It’s always Halloween here at GAH even for Valentine’s Day, so I couldn’t let the holiday go by without a little Val-o-ween inspiration. I created this dish for a fun collaboration I’m co-hosting with @brentjacobsonfood on Instagram for our Val-o-ween #partywithghouls event on February 11, 2022. This beautiful noodle dish is a variation of my Chili Lime Tofu recipe from Castellon’s Kitchen where I added gorgeous dragon fruit to color the noodles and sauce for a decidedly romantic main dish. Dragon fruit on the outside looks like an otherworldly tropical fruit and when you cut into it, it’s shocking magenta flesh is awe inspiring. But here’s the deal…with all that showy intimidating presence, it literally tastes like nothing. It’s not sweet at all. It has zero flavor. It’s all looks and no substance, which makes for a great way to add it to savory dishes to get this shocking pink color naturally. Since the dragon fruit adds little more than window dressing, I had to up the flavor and the look of the tofu. First, I cut the tofu into skulls…naturally
. Then I dry fried them to give it a meatier texture and then coated it in a delicious chili lime sauce that even if you don’t like tofu, it’ll be love at first bite! I kept my photos monochromatic and topped it with edible pink petals and dragon fruit hearts for the romance of it all, but these noodles are best served along with some crunchy sautéed bok choy, green onions and creamy avocado. Enjoy!
Happy Val-o-ween!
Love at First Bite
Equipment
- 2 inch skull cutter, mini star cutter(mouth), Purchased from Michael's.
- Mini leaf or heart cutter(nose), and a large metal straw(eyes). Purchased from Daiso.
Ingredients
- 16 oz. rice noodles, prepared
- 2½ cups frozen dragon fruit, thawed and pureed (divided)
- 1 block extra firm tofu, pressed (cut into skulls)
- avocado slices, green onions, and bok choy
- carnation petals, dragon fruit hearts (optional garnish)
Chili Lime Dragon Fruit Sauce
- 3 tbsp. sugar
- 4 tbsp. lime juice and the zest of one lime
- 3 tbsp. soy sauce
- 1 tsp. red chili flakes
- 3 cloves garlic, finely grated
- 1 tbsp. toasted sesame oil
- 1½ cups dragon fruit, pureed
Instructions
- Prepare rice noodles according to package instructions, rinse thoroughly. Add 1 cup of the pureed dragon fruit and mix well...Ooo...so pretty! Set aside.
- Prepare Chili Lime Dragon Fruit Sauce by mixing all ingredients in a medium bowl and set aside.
- Prepare Tofu: Drain and press tofu by placing it between multiple sheets of paper towels and allow it to drain for about 30 minutes, swapping out the towels about half way through. Once it's drained, place the block of tofu on one of it's edges lengthwise and cut into 4 even slices. Cut 4 skulls from each slice. (Reserve tofu cut-outs to use in another recipe)
- Use the mini leaf or upside-down heart to cut the nose from each skull. Use a large-hole straw to cut out the eyes.Use the pointed end of a star cookie cutter to cut out 3 or 4 teeth of the top jaw.
- Heat up a large non-stick frying pan over medium high heat. Add the tofu skulls and dry fry them by pressing with the back of a spatula until lightly golden, about 1-2 minutes on each side.
- Add chili lime dragon fruit sauce and bring sauce to a rolling boil, turning the tofu skulls over until the sauce thickens and the sugar begins to caramelize and coat the skulls. Turn off heat and let them sit while you reheat the noodles.
- Add 3 tbsp. of canola oil into a wok or a large saucepan and stir fry the noodles until hot, ~3-4 minutes. Transfer hot noodles into a large bowl and top with chili lime dragon fruit sauce and caramelized tofu skulls. Serve along with bok choy, green onions and avocado. For Val-o-ween: Make it romantic by garnishing with carnation petals and dragon fruit hearts, Enjoy!
