This Can't Be Tofu!: 75 Recipes to Cook Something You Never Thought You Would--and Love Every Bite

by Deborah Madison

One taste and you'll say, "This can't be tofu!" But it is....

Nutritionists, doctors, and food authorities everywhere are telling us to eat more tofu. It's an excellent source of high-quality protein and calcium. It contains no cholesterol and is very low in calories and saturated fat. So why don't we eat more tofu? Because for too long tofu has been used as a substitute for other ingredients. Why turn tofu into a beef substitute in a burger, or pass it off as "cheese" in lasagna, when it is delicious on its own?

Now, in This Can't Be Tofu! , award-winning and bestselling author of Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone Deborah Madison shows how to make tofu taste great and be the star attraction in 75 stir-fries, sautés, and other dishes. Pan-Seared Tofu with Garlic, Ginger, and Chives, Vietnamese Spring Rolls, Curried Tofu Triangles with Peas, and Pineapple and Tofu Fried Rice are just some of the innovative recipes in this inspired collection.

Genres: Cookbooks, Cooking, Food, Nonfiction, Reference, Vegan, Vegetarian

132 pages, Paperback

First published April 18, 2000

About the author

Deborah Madison is an American chef, writer and cooking teacher. She has been called an expert on vegetarian cooking and her gourmet repertoire showcases fresh garden produce. Her work also highlights Slow Food, local foods and farmers' markets.

Reviews

[Lindsay Nixon · Rating 1 out of 5]

I was so excited to find this in brand new condition in my neighborhoods free mini library...

...and now I know why it was there and unused-looking.

If you are a vegan, don’t waste your time. Most of the recipes use eggs or cheese, and others include fish or chicken. Normally I use tofu to replace these things but here, more tofu doesn’t work unless want tofu with a side of tofu with tofu sauce. 😑 there’s also mushrooms in most recipes which I’m sure helps with flavor but my family doesn’t do fungus (it irritates our stomachs).

That said, there were still some all-vegan recipes and since tofu is the only “protein” my husband eats, I got busy.

The “curried” tofu salad is delicious, though it highlights a key problem I had with this book: so sooooo many obscure (and expensive) ingredients.

I had to visit a few stores before I could find mango chutney and it was $6.99. I live in a somewhat bougie/progressive town (100k people) for reference. Other examples include tamarind paste, sorrel, lemongrass, and mushroom soy sauce.

I am not opposed to investing in more pantry things but it’s disheartening when they aren’t used in any more recipes. (Since the curry salad only uses 1 tbsp 🤦🏻‍♀️ I’m going to have to google for more ways to use it up.

A few recipes also call on equipment I can’t imagine most people own, like a smoker.

If this wasn’t such a slim volume of recipes I might not be as disappointed...

The other recipe we made was terrible. The “sausage” was completely inedible. I was skeptical when it called for blending a bay leaf into powder and using 1/3 cup vinegar in a “tofu scramble” but decided to trust the chef.

Even with tons of milk and nutritional yeast added we couldn’t save it. And I like and drink apple cider vinegar!

We flipped through the book a few more times and couldn’t find anything that sounded good or appealing so I wrote down the curried tofu recipe, which I already had modified (omit parsley 🤮 and use our tofu mayo instead of oil-egg-mayo) and returned the book to a different library stand.

[Kathrynn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bought this because it has a lot of basic information on selecting, handling and cooking tofu. A neat little cookbook filled with tips on how to cook tofu, sauces, seasonings, noodles, oil to use, fry, grill, bake, blend (smoothie). Neat book, but I wish it had a few pictures.

Tried a few of the recipes and enjoyed them! Cooking and preparation were minimal and taste was excellent.

[Nikii · Rating 3 out of 5]

A lot of the recipes in this book sound intriguing, but since there are ZERO photos, it's really hard to work up an appetite for any of them. I'm just hoping the great folks at Recipezaar.com have made the ones I'm most interested in and posted photos with their reviews...

[Jim]

seems like a good book but a little overkill for me given I have books with 5 pages of Tofu recipes (which is enough)

Not in the book but a good recipe:
http://blogs.menshealth.com/guy-gourm...

[Debi Cates]

Recipes I've tried so far...and yes, pictures would have been helpful.

PEPPERED TOFU CRISPS (vegan)
Although I accidentally didn't follow the recipe (I omitted the rice wine/sherry and wondered how cornstarch was going to stick properly), it still came out remarkably good for such a simple recipe. Of course, just about anything is yummy when deep fried, am I right?

OREGANO CRUSTED TOFU (vegetarian)
This time it wasn't me. It was the recipe. How to get pesto and parmesan to stick to top and bottom sides of tofu planks in order to pan fry them? I don't know. It was a mess trying to get both to adhere, and then during the fry, the "crust" flaked off. The flavor though was good -- oregano pesto was perfect! -- and so a recipe worth trying again. Next time, I'll make a wet dip and coat with the parm/bread crumbs. Fry and then serve the planks drizzled with the delicious oregano pesto. Maybe even make it vegan by just doing a bread crumb (or panko) crust.

