Recipes

,

Recipe: Tea-Brined Tofu

,

by Dev, CN Asst Dir of Customer Experience & Tea Connoisseur

It’s hard for me to speak highly enough of tofu! It’s one of China’s many, many amazing gifts to the general world’s culinary heritage. It’s also one of the health food world’s most versatile and foundational protein-packed heroes. I’m always interested in new ways of serving an old fave, and I recently decided to experiment more with tea brining. 

(Also, did you know that tofu is one of the most sustainable proteins in terms of its emissions and land area use from production? It’s a hero in more ways than one!) 

Tea brining is about as old as tea itself, so there are a million different ways to utilize it in the kitchen. Your choice of tea, length and method of brining, and addition of complementary herbs, spices, and sauces can radically change the texture and flavor profile of everyone’s favorite little soy cubes. The options are truly endless.

I chose two of my favorites from our bulk tea section to brine with: complex, smoky Lapsang Souchong, and creamy, nutty Golden Buds Milk Oolong: Jin Xuan. I decided to keep things simple and use a plain tea base for my own… but tamari sauce, peppercorns, clove buds, cinnamon, and garlic are popular brining additions, particularly for Lapsang Souchong steeps. 

Ingredients from our shelves: 

  1. Start using a firm tofu, like Heiwa's. Press tofu in a tofu press if you have one, or manually. For easy manual pressing, wrap your tofu block in a few layers of paper towel, place on a cutting board, and gently apply pressure with a heavy object (like a second cutting board) until excess fluid has drained and your tofu is suitably dense. 

  2. Slice tofu into cubes. 

  3. Time to set up teas! I used two 16 oz mugs and added a tablespoon of each tea in their separate jars, in tea bags, with boiling water to let them steep. 

  4. On the stovetop, fry tofu cubes in your choice of oil over medium heat until the edges are golden brown. Frying times may vary based on oil and heat; just go for the gold!

  5. Once fried, remove tofu from oil and pat dry with paper towels. Let cool.

  6. Place fried tofu cubes directly into tea mugs to steep. Steep hot / at room temperature for an hour or two. (I left the tea bags inside and did not remove them for the duration of steeping, including in the fridge.) 

  7. Once temperatures have dropped a bit, refrigerate, and continue to let cubes steep for 1-2 days. (At this point I had transferred everything to mason jars for better storage.) 

  8. After a few days have passed, rescue your cubes from their tea and enjoy! 

These tasty, special little cubes can be given as gifts, used in stir-fries and soups, or just enjoyed as unique appetizers! I was extremely impressed with the delicate yet noticeable flavor transfer of both the Oolong and Lapsang Souchong; the Golden Buds tofu retained a somewhat sweet, milky flavor profile that I’ve long enjoyed in the tea itself. The Lapsang Souchong tofu was pleasantly smoky and mildly pungent, yet not overpowering. 

Happy brines ahead! 

,

Roasted Squash Linguine with Sautéed Leeks and Feta

,

By Dev, CN Manager

Squash is a fall favorite for many of us! Myself included. It’s versatile enough to be used in many delicious recipes like soups, roasts, spiced cakes, and more….. The ‘more’ here, of course, is referring to the pasta that happens to be the subject of this blog post. 

Note: I used three different types of squash because they were what I had on hand, and they also were slowly taking over my kitchen counter! But even one type would be sufficient. Same instructions would apply even if pre-cubed butternut squash is what you have readily available. 

Ingredients from the outside world:

  • 1-2 Whole Butternut Squash

  • 1 Whole Acorn Squash

  • 1 Whole Delicata Squash

  • 1 Fresh Leek

Ingredients from our shelves: 

Preparation: 

  • Preheat your oven to 425 degrees F. 

  • Slice squash lengthwise into halves or quarters. Remove seeds with a spoon. 

  • Rinse and finely slice leeks. 

  • Using a mixture of olive oil with a pinch of salt and Chinese Five Spice added, lightly glaze your sliced squash until the meat of the squash is evenly oiled. 

  • Place open-faced squash onto a baking sheet or other oven safe pan, and roast for roughly 20-25 minutes. Cooking times may vary based on oven heat, but the squash is ready when it’s lightly browned and can be easily pierced with a fork. While the squash is roasting, time to work on our sauce and pasta!

