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Slow Cooker Tofu

March 14, 2020   23 Comments

Slow cooker tofu transforms bland bean curd into a delicious meal. My daughter thought this tofu tasted like meat!

Slow Cooker Tofu

If you don’t use tofu or know what it is – don’t worry. I didn’t figure it out for a long time. Tofu is bean curd and it is created by coagulating soy milk and then pressing the curds into soft white blocks. On its own, it tastes like nothing much so you need to put it in dishes or marinate it.

Tofu is one of the "free" foods on Freestyle so if you are a Weight Watchers member and haven't tried it - you might enjoy it and benefit from some low points recipes.

I used soft tofu to make a Light Wendy’s Vanilla Frosty as a thickening agent instead of ice cream. It worked!

Tofu was also delicious in my Easy Hot and Sour Soup, where it swims in a vat of tasty broth.

This recipe allows you to eat just the tofu, but you need a lot of special stuff to make it tasty.

I was reticent to share this recipe that I developed for my daughter because it included miso. I could only find miso at Whole Foods and I hate sharing recipes that need special ingredients. My Stop & Shop had no idea what I was talking about when I asked them if they had it.

Above is the miso that I found. It is a traditional Japanese seasoning produced by fermenting soybeans with salt and koji (a fungus) and sometimes other ingredients. There are a bunch of different kinds but this one did the trick! It also keeps FOREVER in the fridge.

I bet you could find it in any Asian market along with the tofu. Stop & Shop has tofu in the produce section, which I guess makes sense as it is plant based.

Miso has a salty, earthy flavor that is hard to replace in a dish as basic as this one. It is also super easy to make miso soup (and that is delicious!).

Serve the tofu with brown rice, vegetables, on a salad, in a sandwich or on tacos. It is very versatile and tasty.

Have you cooked with tofu or miso? Where do you find it?

Slow Cooker Tofu Recipe

2.2 from 32 reviews

Makes 4 servings

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Ingredients

4 scallions, minced
1 pound extra-firm tofu, cut into ½ inch slices
¼ cup hoisin sauce
2 tablespoons miso paste
1 teaspoon agave nectar or honey
1 teaspoon rice vinegar
¼ teaspoon ground ginger or ½ teaspoon fresh ginger, grated
½ teaspoon Asian chili paste such as Sriracha sauce
2 tablespoons water

Instructions

Spray a 5 or 7-quart slow cooker with non-stick spray. Spread scallions in a thin layer on the bottom of the insert and layer the tofu on top. In a medium sized bowl, mix hoisin, miso, agave nectar, rice vinegar, ginger, chili paste and water. Using a spoon or brush, put all of the miso mixture on top of the tofu. Cover and slow cook on low for 4 hours. Serve with sauce from bottom of pot.

This keeps well in the fridge for a week. I would not freeze it.

Nutrition Facts

For one serving = 168 calories, 7.8 g fat, 0.8 g saturated fat, 14.1 g carbohydrates, 7.1 g sugar, 13 g protein, 1.9 g fiber, 600 mg sodium, 3 Green, 2 Blue, 2 Purple SmartPts

Points values are calculated by Snack Girl and are provided for information only. See all Snack Girl Recipes

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Easy Hot and Sour Soup

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First 20 Comments: ( See all 23 )

Thank you for this! I have been trying to “make friends” with tofu...with limited success! I never thought to use the slow cooker. Will give this a try :)

This recipe looks really good. I never thought to Slow cook tofu. I'll have to try it. I cook with tofu all the time. It's available in every grocery store I shop. I usually press it for awhile to get some of the moisture out and let flavors absorb more. It's also interesting to freeze it before cooking, totally changes the texture making it more chewy. One of my favorite quick cooking techniques is to "dry fry" it in a non stick pan until it's lightly browned then serve with soy or any other sauce.

Wegmans carries miso!

Thank you for this delicious looking new tofu recipe! I will be trying this very soon. Do you think I can just cook it in a low oven? Crumbled tofu for scrambled ‘eggs’ and vegs is one of my daughter’s favorite breakfasts, I like to cut it up and make ‘chicken’ veg. soup. I occasionally enjoy tofu as a “ham” on rye with sauerkraut! *I found this ‘ham’ recipe awhile back; it’s always so good. Many moons ago, when my daughter took macrobiotic courses in Philly she introduced me to miso paste [and other excellent Asian ingredients] and how to make quick, delicious miso soup! Miso is expensive but it lasts forever and a little goes a long way. Most healthfood markets carry miso. I try to support these smaller independent stores when I can.

