Crispy Teriyaki tofu with Chinese pancake and plum sauce

INGREDIENTS

250g firm Tofu

for the teriyaki sauce

1/2 thumb sized piece of Ginger

1 clove Garlic

1/2 red chilli Chilli

1/2 stalk Lemongrass

5 tbsp Tamari 

3 tbsp Maple syrup

3 tbsp water 

1 pak choi

4 tbsp water

2 tbsp sesame seeds

raw veg to serve

Scallions

Carrot

Chinese pancake

1x 8oz cup of white flour

1.5 x 8oz cup of water

large pinch salt

3 tbsp ground flax seeds

1 tbsp sesame oil

plum sauce

4 ripe plums

1/2 chopped onion

2 tbsp apple cider vinegar

5 tbsp maple syrup

3 tbsp soy sauce/ tamari

1/2 thumb sized piece of ginger

1 clove

1/4 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp fennel ground or seeds

1/4 tsp all spice

1/2 tsp black pepper

pinch salt

METHOD

• Press the tofu. Place a tea bowl over a chopping board, place the tofu block on top and add a weight. We are doing this to remove some of the moisture from the tofu making it easier to brown when we go to cook it.
• First lets make plum sauce. Chop plums in half and twist to remove the stone. Add to blender along with the rest of the plum sauce ingredients. Blend till smooth. Pour into a saucepan and bring to the boil, reduce to a simmer and leave to simmer for 10 mins stirring occasionally allowing the sauce to thicken and reduce and to cook off the raw onion and ginger flavour.
• While plum sauce reduces and cooks off lets make the teriyaki sauce. Wash and rinse the blender. Add all ingredients for the teriyaki sauce to a high speed blender and blend till smooth. Note that if you don’t have a high speed blender chop the lemongrass, garlic and ginger super fine. Pour into a jug and put aside. 
• Remove the plum sauce from the heat and put aside
• Time to make our pancakes. In a blender add all ingredients and blend till smooth. Don’t worry if the batter is quite lose and runny.
• Time to make tofu. Press your firm tofu to remove some of the moisture making it easier to brown our tofu. Chop the tofu into thin strips.
• Heat up a non stick frying pan till super hot. Add 2 tablespoons of oil and cook each side of the tofu until it is nicely and evenly browned. Put half it back in the pan take our teriyaki sauce and add half to the pan and enjoy the sizzle. Turn the tofu so that all sides of the tofu are glazed with the teriyaki sauce and fully imparted with flavour so that they become flavour bombs.
• Repeat with the remaining tofu and the remaining teriyaki sauce. Once cooked remove the tofu.
• Take the head of pak choi, remove the base and add 4 long stalks to the pan along with 4 tbsp of water to glaze and add the sauce that is stuck to the pan. If this starts to evaporate too quick just add a little more water. Turn on the heat and cook until the pak choi is nice and soft but still maintains it green colour.
• Pancake time. Take a clean non stick frying pan and put on high heat. Once hot reduce the heat to a medium heat and add 1 tbsp oil. Pour enough batter to make a thin crepe like pancake, cook till the batter dries out and turn and cook the other side then repeat. With this amount of batter you will get 6 pancakes.
• To plate up - add a generous serving of plum sauce, slice the pak choi, spring onions and carrots thinly and at and angle and sprinkle on top of the plum sauce, add some tofu. Last and finally addition is to finely slice a red chilli and sprinkle on top along with some sesame seeds. 
• Repeat with the other pancakes and enjoy!