Tofu & Summer Squash Stir Fry

I don't usually turn to tofu for my vegetarian meals. I typically lean towards veggie-heavy or beans & legumes heavy dishes when I'm trying to do vegetarian. But I should expand my tofu repertoire since there are lots of delicious tofu recipes.

With summer squash abundant right now, this is a good stir fry to utilize it in. I generally tend to love Asian flavors of ginger-garlic, lime, coconut and basil and this stir fry has them all. The stir fry comes together pretty quickly and makes a decent amount of food. I was done in under an hour, including the time it took to cook the rice noodles. I'll be using this stir fry recipe as a base for other tofu-summer vegetable combinations in future (maybe red bell peppers or eggplants). Will update the blog if I end up trying variations on it :)

Recipe adapted from Dinner: Changing the Game

Makes 3 servings

Ingredients:

1 tbsp grated fresh ginger
3 tbsp soy sauce
14 oz block firm tofu, drained and cut into 1" cubes
3 tbsp sesame oil, divided use
4 fat garlic cloves, sliced thin
1 sweet onion, sliced
3 medium yellow summer squash, halved and cut into thin moons
1/2 tsp heaping sea salt
1 cup Thai basil leaves (can easily use sweet basil instead)
Juice from 1 1/2 limes plus lime wedges for garnish
2 serranos, sliced thinly
3-6 tbsp toasted coconut chips
2 oz rice noodles, cooked accordion got package directions and tossed with a smidge of sesame oil (can also serve the stir fry over steamed rice)

Procedure:
Mix ginger and soy sauce in a wide shallow bowl and tofu cubes and toss gently to coat and set said while you prep the rest of the ingredients. Heat 1 tbsp of sesame oil on medium high in a non stick and wide frying pan and fry tofu cubes (leaving behind the marinade, but not discarding it). Layer the tofu in a single layer and don't move them around too much until a nice brown crust has formed underneath. Do the same after tossing the tofu cubes so the undersides are exposed to the heat as well. Take out the tofu to a serving bowl and set aside. In the same pan, add 2 tbsp sesame oil and fry garlic slices till they just start to change color. Immediately, add the onion slices and cook till they get a nice brown color on the edges. Toss in the squash and lay them out flat and leave to cook undisturbed for 2 minutes. Toss and do the same for another two minutes. Check to see if the squash done-ness is to your liking. If done, add sea salt, basil leaves, lime juice and serranos and the leftover marinade from the tofu. Toss very briefly and pour it into the serving bowl with tofu in it. Add rice noodles and toss thoroughly. Divide among bowls and sprinkle with coconut chips. Serve with extra lime wedges on side and enjoy!