The MOST AMAZING Crispy General Tso’s Tofu you’ll BATTER UP for

On today's menu, an easy and delicious recipe you'll batter up for. An extraordinarily crispy General Tso's Tofu. Lei Ho Ma, that's how it's going in Cantonese. Welcome to Young Man Cooking, I'm Will Young. This recipe is going to be by far one of your favorite recipes because it's incredibly delicious and it's really simple to make. Of course before we get started, if you enjoy today's recipe, give it a thumbs up and leave a comment below. Let's begin. Pat dry about 350 grams of extra firm tofu with a paper towel. You'll find that different brands have their own almost subjective definition of what extra firm is. So this one here is quite extra firm because there's not that much moisture in it. And for this recipe, it's important because you'll really want to keep its shape. You'll see why in a second because this is my favorite part of this recipe. Break the extra firm tofu into bite-sized pieces. The irregular shaped tofu will allow for an extra crispy outer layer. Two teaspoons soy sauce. Two teaspoons maple syrup. One teaspoon toasted sesame oil. Toss. Set the tofu aside and let it marinate for a few minutes. Set up two bowls, one for dry, one for wet. One cup flour in the dry station. Half cup flour in the wet station. Three quarter cups water. Dissolve the flour. You can add more flour or water to the stations as needed. Add half the tofu to the dry station. Mix around the tofu until coated. By the way, this is not intended to be a traditional recipe and you've also probably noticed that we did not season the flour at all because when we go to make that sauce, the flavor in that sauce is going to wrap around this tofu like no tomorrow. Transfer the tofu to the wet station. Gently coat the tofu in the batter. Transfer the tofu back to the dry station. Gently mix around the tofu until coated again. Transfer the tofu onto a plate. Try not to touch it too much but you'll start to see this kind of almost flake-like texture in that batter that's going to really fry up and crisp up like crazy. Add the remaining tofu to the dry station. Gently coat. Coat the tofu in the wet mix. Coat the tofu again in the dry station. This recipe is good for two to three portions but of course you can multiply to make more. You can also try baking these in the oven with some oil sprayed on. Baking at 400 degrees, flipping occasionally until golden brown. Frying pan. About two and a half cups avocado oil. Heat up the oil on medium heat for a few minutes. When you stick in the bamboo chopstick and there's fast moving bubbles, it's ready. Very carefully place in the battered tofu. It's a good idea to fry the tofu in two batches. Depending on the size of the tofu, fry for four to six minutes. Be patient and check for golden brown color. Carefully flip the tofu when ready. Fry the other side for three to four minutes, checking again for that beautiful golden brown color. Very carefully transfer the tofu onto a cooling rack. Remember the tofu will continue cooking slightly on the cooling rack while the oil is still hot. Very carefully place in the second batch. Fry the tofu like the previous batch. Be extra vigilant when working with hot oil. Ensure that you have a good grip on the tofu when placing in and out of the oil. Transfer the second batch onto the cooling rack. Allow that crispy tofu to rest while you make the sauce but try not to snack on it too much. Man oh man, that is already so heavenly. If you love easy delicious recipes like me, then definitely check out or pick up your copy of one of the three Young Man Cooking cookbooks. There is a print or digital version of these and there's also the brand new official Young Man Cooking ramen bowls and spoons. You can also check out other Young Man Cooking merch and plant-based sushi masterclass in the link in the description box below. Now let's toss those amazing crispy tofu in this incredible sauce. Three pieces of garlic, finely chopped. Small piece of ginger, finely chopped. Saute pan, medium heat. Of course it wouldn't be Young Man Cooking complete unless we add chili oil in the recipe somewhere. You can definitely make this from a previous episode, link in the description box below. This will add a really incredible, delightful, smoky, spicy flavor. One tablespoon chili oil. Garlic and ginger. Saute for a few minutes. Cooking the garlic and ginger in the chili oil will make it incredibly fragrant. About 10 dried red chilies. Saute for another couple of minutes. One and a half tablespoons maple syrup. One tablespoon plant-based oyster sauce. One tablespoon soy sauce. One teaspoon dark soy sauce. One teaspoon black vinegar. Cook the sauce for about a minute. Make a slurry by combining about a teaspoon of potato starch with a couple of tablespoons of water. Pour the slurry into the sauce while stirring. The heat from the pan will start to thicken the sauce. If the sauce looks a little thick, stir in a little bit more water. Add in the crispy tofu. Coat the crispy tofu in the sauce. There's no need to cook the tofu for too much longer, just coating in the sauce. Plate the crispy and saucy tofu. Sprinkle over some white sesame seeds and serve with freshly steamed rice. You can now enjoy this extraordinary recipe with absolute confidence. This is a total game changer. Man, that crispiness is to die for. Visually this looks so rustic and just so earthy. This dish really is a beautiful plate in dynamic textures because you have that soft, warm, juicy tofu on the inside and the crispiness of that outer layer wrapped in this deliciously sticky sauce. That sauce brings an incredible amount of umami from the soy sauce, the dark soy sauce, the plant-based oyster sauce, and that delicious cotton candy-like sweetness from the maple syrup. And just a tad subtle note from the black vinegar. All brought together in this nice thick glaze that just wraps around that delightful crispy tofu. There's that hint of that fragrance from the chili oil, adds a little spiciness, a little smokiness in addition to those dried chili peppers if you want to eat those as well. The garlic, the ginger just melts into that sauce, but I really cannot get over how beautifully breaded, crispy, and flaky that batter becomes when rolled into that kind of irregular shaped tofu. So simple to put together, incredibly delicious. The most challenging part about this recipe is that you'll feel compelled to have to make this every single day. I can definitely sit down with this entire bowl and enjoy it all by myself and be a happy camper. If you love easy delicious recipes like me, then definitely check out or pick up your copy of one of the three Young Men Cooking cookbooks. There is a print or digital version of those books. You can also check out the Plant Based Sushi Masterclass or Young Men Cooking merch, including our brand new Young Men Cooking official ramen bowl and spoons. There's a link in the description box below for you to check out all these things. And of course, if you enjoyed today's recipe, definitely give it a thumbs up, leave a comment below. If you're not already subscribed with that notification bell clicked, definitely do so. I'll see you in the next episode.