Koyadofu  or freeze-dried tofu is a common pantry staple you can always find in the
Japanese kitchen. When you’re running out of fresh ingredients or desperately need one more dish to round up a meal, you can always reach out to Koyadofu. Today I’ll show you a classic Simmered Koyadofu  recipe. It’s easy to prepare and makes a great meal prep dish.

Simmered Koyadofu

INGREDIENTS

• 5 koyadofu (freeze-dried tofu)
• 2 ½ cup dashi (I use vegan/vegetarian-friendly Kombu dashi. See Notes.) (600 ml)
• 5 snow peas

Seasonings

• 2 Tbsp mirin
• 2 Tbsp sake
• 1 Tbsp soy sauce (I use Usukuchi (light color) Soy Sauce)
• 4 Tbsp sugar
• ½ tsp salt (kosher or sea salt; use half if using table salt)

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Gather all the ingredients.
2. The box says you do not need to soak, but I still recommend washing the koyadofu. Put the koyadofu in a bowl and pour hot water. The koyadofu will expand in about 10 minutes.
3. While you wait for the koyadofu to expand, put dashi in a pot. I use cold brew kombu dashi for this recipe, leaving the kombu behind. Add mirin and sake.
4. Add soy sauce, sugar, and salt.
5. Mix all together and slowly bring it to boil.
6. While waiting for the broth to boil, wash the koyadofu in clean cold water once it expands. Be careful with the koyadofu as the inside still contains hot water.
7. Like a sponge, let the koyadofu soak up the clean water and push it out a few times to clean. Hold the tofu flat between your hands. Squeeze the cloudy water from the inside of the koyadofu by pressing hard.
8. Change the water in the bowl several times to clean all the koyadofu. Thoroughly wash out the cloudy water by repeating this process several times. Give it a final squeeze.
9. Cut each koyadofu into 6 square pieces.
10. Once the dashi-soy broth is boiling, add the koyadofu and cover with a drop lid (Otoshibuta – if you don’t have one, make one with aluminum foil). You do not use a regular lid on top. Simmer for 10 minutes on medium-low heat.
11. When it’s about to finish simmering, prepare the snow peas by removing the tough strings. Add the snow peas in the saucepan.
12. Cook for 1-2 minutes. Then transfer the koyadofu to a glass container.
13. Make sure the glass container is big enough to hold the koyadofu and the broth. I stack the koyadofu neatly.
14. You can serve hot, at room temperature, or chilled after refrigerating for a few hours or overnight. Put the koyadofu, snow peas, and broth in a bowl and serve.

To Store

1. You can keep in the refrigerator for up to 3-4 days and in the freezer for up to a month. If it’s frozen, reheat before serving.

RECIPE NOTES

Soy Sauce: I use Usukuchi Soy Sauce (light color soy sauce) to keep the broth light in the color.

Kombu: I use cold brew kombu dashi.

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