24 7- to 8-oz. Servings
This a healthy dish that can be served at room temperature which makes it great when serving for a crowd. Notice that it is sized for 24 servings. You can reduce by 1/3 if making for a family or as a pot-luck contribution. This recipe was adapted from the cookbook Moosewood Restaurant Cooks for a Crowd.
Preparation and Cooking Time: 1 hour
Ingredients
| Linguine | 3 lbs. |
| Seasoned Tofu | |
| Tofu | 2 lbs. |
| Soy sauce | 1/4 cup |
| Water | 1/4 cup |
| Five-Spice powder | 1/4 tsp. |
| Star anise (optional) | 3 stars |
| Sauce | |
| Basil, fresh, minced | 3/4 cup |
| Cilantro, fresh, mince | 3/4 cup |
| Spearmint, fresh | 3/4 cup |
| Ginger root, fresh, grated | 1/3 cup |
| Garlic, pressed or fine mince | 8 med. cloves or 2 Tbsp. |
| Salt | 1 Tbsp. |
| Lime juice, fresh | 1/2 cup |
| Coconut milk, unsweetened | 28 oz. |
| Sesame oil, dark | 3/4 cup |
| Scallions, green and white parts, chopped (optional) | 1 cup |
| Vegetables | |
| Pick a combination of vegetables to total 1 1/2 gallons | |
| Carrots, julienned | |
| Red, Orange or Yellow peppers, thinly sliced | |
| Snow or snap peas, stemmed | |
| Garnishes | |
| Peanuts, roasted, coarsely chopped | 2 cups |
| Lime wedges | 4 limes |
| Cilantro, fresh, chopped | 1 1/2 cups |
| Mung bean sprouts | 8 oz. |
Procedure
- To prepare the seasoned tofu, begin by pressing the tofu by placing the cakes between two plates or baking sheets and balancing a weight (e.g., a heavy book or a stack of plates) on top of the plate for at least 20 minutes. Drain. Pressing excess water from tofu allows it to absorb flavorings more intensely. Then cut each pressed cake in half, horizontally, to yield 2 slices per cake. Arrange the tofu in a single layer in a baking pan. Whisk together the remaining ingredients and pour over the tofu. Bake at 350 for 1 hour, turning the tofu once after 30 minutes. Refrigerated seasoned tofu will keep for up to 5 days so this can be prepared ahead of time.
- Cook the linguine until al dente. Drain and toss with 3-4 Tbsp. of vegetable or dark sesame oil to keep the pasta from sticking together. Chill well.
- Whisk together the sauce ingredients and set aside.
- Blanch vegetables until barely tender. Plunge each vegetable immediately into cold water and drain.
- Combine the noodles, sauce, and vegetables. Refrigerate until cool and serve promptly to prevent the noodles from overly absorbing the seasonings and diluting the flavor. Adjust seasonings if necessary. Garnish each plate with one or more of the optional toppings.
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