Meatless Mondays! Spicy Tofu Hotpot

Spicy Tofu Hotpot has been a menu staple in our house for years. It's good the first day and better the second day and we have it every few weeks. We have been planning a weekly menu for years so that we only go shopping once week. Part of that was out of necessity because we had to drive 30 minutes for a decent grocery store and part of it was to save money. Now we live close to a variety of stores but we still try to maintain the once a week shopping and of course still make our menus each week. There are a few dishes that are in the rotation and this is one of them.

Hotpot is quick, easy, and relatively cheap to throw together. The great thing is that of course you can change anything want in it, like using shrimp instead of tofu (or chicken or pork). We just use white button mushrooms but you could also use shitake or another fun type. We also just use ramen noodles and throw away the packet but you could use actual lo mein noodles or even soba noodles probably. Another change is we add way more chile-garlic sauce than 2 teaspoons because we like it hot :) It's so good even my three year old likes it, which surprised me as well!

 

Spicy Tofu Hotpot
Serves 4-6

Ingredients:
- 14 ounces firm tofu, preferably water-packed
- 2 teaspoons canola oil
- 2 tablespoons grated fresh ginger
- 6 cloves garlic, minced
- 4 ounces fresh mushrooms, stemmed and sliced (about 2 cups)
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
- 4 cups vegetable broth
- 2-4 tablespoons reduced-sodium soy sauce
- 2 teaspoons chile-garlic sauce, or to taste
- 4 cups thinly sliced tender bok choy greens
- 8 ounces fresh Chinese-style (lo mein) noodles
- ¼ - ½ cup chopped fresh cilantro

Directions:

1. Drain and rinse tofu; pat dry. Cut the block into 1-inch cubes.
2. Heat oil in a Dutch oven over medium heat. Add ginger and garlic; cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add mushrooms and cook until slightly soft, 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in sugar, broth, soy sauce and chile-garlic sauce; cover and bring to a boil. Add bok choy and tofu, cover and simmer until greens are wilted, about 2 minutes. Raise heat to high and add the noodles, pushing them down into the broth. Cook, covered, until the noodles are tender, 2 to 3 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in cilantro.

Printable recipe

Recipe adapted from Eating Well Magazine