[Cidney · Rating 1 out of 5]

Am not really sure about this 25yr old recipe book which I bought at a jumble sale a month or so before christmas. I think I was expecting a vegetarian cookbook but it seems to have pork, chicken and fish recipes, with added tofu! Then it's telling me to use barley malt syrup, peanut oil and various other things which I've never come across. Then I looked at the back of the book and realised this is an american cookbook! It does give you an overview of tofu and the silky kind and the ordinary kind, and how to pan dry it and oven dry it. Hmm am not sure if I'm going to use this book? I think I will shelve it amongst my growing cookbooks on ever increasing bookcases and take a look at it again another day. Or maybe not, and just put it in the box for the next upcoming jumble sale when I see a sign for one!

[Joel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great standard recipes.

[Cathy Meyers · Rating 3 out of 5]

3

[Mirinda Turner · Rating 5 out of 5]

Tofu;

Wonderful cookbook. I’m allergic to animal products due to a medical condition. I need ideas and recipes for tofu as it becomes a major part of my way to eating.

[penny shima glanz · Rating 2 out of 5]

I think this is a book best for those who have never tried to cook with tofu. I’ve been eating tofu this side of forever (thanks to a milk allergy as an infant) and remember when mum first bought it and I had this slice of firm-ish white stuff in the mid-80’s when it first came to our little (well, we’re not a village and part of a greater town) bit of the Island. It took a while to grow on me, but that could be because mum didn’t have this book then. I think it quite fascinating though, she was looking at it as a milk-product replacement, whereas today it’s mostly seen as a meat-product replacement. I will say this book reminded me that there is such think as non-Firm varieties and we added some to our fruit shakes today. (add a dop of honey to cancel out any sourness). Otherwise? If you have other cookbooks and are familiar with tofu I’m not sure what you’ll get out of it. But please, flip through it and decide for yourself!

[CrystalIsReading on StoryGraph · Rating 3 out of 5]

It is refreshing to read a cookbook, and have it FULL of recipes I could safely make for myself--AND enjoy. I'm not necessarily a huge tofu fan, and I'm not sure this really expands my repertoire a lot. It seems like a lot of refining on the same theme, mostly Asian. But the recipes do sound good--good enough that I intend to buy the book and work my way through most of them. Considering that there are 75 recipes, there are options, even if they are mostly Asian. And it's nice to read a Deborah Madison cookbook that isn't loaded down with dairy and eggs.

[Renee Wallace · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was new to the world of tofu, but not to cooking, when I picked up this book about a month ago; I now use tofu, and this book, every day. The best recipe in the collection, in my opinion, is the Bachelor Sandwich, but there are many others. For the reviewer who deplores the lack of "crunchy" tofu--it's there. Look again. I appreciate the author's extra suggestions and comments, too--they enhance each recipe.

[Elizabeth · Rating 3 out of 5]

I've always liked tofu, but this cookbook is full of recipes for people who don't usually like tofu. She somehow manages to do miraculous things with it that please most people willing to eat your experiments. As a general cookbook, it isn't going to get you very far. As a specialty cookbook, it does a wonderful job.

[Tuscany Bernier · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've owned this book for years and have always loved it. Everybody understands the power of tofu in a vegetarian diet but most people do not know how to make it. This explains tofu preparation in a basic way while exposing the reader to new ideas. I've always disliked that it doesn't have photos but it does have fabulous recipes.

[Kate W · Rating 4 out of 5]

The title is silly, but I can ignore that because it's a great cookbook. It's by Deborah Madison, who is always wonderful. This week I made the tofu estouffe, (which was actually called "cheese, chile, and hot pepper tofu"). It was fantastic.

[Jennifer · Rating 1 out of 5]

This was a terrible book. The author was condescending, the recipe completely unimaginative, and I am unhappy I spent money on it.

There is some good info for people who have never eaten tofu, but it is so condescending as to be nauseating to read.

Really, it should get no stars.

[Roniq · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tons of fun stuff to do with TOFU....

[Crystal · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a surprisingly good little cookbook. I've found a few great ways to prepare tofu, and every recipe has turned out really well.

[Laura · Rating 1 out of 5]

Was very disappointed by this, as I'm a big fan of "Veg cooking for everyone." Oh well, that's the way the tofu crumbles.

[Jules · Rating 5 out of 5]

Totally awesome! We love this cookbook--Madison has created some very scrumptious recipes for tofu!

[Cherie · Rating 2 out of 5]

B- I LOVE tofu but these recipes…they weren't that original. So many required tons of different ingredients or were really spicy (not my thing) but some interesting things.

[Catherine Woodman · Rating 3 out of 5]

I got this out of the library, and need to get a copy and start cooking more like this--maybe after Abe leaves home

[Tony · Rating 5 out of 5]

The smoothies are really good in this book, especially the date shake.

[Lisa Headings · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good variety of recipes in here. It's a great book for people who get stuck in the "stir fry" mode of using tofu and want to branch out and use it in other applications.

[Loraine · Rating 3 out of 5]

Excellent recipes for tofu . . . all in one place. As always, Deborah Madison's recipes are creative, tasty, and easy to follow.

[James · Rating 3 out of 5]

OK back when there were fewer easily accessible recipes.

[Joel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great standard recipes.