LITTLE MISS TASTY

Directions

1. Press Tofu: wrap the tofu in a tea towel or lots of paper towel, place on a plate and put something heavy on it. I usually use a frying pan with a jug of water balancing in the center but anything relatively heavy should work. Leave the tofu to press for a while, preferably at least 15 min but over 25 is probably overkill.
2. Prep sauce: while tofu is pressing, make sauce. Put all sauce ingredients (as well as hoisin sauce if using but not the beer) in a large bowl or container with lid. Cover and leave in fridge.
3. Prep the veggies: chop or crush the peanuts/cashews into fairly small bits, shred the carrot, slice the cabbage into thin shreds and mince the garlic. Chop the green onions in rounds, keeping the green bits and the white bits separate.
4. Prep tofu: cut tofu into small rectangles, about 1/4 inch thick and brown in a flat frying pan (non-stick is ideal) over med-high heat, turning half way through. You can cook them in whatever oil you prefer but I don't recommend olive oil as it has a tendency to burn at higher temps. I usually use the Nature Balance brand vegan margarine because it is great at keeping the tofu from sticking. It should take about 5-10 min per side, depending on how hot your pan is. You may have to do two batches if you don't have a big frying pan--it's best to spread them out flat across the pan. If you have the time, you can remove tofu from pan, put in a heat-proof container, slather with liberal amounts of the prepared sauce (stir it well first) and leave to marinate. If you're in a hurry, you can keep the tofu in the pan and turn the heat down to med-low. Add the sauce and stir to coat evenly then cook each side until the sauce is absorbed. If you are using meat, you may want to marinate them with a bit of sauce. Try to save 1/2 to 2/3rds of the sauce for the rest of the dish.

5. Cook rice ribbon noodles: bring a large pot of water to a boil and add the full package of noodles. Be sure to stir them really well to avoid having undercooked bits as they tend to stick together in clumps that don't cook properly. It shouldn't take long, about 5-10 min. Try one to see if it's done--it's best if the noodles are el dente. Drain and promptly rinse the noodles well in cold water to avoid them clumping up. Once they're cool enough to touch, I use my hands to help in the rinsing process and feel around for any uncooked bits which should be discarded.
6. If you left the tofu to marinate, now is the time to fry it in the sauce. Add to pan with sauce and stir to coat evenly then cook each side until the sauce is absorbed.
7. Once tofu is done, heat 3 T olive oil in large wok or frying pan. If you don't have a really big one you can also use a large pot. Add garlic and sautee for a couple min.
8. Add noodles and mix well--make sure the noodles are completely coated in the oil and the garlic is evenly distributed.
9. Mix each item in one at a time: 1 C cabbage, all of the lighter part of the green onions, 3/4 C carrot and 1/2 C cashews/peanuts. If using bean sprouts you can add a handful of them as well. Mix well.
10. Add the rest of the remaining sauce and mix well. Add a splash of beer if using and mix very thoroughly. You can add the tofu in now too if desired or leave it separate.
11. Serve with the remaining ingredients for garnish. I put the noodle mix on the plate then a couple of handfuls of cabbage, followed by a handful of carrot, a handful of bean sprouts (if using), some green onions and then the cashews/peanuts. Serve with sliced limes on the side.
12. If using meat, you can set aside some sauce to cook it in but it's not necessary--it should still be flavourful. Just need to make sure it's cooked!