Appetite for Reduction: Scallion Potato Pancakes and Hoison Mustard Tofu

"Good! It's like breaded mashed potatoes" is how my husband described the Scallion Potato Pancakes from Appetite for Reduction. The pancakes are made from mashed yukon gold potatoes, scallions, toasted sesame oil, and panko breadcrumbs, then coated in more panko breadcrumbs and baked until crispy. The light taste of sesame is just perfect. I couldn't stop eating the mashed potato mixture out of the bowl and would make it again as an interesting take on mashed potatoes, but the finished, crispy pancakes were great. I'd serve them as an appetizer with some type of soy sauce dip too. They were hard to handle, though, and didn't stay together well while I was shaping and coating them, so mine were a little thicker than the recipe called for so I could keep them from falling apart. They were still really good.I had them last night for dinner with the Hoison Mustard Tofu. I know I often say "This is the best X I've ever had!" because I love nearly everything I try. But, seriously, this may be THE BEST TOFU I'VE EVER HAD! The tofu itself has the texture of fried tofu without all the fat of frying. The cubed tofu is dry-fried in a skillet with just a little cooking spray and then a few splashes of soy sauce midway through. I was skeptical of this technique and unsure how it would come out, but I'd swear it was fried tofu if I didn't know. Then there's the sauce. Ohhhh....the sauce. I didn't use red pepper because I can't eat it, so my sauce started with some diced onion, garlic, ginger, and red pepper flakes. Once the veggie mix was soft and brown, I added mirin, then hoison sauce and yellow mustard. I like a little mustard but not a lot, so I used half the mustard the recipe called for.

This sauce was divine. The tofu in the sauce was heavenly. And the tofu, sauce, and scallion potato pancakes together were out of this world. This is the best meal I've had since...uh, Wednesday when I had the Mediterranean Bowl :-)

The only bad thing was the time to make it. From when I started peeling potatoes to when I sat down to eat, it was just under two and a half hours, and that was mainly for the pancakes, which had a time estimate of 50 minutes. Maybe if you have your potatoes peeled and boiled in advance it would take 50 minutes, but not if you need to do all the prep.

Another huge two thumbs up. This meal was fabulous, and I'll definitely make it again (and probably again and again and again.)