Thai Tofu Basil (Pad Krapow)


Last year I started growing plants inside using an Aerogarden. It was a lot of fun! But all of a sudden I had an unwieldy crop of Thai basil on my hands, and I didn't exactly know what to do with it. I knew it is often added to Thai stir fry dishes, so I did some searching and found a few that I liked and it morphed into this dish, which Anne has told me is her new favorite. Helpful hint: you can switch out the vegetables and try different combinations. To date I have tried, green beans, red bell peppers, broccoli, kale, and Brussels sprouts. Without the rice, this takes less than 30 minutes from prep to done, so it is easy to put into the weekly rotation!  Throw some pineapple on the side or on top for fun.

Ingredients

  • 1 package of extra firm tofu, drained

  • 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
  • About two-three cups of raw vegetables, mix and match as you like. (My favorites are to use 1 broccoli crown cut into pieces and one red bell pepper roughly chopped.)
  • 4 tablespoons tamari
  • 2 teaspoons brown sugar
  • 4 cloves garlic, crushed
  • 1 inch piece of ginger, finely grated
  • 1-2 tablespoons of sriracha, or to taste depending on how spicy you'd like the dish
  • 1-2 tablespoons of water
  • 1 cup Thai basil, cleaned and roughly chopped

    • Drain the tofu well, place into a tofu press or paper towels to remove excess water. Using a fork, mash the tofu into fine crumbles.

    In a small dish, combine the tamari, brown sugar, garlic, ginger, sriracha, and water. Adjust to taste if you want more spice, add more sriracha. If you want it a tad sweeter, add a bit more brown sugar.

    Heat a large wok, or frying pan, with the oil on high heat. Add the tofu, and stir fry for about 5 minutes, allowing the tofu to lightly brown.

    Add the vegetables and throughly mix with the crumbled tofu and stir fry them all together for a minute or so, and then pour on the sauce. Continue to stir fry the dish and mix everything together. Cook for an additional 5-10 minutes, depending on your vegetable type (if you use quicker cooking veggies it will be done sooner, etc.)

    Turn off the heat, and add the Thai basil into the pan and mix it well.

    Serve over jasmine rice and with sriracha on the side for an additional kick.