Spicy mango/orange tofu with Japanese noodles

I have a problem with making good food at home.

Except for periodic exceptions, I have not been enthusiastic about cooking. I have certainly thrown out more food than I have ingested, and eat out far more often than my budget can afford. Recently, I have resorted to eating some pretty nasty and fattening box stuff, and I can see the result on the scale and in my general everyday well-being.

I expect that at some point I shall take some enjoyment out of cooking again, but I think it will take another half-year before the association of it with my ex wears off entirely.

So when I faced grocery shopping this week, I was determined to try and find food I could eat that would taste good, i.e. GOOD!, but that did not require measuring, or any sort of creative attention during the cooking process. Because when my "I Don't Give A Damn" kicks in, it really kicks in.

I spent a scary two hours in Wegmans. On Saturday, at 1pm. What was I thinking! However, I still am in my zen mode ("This is nothing compared to what I've been through...I'll just wait until the cattle move out of the chute, and then I can move my cart again"), so it wasn't as maddening as I used to find it.

I scoured every aisle and every freezer, looking for food I might have missed, that I might use as throw-together ingredients for food that I could get the satisfaction of pretend-cooking, and good taste, as well as reasonable nutrition.

Tonight I ventured into my newly stocked cupboards with trepidation...but, SUCCESS!


Spicy Mango/Orange Tofu with Japanese Noodles

One pack (of the two included in the main package) of Pete's Tofu2Go Thai Tango "ready to eat tofu snacks." The idea of eating this stuff cold gives me the shudders, but what we have here is already spiced SMALL packages (two!) of tofu that can also be stir-fried! It's not as huge as a whole block of tofu, and it's already browned. How about that?

Udon Instant Japanese Style Noodles, plain. Mine are a different brand and were only .69 a package. You boil them 3 minutes to warm them up, then throw them in the stir fry. No worrying about whether or not they are done.

Maggi Sweet Chili Sauce, MILD. I have purchased probably ten different bottles of "sauce" and have tossed most of them, after opening and discovering they were entirely too spicy. This sauce is sweet and spicy without being overpowering. That said, it IS spicy. The sweetness is also not cloying. It is sit-down restaurant sweet, not Chinese Buffet sweet.

Delmonte Fruit-to-Go mandarin oranges, four pack.

I cut up one of the packages of Tofu2Go into smaller pieces, and threw it in the stir fry pan with some olive oil, powdered garlic, and about a tablespoon of tamari/soy sauce. I heated it on medium.

I put the noodles on to boil.

When the noodles had been on boil for two minutes, I threw one individual plastic cup of mandarin oranges (drained) in with the tofu, as well as the two mango sauce packages that came with the Tofu2Go. One may have been enough...I'll try next time. I shook in about two tablespoons of the sweet chili sauce and heated it all up on high for one minute (try not to beat up the oranges too much). When the noodles had been boiling 3 minutes (as directed on the package), I drained them and threw them in with the tofu. I heated all for another minute on high (or until hot).

That's it. It made more than enough for me. It is perhaps enough for two people as a side dish, but probably not enough for two as a main dish. I guess I'll toss the remainder in the fridge to see how it warms up the next day for the sake of this blog post, although I'm not a fan of instant leftovers.

It was really, really good, if you like spicy-sweet food. It did not taste "fake" at all. It was almost restaurant-good. The noodles were wonderful. I've never used them before.

In the interest of more healthful eating, I think a handful of frozen broccoli tops (or fresh, of course) would not have been out of place in this, as long as they weren't freezer burned. You know what I mean...a perfectly good recipe ruined by frozen veggies that taste like a locker room.

I have another pack of tofu, three mandarin orange cups, and of course the whole bottle of sweet chili sauce left. Out of those particular ingredient purchases, not one was a flop.

Of course, "real" ingredients could replace some of these things (an actual orange or tangerine instead of a plastic single serving cup, etc.).

Cost, about four bucks rounded up.