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Rice with Tofu and Nuts

A fragrant rice dish cooked with tofu, almonds, cashews, raisins, and spices.

From the Wikibooks Cookbook · 12 ingredients
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Why it works: Cinnamon and clove match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 14,189 recipes. Both carry ethyl cinnamate, which smells sweet, balsamic. The science ↓

Rice with Tofu and Nuts

1–2
Timeabout 12 minutes

Ingredients

Directions

Cook the rice

  1. Wash the rice with several changes of cold water. Drain.

  2. Add the water, bay leaf, peppercorns, cinnamon, cloves and salt and bring to a boil.

  3. Reduce heat to medium low and cook covered for about 12 minutes until all the water has evaporated and the rice grains are tender yet separate.

Fry the tofu and nuts

  1. Heat the oil in a pan.

  2. Add the tofu and shallow‑fry for a few minutes on each side.

  3. Scoop the tofu out of the oil and set aside.

  4. To the same oil, add the nuts and the raisins and shallow‑fry until the nuts are golden brown and the raisins have plumped up.

  5. Remove from heat.

Combine and serve

  1. Turn the rice into a serving bowl and fluff gently with a fork.

  2. Fold in the tofu and the nuts gently and mix well.

  3. Serve hot.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

642Calories
19 gProtein
32 gFat
76 gCarbs

Counts 10 of 11 ingredients. The other 1 aren't in our nutrition table and add nothing above, so the real totals are higher.

What these numbers assume: 10 portions
IngredientPortion assumedkcal
Rice1 cup cooked (158g) white206
Cashew1 oz (28g / ~18 nuts)157
Olive Oil1 tbsp (14g)119
Tofu100g firm76
Grape1/2 cup (76g)62
Almond1 almond (1.2g)7
Clove1 tsp ground (2g)7
Cinnamon1 tsp ground (2.6g)6
Bay Leaf1 leaf (0.6g)2
Salt1 tsp (6g)0
Waternot in our table0

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 Wikibooks Cookbook.

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. Cinnamon + clovetop 1% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together14,189 recipes

    Shared aroma: ethyl cinnamate (sweet, balsamic).

  2. Almond + cinnamontop 1% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together3,514 recipes

    Shared aroma: eucalyptol (eucalyptus, herbal).

  3. Raisin + cinnamontop 1% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together5,390 recipes

    Shared aroma: 1-octen-3-ol (mushroom, earthy).

  4. Almond + raisintop 2% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together1,781 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-nonanone (fruity, floral).

  5. Olive + almondtop 6% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together1,875 recipes

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

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

What each ingredient does

Basmati rice
Forms the bulk of the dish, with long grains that cook up tender and separate.
Firm tofu
Browned on the outside while staying soft inside, adding protein and a chewy contrast.
Olive oil
Conducts heat for shallow-frying and carries flavour into the tofu, nuts and raisins.
Blanched slivered almonds
Toasting to golden brown adds a nutty aroma and crunch.
Chopped cashews
Toasting to golden brown adds a buttery aroma and crunch.
Raisins
Plump in the hot oil, adding moisture and gentle sweetness.

The step that matters

Shallow-frying the nuts. Nuts can go from golden to burnt quickly because their oils and sugers darken fast at high heat. Removing the pan from heat once they colour and the raisins plump keeps them crisp and nutty rather than bitter.

Swap the raisin

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (basmati rice, tofu, olive, almond, cinnamon, clove):

  1. Coconutfits better
  2. Avocadofits better
  3. Cherryfits better
  4. Raisinthe original

Fit is the average pairing score against basmati rice, tofu, olive, almond, cinnamon, clove. 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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