  • For the pasta, start boiling a medium-sized pot of salted water. Once boiling, add in the dried linguine and cook for roughly 8-10 minutes, until soft. 

  • For the sauce, start by heating a spoonful of olive oil in a pre-warmed skillet over medium heat, and introduce the leeks with a pinch of garlic powder. Sauté until the leeks are lightly brown around the edges (around 6-7 minutes). 

  • The squash should be fully roasted at around this point. Once it’s been removed from the oven, let cool for a few minutes and gently scoop out the cooked squash meat. Add the squash meat directly to your pan of sliced leeks.

  • Add a splash of broth to your skillet–around ½ cup.

  • Pour in about 3/4ths of a cup of butternut squash puree and stir until the roasted squash, leeks, broth, and puree are warm and evenly mixed. As your sauce thickens, you can add more broth as needed to maintain its consistency.

  • Once the linguine has finished cooking, drain and introduce it straight into the skillet. Mix until the linguine is fully coated in your sauce. 

  • Almost done! At this point you can start adding the final ingredients–a dash of rainbow pepper and feta cheese. Mix well over low-to-medium heat until everything is deliciously creamy, and get ready to serve! 

Lavender Bunny Balm: for your bunnies and other pets too!

Try as we might to protect them from the slings and arrows of the world, our beloved pets do occasionally find themselves in sticky situations that result in minor scrapes, cuts, or bruises. I recently decided to try my hand at a pet-safe balm that would be effective at healing minor injuries yet gentle enough for use on my bunny’s delicate skin. However, this combination can be useful for a range of other pets, as well! 

Like many topics in the world of herbalism and natural goods, there are differences in opinion and spirited debates over what traditionally defines a ‘balm’ or a ‘salve’. A common answer is that a balm has a ratio closer to 1:1 between infused oils and beeswax, whereas a salve has less wax and is slightly more oil-heavy. Balms are typically harder and useful for protective coatings on skin, whereas salves are useful for being spread more efficiently over larger areas of skin. 

Supplies:

  • Your choice of oil (I used coconut, but jojoba and olive would be great choices as well)

(Why lavender, and why yarrow? Both have useful healing properties! Lavender is gentle on skin, pleasant smelling, and has antimicrobial / antibacterial properties. Yarrow has traditionally been used within herbalism to aid in arresting bleeding and reducing swelling. Both provide useful support for minor scrapes, cuts, bruises, and itchy bug bites.) 

Step 1: Fill your infusion jar about halfway full with a 1:1 ratio of yarrow and lavender flowers. Cover with your oil of choice….and it’s time to play the waiting game! I infused my oil over 5 weeks in a sunny windowsill. You’ll want to shake or mix the contents every now and then during this process. 

Step 2: Once your oil has been sufficiently infused, it’s time to strain it and free it of its dried herbs. Use cheesecloth or muslin fabric over a metal strainer to strain your oil directly into your small pot or glass bowl. At this time you can also place a metal spoon in your freezer. 

Step 3: Unless you’re fortunate enough to have one already, create a double boiler on your stovetop range. Place the bowl or smaller pot containing your oil directly inside of a larger pot that has a few inches of water in it. Make sure the water isn’t touching the bottom of the smaller pot or bowl; the idea is to seamlessly melt the beeswax and oil together over simmering water. 

Step 4: Once the water in the larger part has reached a simmer, and the infused oil pot / bowl is starting to heat up, you can begin to mix in beeswax pastilles. There is no set amount of beeswax to add because the amount all depends on the consistency you want your final balm (or salve) to be. If you want a harder balm, which I made, add more beeswax in a 1:1 ratio. If you want a buttery salve, add less. 

One easy way to test the hardness of your balm and/or salve is by dipping a small amount onto the spoon in your freezer. After a few minutes have passed, you can take the spoon out and test the hardness.

Step 5: Once your balm is of its desired hardness level, you’re done! Pretty easy, right? Now you can just add your balm directly into your tins for storage and future use. If you’d like a stronger scented balm (for example, if you’re making this for humans and not pets,) you can also add a few drops of essential oil during the ‘cooking’ process.

You’re done! And ready to face the world with your little friend.