Atsuage is deep fried Tofu that you can use without any breaking or using batter. Atsuage is an important ingredient in Japanese cooking, especially in Nimono (boiled and seasoned vegetables and meat). Because it is made of Tofu, it is healthy plant-based protein, but it has a little more body and deeper flavor from being fried in oil.
Atsuage is best eaten hot and fresh “as is,” with simply Soy Sauce and grated ginger, like in this recipe. The crunchy and nutty outside definitely makes you hungry. When you use Atsuage as an ingredient for some dishes, its rough surface also works to absorb or grab seasoned broths and sauces. It has no meat and so it can be a great ingredient for vegetarian diets too.
It is important to prep Tofu to remove excess moisture before frying so that the Tofu doesn’t splatter oil. It takes hours to do so, but it can be microwaved for a couple of minutes to shorten the process. The kind of tofu to use can be soft (Kinugoshi) or semi-hard (Momen), depending on your preference for the texture.
Even though you can buy Atsuage at any supermarket in Japan, it may not be so easily available outside Japan. Luckily, it is easy enough to make right in your kitchen. Try this, and you will enjoy fresh Atsuage at home.
Atsuage Recipe
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Ingredients
- 1 block Tofu medium firm or Momen
- deep-frying oil
- 1 green onion chopped
- ginger grated
- Soy Sauce
Instructions
- Wrap Tofu with a paper towel and place on to a plate. Microwave for 3 minutes. Carefully remove wet paper towel, and wrap Tofu with a new paper towel. Put weight on wrapped Tofu to remove water further. Leave it for a couple of hours, changing paper towels a few times.
- Heat oil at medium heat to 350 F (180 C). Cut Tofu in half. Deep fry Tofu until golden brown, turning once or twice.
- Cut into bite size pieces if you want. Top with chopped green onion and grated ginger, and drizzle Soy Sauce. Serve hot.
Video
Bret Truchan
November 24, 2018 at 11:11 amQuick question! How would the recipe change if you don’t own a microwave, like myself?
JapaneseCooking101
November 25, 2018 at 5:08 pmMicrowave will help shorten the time to remove moisture from tofu, but you don’t need to use it if you don’t have one. If the tofu still has a lot of moisture after 2 hours, put weight on tofu a bit longer. Hope this helps.