Tofu Breakfast Scramble

Tofu Breakfast Scramble

Serves 2

Extra-firm tofu, when crumbled, has a scrambled egg texture and a bit of an egg-like flavor, without the heaviness.

8 ounces extra-firm tofu
1 Yukon Gold potato, diced
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons ground turmeric

Crumble the tofu in a mixing bowl with a whisk or by hand. Steam the potato for about 5 minutes. While it is steaming, heat a sauté pan up to medium heat. Add the tofu and salt, gently and slowly stirring it while it is in the pan, and cook it for about 3 to 4 minutes. Stir the turmeric and potato into the scramble, cooking for 1 more minute.

The Gourmet Touch: Give the scramble an even more egg-like taste by using Indian black salt (available at many Indian markets). By the way, you could use any sort of potato in this recipe, but Yukon Golds maintain their texture well and have a flavor advantage over common russets.

Companion Recipes: Tofu scrambles lend themselves to an endless number of recipes, as you’ll see below. If you like, you can make a big batch of the basic tofu scramble early in the week and then use it in several different recipes over the next few days.

Tip: Breakfast Scramble lasts about a week in the refrigerator. Note that many of the tofu scramble recipes call for only half a batch to serve two people, so one batch of the basic recipe goes a long way.

Core Concepts: Crumbled extra-firm tofu with a touch of turmeric and salt works very well in most recipes that call for scrambled eggs.

Per serving:

• Calories: 226
• Fat:  9.1g
• Saturated Fat:  .9 g
• Calories from Fat: 33.8
• Cholesterol: 0 mg
• Protein: 17.2 g
• Carbohydrates: 23 g
• Sugar: 1.4 g
• Fiber: 3 g
• Sodium: 316 mg
• Calcium: 281 mg
• Iron: 4.6 mg
• Vitamin C: 9.6 mg
• Beta Carotene: 5 mcg
• Vitamin E: 0.1 mg

Variations:
Here are a few ideas for spicing up your breakfast scramble.
Potato and Spinach Scramble: 1 extra potato, 2 cups spinach, black pepper to taste. Cook an extra diced potato. Add the spinach to the scramble as it is cooking and cook until the spinach reduces. Garnish with freshly ground black pepper.
Thai Red Curry Scramble: 1 tablespoon Thai red curry paste, juice of 1 lime. Over medium heat, toast the red curry paste for about 2 minutes; add the scramble and cook for 1 more minute. Dress the finished scramble with fresh lime juice.
Basil Tomato Scramble: 1 large chopped tomato, 8–10 sliced basil leaves, 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper. Cook the scramble with the chopped tomato until the tomato has softened. Remove from the heat and garnish with fresh basil, freshly ground black pepper, and crushed red pepper.
Yellow Curry Scramble: 1 1/2 teaspoons yellow curry powder (instead of the turmeric), 1/2 cup green peas, 3 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro. Cook the scramble and add the curry powder and peas about 1 minute before the scramble is done. Garnish with chopped cilantro.

Source:21-Day Weight Loss Kickstart by Neal Barnard, M.D.; recipe by Jason Wyrick of the Vegan Culinary Experience.