Recipe: Tofu with kimchi (<i>Dubu</i> kimchi)

Tofu with kimchi (Dubu kimchi)

Total time: 40 minutes

Servings: 4

Our recipes, your kitchen: If you try this or any other recipe from the L.A. Times Test Kitchen, we would like to know about it so we can showcase it on our food blog and occasionally in print. Upload pictures of the finished dish here.

For the best flavor, use aged nappa napa cabbage (“baechu”) kimchi that is at least a couple of weeks old.

1 18-ounce package medium-firm tofu

Salt

1 tablespoon olive oil

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 onion, sliced

1/4 pound pork, cut into thin strips

1 tablespoon Korean chile paste (gochujang)

1 1/2 cups drained and sliced kimchi

1 tablespoon sesame oil

1 tablespoon soy sauce

1 tablespoon sugar

1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil

1 green onion, chopped

Toasted sesame seeds

1. Place the block of tofu into a medium pot. Add enough water to cover and add a teaspoon of salt. Bring to a boil and cook until the tofu is hot all the way through, about 5 to 7 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside, leaving the tofu in the hot water.

2. In the meantime, heat the olive oil in a frying pan over medium heat. Add the garlic and onion and sauté, stirring frequently, until just lightly browned, 3 to 4 minutes. Stir in the pork and chile paste and continue cooking until the pork is cooked through, 3 to 5 minutes. Stir in the kimchi, sesame oil, soy sauce and sugar and cook until the kimchi is softened and wilted, 4 to 5 minutes. Remove from heat.

3. Drain the tofu and cut into slices. Arrange the slices on the outer rim of a large plate. Pile the cooked kimchi in the middle. Drizzle over the toasted sesame oil. Sprinkle with chopped green onions and a generous amount of toasted sesame seeds.

4. Serve immediately, nice and warm as an accompaniment to soju or beer, or as a banchan (side dish) with rice.

Each serving: 261 calories; 17 grams protein; 12 grams carbohydrates; 2 grams fiber; 17 grams fat; 3 grams saturated fat; 14 mg. cholesterol; 5 grams sugar; 727 mg. sodium.