Spicy Tofu Biltong

Friday night for me is usually means being slouched in front of the TV with a big bowl of spicy popcorn on my lap. But today, for my evening nibbles and I do like my nibbles I decided to have some spicy tofu biltong. I saw versions of these being sold for a small profit at the Incredible Veggie show, I then remembered I had seen a recipe for biltong in one of Celia Brooks Brown book Low Carb Vegetarian, so I decided to make these last night for tonight as they needed to be cooked at low temperature.

'Biltong' or 'beef jerky' is traditionally made with meat that has been dried and then cut into think slices as a snack. Well my dear readers please note this has no animal products, these are both vegetarian and vegan friendly.

I really liked them, they are quite moist, chewy and succulent, but D the demi-veg, well shall we just say he was not exactly keen on them, that’s okay with me, more for my Veggie belly. Unfortunately though, I can’t eat them all in one sitting, too flavoursome and too much even for a greedy person like me, so I will be taking them over the allotment tomorrow for snacking. In future, I can also see myself chopping the biltong down and adding it to other dishes to enhance texture and flavour, maybe a quiche or a frittata.

Celia has kindly permitted me to share the recipe with you, so that you can enjoy these toothsome bites at your leisure.

Spicy tofu biltong
200g smoked or plain tofu
2 tablespoon dark soy sauce
2 tablespoons of dry sherry
1 teaspoon of rice vinegar
Generous pinch of cayenne pepper
1 tablespoon of sunflower oil
MethodPreheat the oven to gas mark ½/120oC/250oF. Pat the tofu dry with kitchen towel, then slice very thinly into about 14 strips, about 2.5cm/1 inch wide, 7.5cm/3 inches long and roughly 3mm/ 1/8inch long.

Line a baking sheet with non stick baking parchment. Thoroughly whisk all the remaining ingredients together in a shallow dish. Dip each piece of tofu in the mixture, then lay on the baking sheet. Spoon any remaining mixture carefully over the tofu strips.

Place in the oven and cook for about 60 – 80 minutes, until the tofu is crisp around the edges, but still pliable. Leave to cool. The strips can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.

So what did D nibble on?

Crowdie cheese and oat biscuits from last Sundays food producers market.