Yudofu Simple Hot Tofu Recipe

Learn how to cook Japanese hot tofu with this delicious yudofu recipe. Served with a subtle blend of organic tamari, dashi stock and sweet mirin, yudofu is a nourishing comforting hot tofu recipe that’s quick and easy to prepare, low in calories, and packed with nutritious flavour!

Why We Love This Recipe

If it’s cold outside, or you just need a bowl of something to warm you up from the inside out, Yudofu is for you! We love preparing this popular Japanese winter-time dish for a few awesome reasons:

• It’s super simple to prepare (always yay!)
• It’s low in calories/carbohydrates (which, we won’t lie, is always a good thing for food addicted bloggers…)
• It’s full of healthy goodness! Tofu is literally packed with protein, vitamins and minerals.

Serve it beside fluffy rice, a simple shredded cabbage slaw, and a nourishing bowl of miso soup and you’ll be feeling happy and healthy in no time!

What Is Yudofu?

At its most basic form, Yudofu is simply blocks of silken tofu simmered in hot water until they’re warm and nourishing.

But the magic really happens when you combine your freshly simmered hot tofu with tasty dipping sauces like we have today. 

Similar in flavour profile to Japanese Mentsuyu dipping sauce, once you blend together the umami goodness of dashi with boiled tofu and a few classic Japanese ingredients, you’ll wonder how you ever lived without them!

What You’ll Need

Yudofu is super simple to make with a handful of ingredients and about 5 minutes to prepare! Here’s what you’ll need:

Tofu

• This recipe calls for soft/silken tofu but should work fine with firm tofu as well.
• For the most beautiful looking Yudofu, be sure to handle your tofu with care. It can fall apart very easily, especially when you’re trying to coax it out of a plastic container.
• We recommend draining the liquid first before turning the tofu out into your palm. From here you can slice the tofu into smaller blocks while it’s resting on your palm (but only if you promise to be careful). 

Dashi Stock

• To keep things quick and simple we’ve used dashi stock powder in this recipe, however you may prefer to make real dashi stock from kombu seaweed and bonito flakes. If so, check out this homemade dashi recipe from Just One Cookbook.
• Vegetarian? No problem – you’ll want to look for the kombu dashi (seaweed only stock).

Tamari Sauce – Pure Harvest

While it’s true that tamari and soy sauce are quite similar in terms of flavour and appearance, there are a couple of key differences between them.

• The first is the presence of wheat – or rather, the absence of wheat in tamari, which makes tamari an excellent soy sauce substitute for those with Gluten Free diets.
• The second is that while soy sauce is almost ubiquitous in Asian cuisines, tamari is a uniquely Japanese creation. It has a purer, more balanced, less salty flavour, which means it’s also great for dipping your Japanese Gyoza/Potstickers.
• And thirdly, it contains more protein than regular soy sauce, which means it’s healthier to boot!

Pure Harvest Tamari is organic, sustainably sourced, and non GMO, which means it’s not only a great choice for flavour, it’s also better for the environment.

So next time you reach for the soy sauce, why not experiment with tamari and see what you like best!

How To Make Yudofu

• To start the tofu simmering, line a small saucepan or frypan with a sheet of yakinori seaweed, then top with your tofu pieces. Gently pour enough water to cover the tofu, then fire up your stove and simmer for around 6-8 minutes over a low to medium heat. Be sure not to let your tofu come to the boil or it will crumble apart!
• Meanwhile, blend together your tamari, dashi stock dissolved in water, and mirin and give it a good stir.
• When the tofu is ready, use a slotted spoon or spatula to carefully transfer the tofu to small serving bowls. (You can discard the yakinori now, too.)
• Garnish your tofu with spring onions and katsuoboshi, then spoon over with your blended tamari sauce.

Tips

• Simmer the tofu carefully to keep its shape intact. Be sure not to let it come to the boil or it will crumble apart!
• We recommend serving your Simple Hot Tofu as a side dish alongside fluffy white rice and miso soup.

Variations & Substitutes

• For a cooling summer version of this dish, simply slice your tofu into pieces, garnish with spring onion and katsuoboshi and drizzle with tamari. 
• For extra flavour, serve with wasabi paste and shichimi togarashi (Japanese blended chilli pepper spice mix)
• For a completely vegan/vegetarian dish, use vegetarian kombu dashi instead of regular dashi (which is made with bonito flakes).

Looking for more Japanese creations? Here are some of our favourites:

• Creamy Japanese Potato Salad
• Yakisoba Noodles
• Quick & Easy Takoyaki
• Udon Noodle Soup

★ Did you make this recipe? Please leave a star rating below!

Yudofu Simple Hot Tofu Recipe

With a subtle blend of Pure Harvest Organic Tamari, dashi stock and mirin, this Yudofu (Japanese tofu recipe) is as nourishing as it is comforting. It's quick and easy to prepare, low in calories, and packed with nutritious flavour!

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Prep Time: 2 minutes

Cook Time: 8 minutes

Total Time: 10 minutes

Course: Side Dish

Cuisine: Japanese

Servings: 4 serves

Calories: 20kcal

Author: Wandercooks

Cost: $5

Equipment

• Saucepan
• Serving dishes
• Sauce bowls

Ingredients

For the Tofu:

• 1 block soft tofu approx 300 g, sliced into 4 pieces
• 1 sheet yakinori

For the Sauce:

• 2 tbsp Pure Harvest Tamari
• 2 tbsp mirin
• ½ tsp dashi stock dissolved in 2 tbsp water

For the Garnish:

• 1-2 spring onions finely sliced
• 1-2 tbsp katsuoboshi finely shaved bonito flakes

Metric - US Customary

Instructions

• To start the tofu simmering, line a small saucepan or frypan with a sheet of yakinori seaweed, then top with your tofu pieces. Gently pour enough water to cover the tofu, then fire up your stove and simmer for around 6-8 minutes over a low to medium heat. Be sure not to let your tofu come to the boil or it will crumble apart!
• Meanwhile, blend together your tamari, dashi stock dissolved in water, and mirin and give it a good stir.
• When the tofu is ready, use a slotted spoon or spatula to carefully transfer the tofu to small serving bowls. (You can discard the yakinori now, too.)
• Garnish your tofu with spring onions and katsuoboshi, then spoon over with your blended tamari sauce.
• Serve immediately.

Notes

Tips

• Simmer the tofu carefully to keep its shape intact. Be sure not to let it come to the boil or it will crumble apart!
• We recommend serving your Simple Hot Tofu as a side dish alongside fluffy white rice and miso soup.

 

Variations & Substitutes

• For a cooling summer version of this dish, simply slice your tofu into pieces, garnish with spring onion and katsuoboshi and drizzle with tamari. 
• For extra flavour, serve with wasabi paste and shichimi togarashi (Japanese blended chilli pepper spice mix)
• For a completely vegan/vegetarian dish, use vegetarian kombu dashi instead of regular dashi (which is made with bonito flakes).

Nutrition

Calories: 20kcal | Carbohydrates: 4g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 1mg | Sodium: 571mg | Potassium: 19mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 62IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Iron: 1mg

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