Fried tokwa (firm tofu)
There was this e-mail asking me about tofu. At first, I thought the question was about the difference between firm tofu and silken tofu but, when I reached the end of the [kilometric] e-mail, I wasn’t sure anymore what the question was. From what I gathered — and I could be wrong — it was about which kind of tofu, silken or firm, was good for frying. I hope I got that right. Actually, even if I got the question wrong, the e-mail provided a pretty interesting topic for a food article and I hope that other readers will find this tokwa frying entry useful.
First, kinds of tofu. In the Philippines, tofu for cooking (tokwa) generally means firm or silken tofu. In China, they have hundreds of tofu varieties but since I don’t live in China, I can only talk about silken and firm tofu or what we know by the generic term tokwa. I won’t include tawpe, taho or even miso because although most know that they are soy bean products, they are distinctly different from what we know as tokwa.
When I was a child, there was only one kind of tokwa. When one went to the market to buy tokwa, it meant firm tofu. There were two sub-varieties though. The small square ones and the big rectangular ones. I used to think that there were small ones for smaller families but I was wrong. Fried, the small ones were more compact than the larger variety which had a softer interior. Why that was so, I don’t know.
Anyway, it wasn’t until about ten years ago that silken tofu started to become a regular item in supermarkets. If they had been available in Chinatown or specialty stores earlier than that, I really have no idea.
Most people will tell you that only firm tofu can be fried. Wrong. I’ve eaten at least four different dishes with deep fried silken tofu that had been dredged in crumbs or batter. I’m sure it’s all done very gingerly considering how easily silken tofu falls apart. I haven’t mustered the guts to try it. But I’m pretty good at frying firm tofu. So, we go into the subject of this entry which is how to fry tokwa or firm tofu.
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I fried mine like yours, and my dipping sauce is a mixture of Japanese Cooking Wine (Kirim?), chili sauce, toasted garlic, and onion sprigs. My husband liked it better with chopped chinese coriander & scallions (either in the sauce or in the tofu serving itself (and of course salt). Its sarap, sarap, not too vinegarry taste and its good for you.
I usually make “tokwa’t baboy” with onions and spicy vinegar and I also slice them before frying. Perfect as a side dish or paired with ice cold beer as pulutan. Sa mga taga-Marikina, this is a perfect match for “goto”.
i was wondering, if you use a lot of oil for frying, what do you do with the remaining used oil? i try to avoid food that would need deep frying because i don’t want to have to deal with the used oil afterwards. sometimes when it’s reused the taste of whatever was fried in it previously is still there.
ah that is mouth-watering, brenda.
mom of 4 1/2, you cool the oil and keep it in a jar for use another time. the only used oil i don’t like recycling is oil that had been used for frying fish. but even that can be re-used if you use ginger to remove the fishy taste and smell. ahhh, that is good for another food tip entry.
Nice entry Connie.
I’m curious though about how they make Tofu-steak (apparently made with silken tofu), so if you have any ideas, do share them. :p
Hi,
A week ago, the mothers/food enthusiasts in our office were arguing on what was the difference between tofu and tokwa. I kept on insisting that there was none.
Then we were also asking each other how to fry tofu without having them fall into shreds. So, I hope it’s ok that I printed your article and have them read it.
Thanks, Ms. Connie.
Jon, I have a very good idea. Just too chicken to try. hehehe Soon…
Soloops, I have a printer-friendly version of every entry now.
paborito ko tokwa!
snack ko yan madalas.
hiwain ko lang in cubes tapos deep-fry na.
pagkaluto, sprinkle lang konting salt kung di ka na mag-sauce.
pero kung gusto mo ng dipping sauce, sawsawan ko lang yun light soy na may hiniwang sili!pero masarap rin yan sa soup.
sa chinese restaurant kasi pag umorder ka ng piniritong tokwa, may kasamang sabaw! pantulak lang siguro!
I use medium hard tofu or tokwa in tagalog, washed and cut to about 1/2 inch thick (no cubed tofu for this guy – unless its added to a dish). Deep fry it in new peanut or corn oil together with 3 to 4 cloves of thinly sliced fresh garlic until golden brown. The garlic will give flavor to the tofu. As a condiment to the fried tokwa, try sliced firm tomatoes and onions with choped habanero chili and a dash of patis bagoong from Lingayen Pangasinan(can be found in Asian stores here in the US, its about triple the cost of regular patis… but its worth it!). The fried garlic can also be eaten with the tokwa. The extra oil can be used for cooking again ’cause tofu don’t leave any unpleasant taste.
I am presently producing tokwa, and was wanting to find, too, the difference between tofu and tokwa, like anybody else. This is because of a research article stating that for optimal beneficial effect of isoflavones, found in soy bean and soy bean product like tofu, which is even a better substitute for estrogen that diminishes as women ages, one has to take 50 to 90 mg. of isoflavones per day. In that paper it can be deduced that in 100 grams of tofu there is about 35 or 36 mg. of isoflavones, such that one has to consume about 200 grams of tofu per day. Aware that tokwa is more compressed or dense than tofu, I wanted to know the difference of their density in order to arrive at the approximate quantity of tokwa for the daily requirement of tokwa consumption
to be able to take the needed daily intake of isoflavones.
Addendum by Cyrus
“density” should be densities (last sentence.
I fry my tofu diced. Masarap kasi yung malutong lahat ng sides. One simple tofu dish I do – kapag wala ng ulam na maisip is.. Fry the tofu with a little a garlic (like JunBug). Tapos in drain. For the sauce, boil some water and put in cut leeks (both green and white parts)- about an inch long. Soften the leeks, I like to put in the white portions first since they cook a little longer, then pour some oyster and a bit of hoisin sauce. I like my sauce a little thick so I use less water with the leeks and add a bit of cornstarch to make it thick. Tapos pour over the tofu or serve separately. Ang sarap kasama ng kanin.
hi connie,
i like your blogs…
anyways, i love tofu!!! i can nibble on it until i get all full…hehehe
i use chopped garlic, soy sauce, vinegar as my sauce for it… soy sauce adds flavor in the tokwa, garlic is an added spice.
but i wanted to try a new sauce for it…any suggestions?
DeBi, Kulasa’s idea above sounds wonderful. Or click here for tofu recipes.
this seems to be a 2-yr-old post, yet i enjoyed reading the suggestions of our “friends” here, as much as i enjoyed your excellent teachings about frying tofu..very authentic..nakakapaglaway ang tokwa’t baboy, hmmm, yummy! salamat po.
request ko po na gumawa kayo ng HOW TO MAKE THE TOFU SAUCE… pag fried na ang tokwa.
marami na akong nabibiling fried na tokwa sa Pilipinas at pare-pareho lang ang lasa ng sauce, paano po yun gawin?
Vinegar, soy sauce, sugar, garlic, onion, Ginger and sili.