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Sweet and Sour Pineapple Tofu

Talk about a showstopper, it's something that has to be as spectacular to look at as it tastes like. And this sweet and sour pineapple tofu is definitely both! The tofu cubes are fried till golden and crispy on all sides, generously goated in a sticky, sweet and sour sauce, mixed with juicy pineapple cubes, crunchy sweet pepper, and served on fluffy brown rice in a pineapple!

This dish was totally born out of nostalgia. One night before falling asleep I was thinking about the yummy foods I miss, yes I do that a lot lol. And one thing in particular jumped in my mind, sweet and sour pineapple shrimp! That was one of my absolute favorites before I went vegan and I was describing in all the details about how freakin good it was to my boyfriend, who was vegan long before me. Then he said, well why don't you recreate it with tofu?

Well, why not? Because as you can, it totally worked! Tofu's mild taste and tender texture pair so well in this classic fruity dish. And the halved pineapple naturally makes a fabulous container. This is now my most beloved vegan Chinese dish. I can definitely see this being a crowd-pleaser at a family meal, a birthday celebration, or a holiday feast since the presentation is really fun and festive!


INGREDIENTS:

1 Pineapple

1 block Extra-Firm Tofu

1/2 cup Arrowroot Powder or Corn Starch

1 Sweet Bell Pepper

1 Scallion, thinly sliced

For the sauce -

1 cup Vegetable Broth

1/3 cup Pineapple Juice

2 tablespoon Soy/Tamari Sauce

2 tablespoon Coconut Amino

1 tablespoon Arrowroot Powder or Corn Starch

1 teaspoon Paprika

1/2 teaspoon ginger powder

1 garlic clove, minced


TO MAKE:

- Halve the pineapple, score the pulp into 1/2 inch cubes, carefully scoop out the cubes, save the juice and reserve the pineapple shells if you want to serve the dish in them;

- Drain and pat dry the tofu, wrap the block in kitchen towels and gently squeeze out the water, cut the tofu into 1/2 in cubes;

- Toss the tofu cubes in the arrowroot powder, heat a drizzle of oil in a non-stick pan, pan fry over medium heat till all sizes are golden crispy, each side for about 2 minutes, transfer to a plate and set aside;

- Wash and rid the seeds inside the sweet pepper, cut the pepper into small squares;

- Thinly slice the scallion, save the green parts for sprinkling;

- In a large pan, heat a drizzle of oil over medium-high heat, add the white parts of scallion, sauté till fragrant, add the sweet peppers and cook for about 2 minutes;

- Add the pineapple cubes and stir to combine, cook till the pineapple soften;

- Meanwhile in a small bowl, whisk all the sauce ingredients together, then pour the sauce into the pan;

- Stir and heat the sauce till it bubbles, add the fried tofu, stir to coat the tofu with the sauce, cook till the sauce is thickened and sticky;

- Serve over your grains of choice, sprinkle on the sliced green part of the scallion and some sesame seeds.


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