are golden brown. Remove to a small dish.

  2. Add vegetable oil to the pan and heat for several seconds, still over high heat. Add onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion is beginning to get a little charred, about 7 minutes. Add tofu and stir occasionally for 2 minutes to heat it through.

  3. While onion is cooking, combine soy sauce, vinegar, sugar and hot sauce, stirring to dissolve sugar. Add cornstarch, stirring until the mixture is completely blended and no lumps remain.

  4. Add soy sauce mixture to the tofu-onion mixture. Add peas and stir over high heat until peas are barely tender and sauce has thickened, about 3 minutes.

Serve

  1. Serve over rice sprinkled with sesame seeds. Pass extra hot sauce and soy sauce.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

1151Calories
32 gProtein
34 gFat
178 gCarbs
What these numbers assume: 12 portions
IngredientPortion assumedkcal
Flour1 cup (125g) all-purpose455
Rice1 cup cooked (158g) white206
Sesame1 tbsp (14g)120
Olive Oil1 tbsp (14g)119
Tofu100g firm76
Pea1/2 cup (72g)62
Sugar1 tbsp (12.5g) granulated49
Onion1 medium (110g)44
Soy Sauce1 tbsp (15ml)9
Chili1 tsp (2.7g)8
Vinegar1 tbsp (15ml) distilled3
Salt1 tsp (6g)0

One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.

Recipe from the Recipes Wiki (Fandom).

Steps grouped into stages for easier reading; the method is the source's own.

Explore the science

The flavor team

The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.

  1. Sesame + tofutop 1% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together250 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).

  2. Rice + sesametop 3% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together984 recipes

    Shared aroma: trans-2-nonenal (cardboard, fatty).

  3. Sesame + oniontop 4% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together2,192 recipes

    Shared aroma: gamma-nonanolactone (coconut, sweet).

  4. Onion + tofutop 9% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together729 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).

  5. Rice + tofutop 9% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together220 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2,4-nonadienal (fatty, green).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Firm tofu
Provides the protein body of the dish, holding its shape while browning lightly in the hot pan.
Onion
Softens and chars at high heat, adding sweetness and savory browned flavor to the stir-fry.
Cornstarch
Thickens the soy sauce mixture into a glossy sauce that coats the tofu and peas.
Snow peas
Add crisp-tender texture and fresh green sweetness to the dish.
Soy sauce
Supplies the salty, savory base of the sauce.

The step that matters

Stirring the cornstarch into the sauce. Cornstarch clumps if added to liquid without being fully blended, leaving lumps. Whisking it into the cold sauce until smooth lets the starch disperse evenly, so it thickens uniformly when heated.

Swap the peas

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (rice, sesame, onion, tofu, sauce, vinegar, sugar):

  1. Peanutfits better
  2. Mung beanfits better
  3. Cashew nutfits better
  4. Peasthe original

Fit is the average pairing score against rice, sesame, onion, tofu, sauce, vinegar, sugar. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.

“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.

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