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Indonesian Tokwa Goreng- Spicy Tofu with Vegetables and Peanuts

Tokwa Goreng (say ‘tokh-wah goh-reng’) is adapted from an Indonesian dish. Goreng means ‘fried’ and in this recipe refers to the tofu ( tokwa to Filipinos) which I pan fried before mixing in the all-vegetable saute. I used tamari sauce to stir fry the ingredients and added bird’s eye chilies (siling labuyo in the Philippines) to give the dish a kick. This recipe was adapted from the original one by Guillermo “Ige” Ramos, award-winning author, editor, book designer, chef and historian based in Manila, Philippines. Serves 2 for a side dish or an entree if paired with rice.
Prep Time10 minutes
Cook Time20 minutes
Total Time30 minutes
Course: Dinner, Lunch, Side Dish, Vegetables
Cuisine: Asian, Filipino, Indonesian
Keyword: Indonesian Tokwa Goreng Tofu Vegetables
Servings: 2 people
Calories: 261kcal
Author: Asian in America - Elizabeth Ann Quirino

Equipment

  • Large Non-Stick Skillet- 12 inches diameter; Or a Wok

Ingredients

  • 1/4 cup vegetable oil divided, 2 Tablespoons for stir fry, rest for pan fried tofu
  • 14 ounces extra firm organic tofu
  • 1 whole medium-sized onion
  • 2 cloves garlic minced
  • 1 Tablespoon minced fresh ginger
  • 2 whole large tomatoes sliced
  • 1 teaspoon miso paste bottled or from tubes
  • 2 Tablespoons tamari soy sauce
  • 1/4 cup vegetable broth
  • 1 whole bird's eye chiliess crush or slice it only if you want a super spicy saucr; siling labuyo in the Philippines
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon ground black pepper powder
  • 3 cups shredded bok choy
  • 1/2 cup roasted unsalted peanuts
  • 2 stalks scallion greens chopped, for garnish
  • for serving: boiled rice

Instructions

  • In a large non-stick skillet or wok, over medium high heat, add the cooking oil. When oil is hot enough in about 2 minutes, place the whole slab of tofu. Pan fry on each side for about 5 minutes till the top layer is brown. Turn the tofu only once. Place browned tofu on parchment paper to drain excess oil. When cool enough, cut in 2-inch sized cubes. Set aside.
  • Using the same large skillet and cooking oil, over medium high heat, saute the onions, garlic and ginger. Add the tomatoes.
  • When onions and tomatoes have softened after about 2 minutes, add the miso paste, tamari sauce, vegetable broth (or water), birds’ eye chilies (siling labuyo), sugar, salt and black pepper. Blend well.
  • When liquid has reduced after about 5 minutes, add the shredded bok choy (pechay), tofu cubes and mix well. Cover skillet and turn off heat. The residual heat in the skillet will soften and cook the bok choy in the last 5 minutes of cooking.
  • Sprinkle the peanuts all over the dish just before serving. Serve piping hot with boiled rice (white or brown). Garnish with chopped scallions.
  • Cook’s comments: In the original recipe, Chef Ige Ramos used oyster sauce. My personal preference was to use tamari sauce, a non-wheat (gluten-free) soy sauce which has less sodium.
  • About the Chef: Guillermo 'Ige' Ramos is based in Manila and Cavite, Philippines. He has such a long, accomplished career in Philippine publishing that it would take another blog post to write about what he has done for the arts, history and the culinary world. Ige has won awards for dozens of books and cookbooks he has designed and essays he has written. He is the principal designer and editorial director of Ige Ramos Design Studio (IRDS) which produces Rustan's 'Sans Rival' Magalogue, of which he is the editor-in-chief. Ige gives workshops, lectures and coaching on Editorial Design and will release his book on Cavite cuisine this year. I am very proud to be his friend.
  • Hello, Friends! All the images and content on this blog are COPYRIGHT PROTECTED and owned by my media company Besa-Quirino LLC. This means BY LAW you are NOT allowed to scrape, lift, frame, plagiarize or use my photos and  recipe content I wrote, on your website, videos, TV programs, cookbooks, books, media content  without my permission. If you want to republish this recipe or content on another website or news article, please ASK my permission, re-write it in your own words and simply link back to this blog to give proper attribution. It’s the legal thing to do. Thank you. Email me at [email protected]

Nutrition

Serving: 1g | Calories: 261kcal | Carbohydrates: 4g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 27g | Saturated Fat: 22g | Sodium: 1819mg | Potassium: 71mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 182IU | Vitamin C: 3mg | Calcium: 14mg | Iron: 1mg