Negimiso Yaki Tofu (Grilled Tofu)

Tofu side dishes are added to Japanese meals to increase the protein content of the meal. This is a simple dish where tofu is sliced and grilled. Miso paste is applied to one side of the tofu to provide a strong flavor. This dish is typically served with Japanese rice.

I do not use tofu much in my kitchen. It is usually used as part of my trials with dishes from new cuisines. I also use it when I try to convert east Asian recipes to vegetarian ones. This is one of the free stand alone dishes I made with tofu. I picked up a tub of miso paste from the local Japanese store. The amount of choices were astounding. It took me 10 minutes to decided which tub would be best suited to our taste.

Recipe adapted from here
You will need
3.5 oz. firm Japanese tofu
4-5 tbsp. negimiso paste
2 tbsp. olive oil

For the negimiso paste
2 tbsp. green onion
1 tbsp. olive oil
1/4 cup smooth miso paste
1/4 cup dashi
1 tsp. sugar
1 tsp. soy sauce

Place the tofu under some weight to extract all the liquid from it. 

Meanwhile prepare the negimiso. Chop the green onion (not the green leafy part). Heat oil in a pan and add the chopped onion. Saute for a few minutes until the onion is translucent. Combine all the other ingredients and add them to the onions.

Keep cooking until the paste is the desired consistency.

Slice the tofu into 1/2 inch slices. Heat oil in a pan and place the tofu slices.

Brown both sides. Apply a little of the miso paste to one side of the slices. Flip them over to brown the paste.

Take off heat.

Negimiso yaki tofu is ready.