Recipe: Korean fried tofu

I am constantly looking for vegetarian meal ideas and it makes me so happy when I find one that is a) not too time-intensive and b) positively delicious. The sauce used in this recipe is so divine, I would happily eat it by the spoonful. The recipe below is just for the tofu, which I tend to serve with flatbreads and salad for a wholesome meal.

Collect (for the tofu)

• 700 g firm tofu
• 2 T rice wine
• 2 t minced ginger
• 1 t salt
• 1/2 t black pepper
• 1 c corn flour
• Oil for frying the tofu

Collect (for the sauce)

• 3 T tomato sauce
• 2 T gochujang (Korean chilli paste)
• 1/4 c honey
• 1/4 c brown sugar
• 2 T soy sauce
• 2 T minced garlic
• 1 T sesame oil
• garnish with sesame seeds and sliced spring onion

Create

1.  In a bowl, mix the tofu, rice wine, ginger, salt and black pepper. Evenly coat the tofu with the corn flour and set side.
2. In a deep pot, add a generous amount of oil and heat until the oil is 175°C. Start adding the battered tofu carefully and fry them for approximately 5 minutes. Do not overcrowd the pan.
3. Put the cooked tofu on a paper towel to soak up excess oil. Cook the tofu in batches rather than overcrowding the pan.
4. Separately, add in the  sauce ingredients. Heat the sauce over low medium heat and stir well. Once it starts bubbling, remove the pan from the heat.
5. Place the tofu into a large mixing bowl then pour the sauce over to coat. Mix them lightly and thoroughly and add the garnish.