Tearing Up Your Tofu Is The Key To Maximum Crispiness

Tofu is the blank canvas of the culinary world; the final product is completely dependent on how you go about painting it. With its simple, mild qualities, tofu makes a versatile base ingredient and a welcome addition to any type of recipe. 

Although tofu has been a staple in East Asian cuisine for more than 2,000 years, these unassuming soybean blocks have exploded in popularity in other cuisines over the course of the 21st century, and understandably so. Aside from its ability to absorb complex flavors, tofu is naturally high in protein, making it a go-to for the growing global community of vegans and vegetarians.

When cooking with tofu, texture is just as variable as flavor, so every part of the preparation process matters. Crispiness, for example, is a highly sought-after quality in tofu dishes. But bringing about that perfectly burnt, brittle bite can be a puzzling pursuit. However, one simple hack could achieve that elusive crispiness.

According to Epicurious, the key to achieving that crispy tofu taste is to tear up the tofu into "rough, craggy pieces" before cooking. Tearing it up creates rougher edges around each chunk, which expose more of the tofu's surface area to the cooking heat. The outlet recommends keeping the pieces on the smaller side, too, about 1 to 2 bites in size.

Of course, tearing your tofu up by hand only does the trick when it's done in conjunction with other important cooking measures. 

Bon Appétit adds that reducing as much moisture as possible is another key component of achieving that crispy tofu bite. This can be done by pressing the block of tofu to squeeze out excess liquid and coating it the chunks with a starch (e.g., corn, arrowroot, tapioca) to draw out even more liquid and create a distinct crunchy coating. 

Tearing up tofu does more than help attain the ultimate crispiness. More surface area in each piece also means more exposure to (and more absorption of) the flavors. Epicurious pushes for the tear-and-cook method by explaining that "those rough edges do a better job at trapping the oil and spice than smooth cubes might, which allows the spices to really soak in and penetrate the nuggets of tofu through to the center." 

What exactly those flavors are is, of course, up to the cook. But by ditching the dicing, the flavors in recipes such as tofu stir-fry are sure to shine.

So put the knife down, and prepare to get busy with those hands. The jagged chunks won't look as clean and slick as they would in cubic form, but they'll lead to a crispier texture and bolder flavors that are guaranteed to perk up the palate.