*Maple-glazed Tofu Ham

1 LB FIRM TOFU, drained, sliced, pressed dry

1/2cup maple syrup

2/3 cup crushed pineapple juice from can [plus cr pineapple to finish ]

1/2 tsp ground cloves [maybe more]
1 tbsp tamari sauce
2 tbsp grain mustard

1-2 drops Wrights Liquid Smoke [be careful--this is over-powering]

Directions:

1. Whisk together maple syrup, pineapple juice, clove, soy sauce, liq smoke, and mustard in a small bowl. Set aside.

2. In a large skillet over medium-high heat DRY-fry the tofu until evenly browned. Stir in syrup mixture and continue to simmer slowly until the glaze has reduced.

Delicious recipe. I love tofu. When you buy miso with live enzymes, it is important that it NOT come to a boil because it kills the beneficial enzymes. One of my favorite drinks is cooked oatmeal with "live" miso added (2 heaping Tbs) after it cools a bit, stir well, cover, let it sit on the counter overnight, strain the liquid off, refrigerate the liquid and drink it. It is delicious and there is no miso taste, sweeten to taste if desired. Mix the leftover oatmeal with pet food or put it in soups and stews.

Now that tofu is O SP, any other easy low-point tofu recipes not requiring expensive or hard-to-find ‘specialty’ ingredients?!

I also freeze and thaw extra firm tofu for a totally different texture. Squeeze out 90% of the water (when parts start barely turning into a sponge), slice and marinate, then cook like chicken. I like to use McCormicks Mesquite Marinade (overnight), stir fry with onions and mushrooms, top with some cheese and wrap in tortilla.

Miso tastes really good with sweet potatoes. There's tons of recipes online.

sounds good to me. I am very interested in more comments to come.

This dish I tried. Very delicious and nutritious. I like it.

I love tofu but had never thought to slow-cook it either. I can't wait to try this.

I also love tofu "eggless" salad....basically, mash your block of tofu until it's the consistency of mashed hard-boiled eggs; then proceed with your favorite egg salad fixings (I add celery, bell pepper, onion, garlic, turmeric, mustard, mayonnaise, whatever else strikes my fancy). It's much quicker than hard-boiling eggs, and my husband and I both love it. We often make it on grocery night (because who wants to cook on grocery night!).

I love Kathryn's mention of "eggless" egg salad. I used to buy it at Trader Joe's when I lived close to one. I freeze my tofu first for the eggless recipe, then let it thaw then make the eggless egg salad. It dramatically changes the texture to a more eggy one. : )

The directions say slow cook for four hours. High or low setting? Thank you!

my stop and shop carries miso, along with other local grocery stores like market basket. its not always hard to find!

@Mary - sorry about that. The 4 hours is on low. I have edited the above recipe to reflect this change. Thank you for pointing out my mistake!

Do you drain the tofu before putting into the slow cooker?

Love your recipe Lisa! You can make oat milk using miso too. Cook your oatmeal. (I also use the red miso as its health benefits are more intense.) Pour oatmeal in a large mixing bowl. Mix about 2 to 3 tablespoons of miso with cooled oatmeal. Cool to just warm so the miso melts. (Only add the miso to cooled oatmeal otherwise the enzymes in the live miso will be killed destroying its efficaciousness.) Mix it thoroughly and cover. Leave it on your counter overnight. The next, day drain the liquid from the solids and refrigerate the liquid. It is delicious. There will be no taste of miso only the oat milk. (Be sure you don't boil your miso for soup or other recipes as the enzymes will be killed.) Only live miso, unpasteurized, has the beneficial enzymes.

@Toni - yes, I do drain it. Thank you for your question!

★★★★★

I'll follow this for comments and ideas. I've tried tofu a few times as a simple salad addition, so the idea of cooking more with it intrigues me. Hubby proclaims his dislike for it, but maybe he hasn't tried it in a good dish. :)

I am interested in trying this recipe but want to know if this is a spicy hot sauce. No one here eats really hot foods. Thanks.

I also have been using tofu more and more since it is 0 on WW. I make a dish using fire roasted tomatoes (if they have the garlic, I get it), black beans, corn, tofu and taco seasoning. I brown the tofu in a large non-stick frying pan, then to tomatoes go in, then the rinsed beans and corn. Add taco seasoning and it is yummy. Tofu takes on the flavor of whatever you put in the recipe, and it is very satisfying. I am blessed to be near so many Asian markets, so miso and tofu are plentiful. Thanks Snack Girl. I don't have a slow cooker, but can I do oven or in a pot on the stove?

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