Ginger-Glazed Grilled Tofu

I KNOW.

You're welcome for this.

I threw a little graduation shindig for my sister's girlfriend Katie a few weeks ago, and as luck would have it, homegirl is a vegetarian.

So, natch, I wanted to make all delicious meat-free food.

AND, it was gorgeous outside, so I wanted Jay to grill the meat-free food.

Enter...

Grilled Tofu with Soy-Ginger Glaze

I KNOW.

It was delicious, easy, and of course the glaze could be used on anything you'd like to grill!

Like pineapple, in our case.

Here's what you need!

• ½ cup soy sauce
• ¼ cup brown sugar
• 1 inch fresh ginger, peeled - or ½ teaspoon ground ginger
• 2 tablespoons sesame oil
• 2 bricks firm or extra firm tofu
• pineapple, for grilling (clearly optional)

You'll want to press the tofu ahead of time!

I use whatever I can find on sale.  To press the tofu, I drain it, then place it between two plates with a can of something heavy on top of it.  For realzies.  Then, as water comes out of the tofu I dump it into the sink and make a huge mess in the process.

Pressing the tofu for one hour is great, 2 hours is better, and anything more than that is just showing off.  Don't worry too much about it.

You can also make the glaze way ahead and use it when you get ready to grill.

It's so easy!  Grab a teeny pan, and add the soy sauce, brown sugar, and sesame oil to the pan.

Turn the heat to low or medium-low, and grate in the ginger.  I didn't grate mine all the way to the end because I got bored, so I just threw in the knob for extra flavor and threw it out later - no biggie.

Let the glaze come to a simmer, and stir it for 5 minutes or so until the sugar has completely dissolved.  Let the sauce simmer for just a few more minutes until it's thickened and syrupy.  This doesn't take long!  Once you turn the heat off the sauce will thicken more, so don't worry if it seems a bit thin.

To prepare the drained tofu, I cut each brick into 8-10 "sticks," then skewer them on bamboo skewers that have been soaked in water for at least 30 minutes.  You could just grill big slabs of tofu, though - your choice!

When you're ready to cook, be sure the grill you're using is nice and oily so the tofu doesn't stick.  We use a paper towel dipped in vegetable oil, then we rub it all over the grill using tons.  Grease your grill however you'd like, though!

Grill the tofu and anything else you'd like to eat over medium-high heat for 5-10 minutes until great grill marks form.  Then, flip them over!

Once you flip the tofu, brush it with the glaze.  Don't do it earlier or it may burn.  Since the tofu has so much water in it it will take awhile to get crispy, but the sugar in the glaze will burn quickly!

Keep grilling and brushing and flipping until the tofu is crispy and glazed.

Then. Eat.

Happy Graduation, Katie!