weeknight dinner: tofu shirataki

i spied this curious looking food (tofu shirataki) on a couple of trips to the grocery store and knew it was only a matter of time before it made it into my weekly dinner rotation. it's a food that seems too good to be true: tofu noodles. my thoughts immediately went to a plethora of guilt-free and gluten-free pasta dishes. i was quite excited to try a stir-fry noodle dish, since this is something i just can't find wheat-free in restaurants. my yakisoba and/or chow mein days are over.


definitely follow the prep directions on the package: rinse the noodles well, boil for 2-3 minutes, then dry. the package mentions an "authentic aroma," which i assumed would be slightly fermented soy smelling. not so. they smell awful, so don't skip the prep. to make mine yakisoba style, i heated up some vegetable oil in a large pan and then sauteed some celery, zucchini and onions. a few minutes later, i added the tofu shirataki and, as it says to do so on the house foods website, pressed the noodles down, to help them brown. after a couple of minutes, i added some homemade teriyaki sauce (garlic, ginger, soy sauce, mirin and oil) to the pan and let everything cook for an additional 2 minutes.

i was quite happy with the results. the noodles resist a greasy, fried feeling. the texture is a bit soft but not mushy. it definitely helps to have the vegetables with some crunch left to them. next time: tofu shirataki spaghetti style!

more tofu shirataki recipes are available on the house foods website.