General Tso's Tofu

Crispy tofu in a sweet, blazing hot sauce. In my take on this dish, it gets its tang from tamarind and its heat from Thai dragon peppers. This recipe makes a little extra sauce because it's so good, you'll want to put it on everything.

• Ready In: 45 mins
• Serves: 4

Ingredients

• 1 (16 ounce) package firm tofu
• 5  tablespoons potato starch or 5  tablespoons cornstarch
• 1⁄8 teaspoon  salt and pepper
•  canola oil (for frying)
• 1 1⁄4 cups  mushroom broth
• 4  minced garlic cloves
• 1  tablespoon  fresh  minced ginger
• 1  tablespoon  seedless tamarind paste
• 1  cup brown sugar
• 1⁄2 cup tamari
• 6  tablespoons rice vinegar
• 2  Thai red chili peppers (to taste)

Directions

1. 1. Drain, rinse and pat tofu dry. Cut into 1" cubes.
2. 2. Heat oil on medium-high.
3. 3. Combine 3 T potato starch with salt and pepper. Dredge tofu and fry in hot oil until golden brown and crispy. Let rest on paper towel.
4. 4. Toast finely chopped peppers in a large skillet. Add garlic to brown. Do not burn it.
5. 5. Add broth, tamarind, brown sugar, tamari, rice vinegar. Bring to a boil.
6. 6. Reduce heat to a simmer.
7. 7. Add 2 T potato starch. Let thicken.
8. 8. Add fried tofu to mixture until warm and thoroughly covered.
9. 9. Add any vegetables at the very end, such as: bell peppers, green onions, peas, or bok choy. Serve with steamed rice.