Nikudofu (肉豆腐, simmered beef and tofu)

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Wide shallow pan or donabe-style clay pot
• •Wooden drop-lid (otoshibuta), or a circle of parchment
• •Cooking chopsticks or tongs

Instructions

1. 1

   Drain the tofu

   Set the tofu on a plate lined with a clean cloth or paper towel for ten minutes, then cut it into eight sturdy pieces. This small wait matters. Tofu holding too much water thins the broth, while drained tofu drinks the seasoning and keeps its clean soybean taste.

2. 2

   Mix the broth

   In a bowl, stir together the dashi, soy sauce, mirin, sake, and sugar until the sugar dissolves. Taste it now. It should be a little stronger, sweeter, and saltier than you want the finished spoonful, because the tofu and onion will soften it as they simmer.

   Use real dashi if you can. Powder will make dinner, yes, but this dish has so few parts that flat stock has nowhere to hide.
3. 3

   Start the vegetables

   Warm the oil in a wide shallow pan over medium heat. Add the onion and the white parts of the scallions and cook for two minutes, just until glossy at the edges. You are not browning them. You only want their sweetness to wake up before the broth goes in.

4. 4

   Simmer the tofu

   Pour in the broth and bring it to a gentle simmer. Set the tofu pieces in a single layer, leaving a little space between them, then cover with a wooden drop-lid, otoshibuta, or a circle of parchment with a small hole in the center. Simmer for six to seven minutes so the tofu warms through and takes on the broth without being knocked apart.

5. 5

   Add the beef

   Slide the beef into the simmering broth in loose folds, separating the slices as they go in. Cook for two to three minutes, turning once with chopsticks, until the pink has just disappeared. Thin beef cooks by a glance, not by a clock, and stopping early keeps it tender.

6. 6

   Finish and serve

   Add the green scallion pieces for the final minute, just until their color brightens and their sharpness softens. Taste the broth. If it is too strong, add a spoonful of dashi; if it is too quiet, add a few drops of soy sauce. Serve in shallow bowls with rice, spooning a little broth over the tofu and beef, but do not drown them.

Chef Tips

• •Buy beef sliced for sukiyaki or shabu-shabu if your market has it. If not, freeze a small piece of chuck or ribeye until firm, then slice it as thinly as your knife allows. The cut is the tenderness.
• •Firm tofu is easier for a weeknight pan than silken tofu. Silken is delicate and lovely, but here it breaks if you look at it too sternly.
• •Keep the simmer gentle after the tofu goes in. A hard boil roughs up the tofu and tightens the beef, and this dish has no heavy sauce to cover such mistakes.
• •For a fuller winter bowl, add shirataki noodles or a few shiitake mushrooms, but keep the balance. Nikudofu should still taste of beef, tofu, scallion, and broth.

Advance Preparation

• •The broth can be mixed up to one day ahead and refrigerated.
• •The tofu can be drained and cut several hours ahead; keep it covered in the refrigerator.
• •Nikudofu is best cooked just before serving, because thin beef toughens when reheated. Leftovers keep one day and should be warmed gently.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 225g)