Coconut Curry Stew with Grilled Tofu

I'm somewhat of an obsessive cooking nerd, so whenever I stumble upon a recipe I want to make, it gets filed into an obscenely large database (yeah...I have a recipe database*) that is easily searchable.  This is super handy for me when I have no idea what I want to cook - I can just look in my fridge, type in the best looking ingredients I have on hand, and come up with 2 or 3 things I could make for dinner that night.  In addition to just searching ingredients/courses/etc, I've also marked a few of the recipes with the tag "Darrell" just in case he's looking particularly annoyed at having had soup (my favorite food) or salad for dinner for the past four nights.  These "Darrell" tagged recipes are kind of special - my man will eat almost anything, but his favorites are few and far between.  So when this one got the mark last night I felt it was basically my duty to share it with you.  

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Coconut Curry Stew with Grilled Tofu

adapted to serve more portions and be a bit spicier from this recipe, from Nat the Fat Rat

MINCED GARLIC - 3 CLOVES

2 TBSP OLIVE OIL

WHOLE CHOPPED YELLOW ONION

6 REDSKIN POTATOES, QUARTERED

4 CELERY STALKS, CHOPPED

MIXED BAG OF SNOW PEAS, BROCCOLI, AND CARROTS (ABOUT 2 CUPS, I BOUGHT MINE FROM TARGET, YOU COULD ALSO USE ONE OF THOSE FROZEN BAGS OF ASIAN VEGETABLES)

1 CUP VEGETABLE STOCK/BROTH

YELLOW CURRY - AKA THE POWDER KIND FROM THE GROCERY STORE

2 CANS LITE COCONUT MILK

1 CUP FROZEN PEAS

EXTRA FIRM TOFU

1 TBSP SESAME OIL

2 TBSP SOY SAUCE

1 TBSP RICE WINE VINEGAR

1 TBSP HOT CHILI PASTE - SRIRACHA IS FINE!

Step 1: Press your tofu.  This is important - gets the moisture out so that it will sear nicely.  Slice the tofu lengthwise (so that it's thinner) and layer the two pieces between two kitchen towels.  Stack 3-4 heavy cookbooks on top and let hang out for about 20 minutes.

Step 2: Heat 2 tbsp olive oil in a big soup pot, add garlic and onion.  Sautee until the onion is translucent.  Heat your indoor grill or grill pan to high heat/sear.

Step 3: Add all the rest of your vegetables.  Season with as much salt, pepper as you'd like and about 2 TBSP of curry.  Honestly, I'd go for three.

Step 4: Add 1 cup of vegetable stock.  Sautee veggies until potatoes are softened - they don't need to be mushy like they would for mashed potatoes, just sort of "al dente."  While this is going on...

Step 5: Season & grill your tofu with the sesame oil, soy sauce, rice vinegar, and chili sauce.  Stir it all up, and dump on the grill with the marinade.  Cook until browned on the outside.

Step 6: Add 2 cans coconut milk.  Taste for seasoning - add more salt, pepper, or curry powder as needed.  Bring to a low boil, then simmer for about 5 minutes.

Step 7: Add grilled tofu and serve!  You can serve it with brown rice, but I thought it was super filling without and my version of this made about 5 (grown up) servings.  We topped the final product with a drizzle of more sriracha.  

*PS - I LOVE my Bento database.  It is not an expensive program (about $50) and you can use it to organize WAY more than just recipes.  The recipe template is included and I wouldn't change a thing about it - you can add a picture, the number of calories per serving, the course, and like I said above every ingredient/word you add to the recipe becomes instantly searchable.  You can even search by cook time, i.e. a favorite recipe that takes less than 30 minutes.  You can read all about Bento and download it HERE.