The Best Tofu Stew

Last night, Porkchop and I went to dinner at one of my co-worker's. Since the boyfriend of another co-worker is Jewish vegetarian, I volunteered to bring a grainless, meatless dish. This task apparently daunted the hostess and other invitees, which kind of annoyed me. One of my co-workers said to me, "A meatless dish without grains? Good luck."

What do people think? That if you're vegetarian, you MUST compensate by gorging on grains?

The uproar made no sense to me.

I made one of my favorite dishes, which I really should make more because I love it so much. Here it is....

Coconut-Curry Tofu Stew
2 bunches scallions
1 14-oz. can light coconut milk
3-4 Tbsp. soy sauce
1/2 Tbsp. light brown sugar
1/2 Tbsp. curry powder
1 tsp. minced fresh ginger (or more, if you love ginger like I do)
1-2 tsp. chile paste with garlic
1 lb. firm or extra-firm tofu, drained and cut into 3/4-inch cubes
4 ripe plum tomatoes, cut into 6 wedges each
1 yellow bell pepper, thinly sliced
1/4 lb. mushrooms (such as shiitake), stemmed and thickly sliced
1/4 cup fresh basil leaves, coarsely chopped
4 cups coarsely chopped spinach (bagged spinach makes this easy)

1. Cut scallion whites and about 2 inches of the greens into 2-inch diagonal pieces. Finely chop remaining greens and reserve separately.
2. In a Dutch oven, combine coconut milk, 3 Tbsp. soy sauce, brown sugar, curry powder, ginger, and 1 tsp. chile paste. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat.
3. Add tofu, tomatoes, bell pepper, mushrooms, basil, and scallion pieces. Cover and cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes.
4. Add spinach, cover and cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 more minutes or until vegetables are tender.
5. Adjust seasonings with soy sauce, chile paste, and salt. Garnish with reserved chopped scallion greens and serve immediately.

BONUS: This stew is excellent served over rice, especially brown rice.

Everyone seemed to enjoy the stew. The boyfriend had the audacity to ask me if I had used flour to thicken the base. For the love of God! I KNOW it's Passover, and I went out of my way to avoid flour! I was probably a bit terse when I replied, "It's coconut milk. It's naturally thick, and it was boiled." Duh. This guy annoys me anyway, so to imply that I had used flour, WHEN I HAD NOT, really really got to me.

Also Yesterday
I looked at an apartment at Jamieson and Chippewa. It made me want to cry because it was so not great.

Tomorrow I'll set up a viewing for a 2 bedroom on Shenandoah. It's a little bit more than what I want to pay, but it might be worth it.

Today
We slept late, and now we're cleaning. Fun!