Adapted from Heidi Swanson’s recipe in Super Natural Cooking.
This is a great dish for convincing non-tofu fans that tofu can be delicious. As Heidi says, she’s given up on trying to convince with argument and just slides a plate of this dish in front of her carnivore friends. Few are able to resist the urge to try it!
For a pantry meal, use defrosted frozen spinach instead of fresh
Curried Tofu Scramble
Ingredients
- 1 onion peeled & chopped
- 4 teaspoons curry powder
- 350 g firm tofu
- 1 bag washed baby spinach
- big squeeze lemon juice
Instructions
- Heat a few tablespoons of olive oil in a large frying pan.
- Add onion and cook, covered over a medium high heat stiring frequently until the onion is soft and translucent but not browned.
- Add curry powder and stir fry for about 30 seconds or until it smells divine.
- Crumble the tofu with your hands and add to the pan. Stir well then cover and cook for a few minutes – you just want to warm the tofu through.
- Add spinach and stir until spinach has just started to wilt.
- Season generously with sea salt, pepper and a big squeeze of lemon juice. Serve.
Variations
soy-free – try these curried scrambled eggs instead.
onion-free – just skip it or serve with chopped chives instead.
no curry powder – replace with ground turmeric.
carnivore – replace tofu with 1lb (450g) minced (ground) chicken or beef. Cook until meat is well browned and cooked through. Or serve some bacon or eggs.
more substantial (carb lovers) – toss in a can of chickpeas or lentils or serve with rice or toast and butter.
more substantial (low carb) – add some macadamias or avocado.
paleo (grain, legume & dairy-free) – replace tofu with 6 eggs.
keto / ultra low carb – serve scrambled eggs instead.
Problem Solving Guide
bland – season with salt more generously and think about adding a little more curry powder. Be generous with the lemon.
sticking to the pan – add in a little more oil and stir more frequently. Allow the pan to cool for a few minutes and the stuck bits should release. Next time use a non stick pan.
too dry – drizzle with extra virgin olive oil or mayonnaise.
Waste Avoidance Strategy
tofu – will keep in an unopened packet for a few months (check use by date on packet). Opened packets can be frozen.
onion and curry powder – will keep in the pantry.
lemon – will keep in the fridge for weeks.
baby spinach – will start to go slimey. To prevent this, wilt the leaves down in a hot pot with a little olive oil and cool. Will keep covered in the fridge for a few weeks. Alternatively pop it in the freezer. It will be wilted when you defrost it.
Prepare Ahead?
Just cook as per the recipe but keep the spinach separately. Leftovers will keep in the fridge for 2 weeks or can be frozen. To serve, warm in a pan with a little oil then toss in the spinach.
Add to my Old Favourite Recipes
I tried this for lunch today, and am sorry to have to report that it bombed. The only thing I could taste with my semi-functional taste buds was how hot the Keen’s curry powder is, and my husband said there was nothing to like about it, even after adding a significant amount of salt to it. It also left me feeling almost immediately hungry, something I don’t deal with well. The only positive for me is hat it truly was easy to make.
I had an overabundance of zucchini so I sauteed sliced zucchini and then drained off the liquid.This substitute for the spinach was just as good as the original recipe in my opinion.
Brilliant idea Debbie!
Debbie, I’ve been looking for a substitute for spinach, because spinach leaves a nasty coating on my teeth. Thank you for the idea of using zucchini. They taste better to me and keep better, too. Spinach is now history.
I made it with the eggs instead of the tofu. Really good. As a note, I was worried about putting the lemon juice on eggs – it sounds really weird (maybe it was just for the tofu?). But I trusted your recipe and did it anyways — and the lemon was essential to balance the curry powder flavor! 🙂
Yay Kelly!
This is the second time I cooked this, spinach was out so I got rucola instead . Turned out fine with a crunch. My husband loved it . Thanks for simplifying my cooking time .
I pressed my tofu ahead of time just in case, even though I didn’t see Emily’s advice above. I agree, it makes a difference. The tofu she used in the video is very dry! I bought the firm stuff but packed in water, and even after pressing it out (and changing out the paper frequently) for twenty minutes, it wasn’t as dry as hers.
I still ended up with sub par results though. I followed the directions correctly as far as I can tell—I double checked both during and after cooking—but no matter how much I seasoned it, it still tasted bland for the first few chews, and then there’d be the sudden heat from the curry spice without the lovely curry flavor. Maybe my kind of curry spice was not the best kind/brand to use? Not sure.
I was disappointed. Going to try a different recipe next! 🙂
Mrs Mack!
Thanks so much for sharing your honest feedback… This is brilliant.
If you did want to risk trying this again I’d suggest trying a different brand if tofu and a different curry powder. Make sure your tofu is organic and really firm.
And most importantly be generous with the salt to enhance the flavour.
Though, if I were you I’d probably just move on to other things. There will be completely new recipes each week and it will be about 4 years before I need to start cycling back 🙂
Keep the feedback coming!
Jx
This was a bit watery when I made it – I think it was a combination of having a wetter tofu and not drying the spinach very well after I washed it. If your tofu comes in a packet with water in it, I would recommend pressing it on a paper towel under something heavy for a little while beforehand.
Thanks fir sharing Emily!
And sounds like you’re right on the money in diagnosing your problem.
The only other thing I’d add is to make sure you buy firm or extra firm tofu instead of silken tofu as the firm ones have a lower moisture content
Jx