Sticky Orange Tofu Thins with Peppers and Cilantro Rice

While I enjoy tofu, I tend to fall into a rut when preparing it at home. So, I was very excited to see a recipe for sticky orange tofu thins from Sala at Veggie Belly last week. I'd never had tofu with orange sauce, and I liked that the recipe uses thin slices of tofu, rather than thick chunks.

The recipe begins by pressing the tofu to drain as much liquid from it as possible. (The recipe calls for the tofu to be pressed for at least two hours; I think that, during the week, this could easily be set up before leaving for work, so that the tofu drains during the day.) The drained tofu is thinly sliced, lightly fried, then doused in a spicy orange sauce made with marmalade. Sala used a homemade orange, ginger and green tea marmalade in her orange sauce; I used a store-bought marmalade and it worked just fine.

After tossing the tofu in the orange sauce, I threw in chopped green and orange peppers and cooked the entire mixture over low heat until the peppers were soft.

I served the tofu and peppers with cilantro rice, which was a perfect compliment to the orange sauce. The cilantro rice is so easy to make that it's more of a serving suggestion than a recipe: Rinse 1 and 1/2 cups of jasmine rice in repeat baths of cold water until the water is no longer cloudy. In a saucepan, combine the rice with 1 and 3/4 cups water, 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1 teaspoon peanut oil (optional). Bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, covered, 20 minutes (or until the rice is done). Toss the cooked rice with 3/4 cup washed, chopped cilantro and serve.