Barbecue tofu

Barbecue sauce is thick, sweet and heavy, and on a fresh block of tofu it sits on the outside doing nothing. This is the recipe where freezing stops being an optional upgrade and becomes the point.

A frozen and thawed block has open channels running through it. Squeeze it dry, tear it into ragged pieces, and the sauce goes into the tofu rather than sitting on it. The finished texture is chewy and slightly stringy in a way that surprises people, and the flavor goes all the way through.

It costs one night of notice and nothing else. The freezing guide explains what happens inside the block.

Ingredients

• 1 block (14 to 16 oz) extra-firm tofu, frozen solid then thawed and squeezed dry
• 1 tablespoon neutral oil
• Half a teaspoon of fine salt
• Half a teaspoon of smoked paprika
• Half a teaspoon of garlic powder
• 3/4 cup barbecue sauce, divided
• 1 teaspoon cider vinegar
• Pickles and slaw, to serve

Use a barbecue sauce you actually like on its own, since it is providing nearly all the flavor. A thick sauce lacquers better than a thin one. If yours is thin, reduce a cup of it in a small pan for five minutes before starting.

Method

1. Thaw and squeeze. Overnight in the refrigerator is best. Then hold the block over the sink in both hands and press firmly. A surprising amount of water comes out. Keep going until it stops running freely. This step is not optional and it is the one people skip.
2. Tear. Pull it into irregular bite-sized pieces rather than cutting cubes. The ragged edges hold sauce and crisp far better than clean faces.
3. Season and roast. Toss with the oil, salt, smoked paprika and garlic powder. Spread on an oiled sheet pan with space between pieces and roast at 425F for twenty minutes, turning once.
4. First coat. Toss or brush with half the barbecue sauce and return to the oven for eight minutes, until it darkens and tightens against the tofu.
5. Second coat. The remaining sauce and the cider vinegar, then a final five to seven minutes until sticky at the edges.
6. Rest and serve. Three minutes on the pan, then plates with pickles and slaw, or piled into a bun.

Two thin coats rather than one thick one. A single heavy application steams under itself and never lacquers, which is the same principle that governs barbecue generally.

On a grill

Frozen and thawed tofu is sturdy enough to grill directly, which fresh tofu is not. Cut it into half inch slabs instead of tearing, oil them well, and grill over medium for four to five minutes a side before saucing.

Sauce only in the last two minutes and only once the tofu already has grill marks. Barbecue sauce contains enough sugar to burn quickly over direct flame.

A grill basket makes this far less stressful than laying pieces on the bars.

Where it goes wrong

It was wet and the sauce slid off. The thawed block was not squeezed hard enough. It should feel like a wrung-out sponge before it goes anywhere near the oven.

The sauce burned. Too hot for too long after the first coat. Drop to 400F if your oven runs hot, and watch the last five minutes.

The texture was spongy in a bad way. That is what freezing does, and it is not for everyone. Try it once and if you dislike it, this recipe works acceptably with fresh pressed tofu and simply tastes less of the sauce.

It was cloying. More vinegar. Barbecue sauce carries a great deal of sugar and the acid is what keeps the plate from being flat.

Serving and keeping

A bun with slaw and pickles is the obvious route and the best one. It also works over rice, in a baked potato, on nachos, or cold from the container in a sandwich the next day.

This is one of the few recipes here that keeps genuinely well, because there is no crust to lose. Four days refrigerated, reheated in a 375F oven for eight minutes or in a pan with a splash of water.