Tofu & Soba Stir-fry with Live Miso

This was a quick meal I whipped up one evening after work with whatever I could find in my kitchen. I find stir-fries to be a healthy yet very satisfying meal as you can bulk them up with all sorts of colourful vegetables (rather than just noodles or rice) to make it nutrient-rich.

Poor auld tofu gets a bad rep for being a tasteless food that vegans eat because they have no other choice. I think that when you add strong flavours (ginger, garlic, sesame, seeweed) it tastes fantastic. To me it’s very much comparable to the way people cook meat, they marinade it, they add sauces and flavours to make it less plain. When buying tofu, I tend to go for firm tofu rather than the soft equivalents as I prefer the texture and find it tastes better.

I’ve included sesame oil in the recipe. I remember the first time I saw sesame oil mentioned in a recipe I thought it was an obscure ingredient that I’d buy for a specific recipe and then never use again. It isn’t! It tastes great and you can add it to Japanese-style food, or Middle-Eastern/Greek-style food as well, where sesame seems like a good fit. Sesame oil is inexpensive, and especially when purchased in an Asian supermarket. It produces an incredible aroma when added to food. It’s not an oil that’s used for frying or cooking with however. I find it useful for flavouring a dish once cooked, or for salad dressings.