The Flavorful Way Katie Lee Biegel Cooks Tofu Perfectly Every Time

Protein is at the center of most concerns over vegetarian and vegan diets. Out of the 20 natural amino acids that can produce protein, human bodies require nine essential ones, which can only be found in certain foods (via Healthline). While meat is a good source of all nine amino acids, plant-based sources fall short of at least one of the nine, meaning, most plant-based foods are incomplete sources of protein. Soybean, however, is an exception, which makes its by-products like tofu invaluable sources of complete proteins for plant-based diets.

Although the health benefits of tofu are many, the plant-based protein rarely inspires excitement in the kitchen. Bland is a word most often used to describe tofu, mainly because the soy protein has no flavor of its own. Cooking tofu also requires some getting used to since its notoriously rubbery texture only changes for the better when cooked properly (via One Green Planet).

When handled well, however, tofu is an easy-to-cook and versatile protein that's not just healthy, but can also absorb pretty much any flavor that you soak it in. As it turns out, "The Kitchen's" co-host Katie Lee Biegel has just the method for cooking tofu to share with her fans and it's anything but bland.

Biegel recently shared a video on Instagram that showed fans her preferred way to cook quick, easy, and flavourful tofu. Her trick? Drying extra-firm tofu, marinating the slices for anywhere from 30 minutes to an hour, and giving them a quick sear. The pan-fried tofu can then be refrigerated and added to any meal throughout the week. Though Biegel prefers Soy Vay's marinades, the chef leaves it up to you to use any homemade or store-bought option. Additionally, she tells fans not to worry about the amount of liquid that surrounds the tofu when you fry it as most of it is the water oozing out from the protein.

Fellow author Kathy Freston was the first to chime in on Biegel's tofu-cooking video, confessing that she, too, cooked her protein the same way. Biegel's fans were also impressed with the pan-fried tofu's firm texture and found that her method was straightforward enough for tofu novices to give it a try. When testing 10 different ways to cook tofu, The Kitchn also found that pan-frying it in a simple layer of cornstarch was the best way to cook the protein in terms of time, simplicity, and texture.

Regardless, some found that while Biegel's recipe was simple and clever, they'd much rather prefer swapping the pan frying for an air fryer. If you happen to think so too, we have an excellent 30-minute air fryer tofu recipe for you to try!