By Melissa Clark
Published Feb. 23, 2024
- Total Time
- 1 hour
- Prep Time
- 10 minutes
- Cook Time
- 45 to 55 minutes
- Rating
- 4(142)
- Notes
- Read community notes
In this dish, based on the flavors of Japanese nimono, umami from soy sauce and shiitake mushrooms rounds out the gentle sweet potatoes, which fall apart and thicken the stew as they simmer. The tofu is added in two ways here. Some of it is marinated in the soy sauce and then stirred into the stew for a soft, pillowy texture. Then, the rest is fried until golden and spooned on top as a crisp garnish. You can also leave the tofu out altogether for a speedier but just as satisfying meal.
Featured in: 3 Hearty Vegetarian Stews That Don’t Take Hours on the Stove
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Ingredients
Yield:4 to 6 servings
- 3tablespoons toasted sesame oil, plus more to taste
- 7 to 8ounces shiitake mushrooms, stems discarded, caps sliced ¼-inch-thick
- 1medium onion, halved and thinly sliced
- 1tablespoon grated fresh ginger
- 3pounds sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 2-inch chunks (about 8 cups)
- 2cups dashi (instant or homemade), or use vegetable or chicken broth
- 1piece dried kombu, about 5-inches square (optional)
- 6tablespoons soy sauce, plus more to taste
- 3tablespoons mirin
- 3tablespoons sake
- 2tablespoons raw or turbinado sugar
- 1pound firm tofu, cut into 1-inch cubes
- Salt, as needed
- 1tablespoon cornstarch
- 2 to 3cups baby greens, such as kale, spinach or mustard
- 1teaspoon rice wine vinegar, plus more to taste
- 4scallions, thinly sliced
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (6 servings)
470 calories; 15 grams fat; 2 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 5 grams monounsaturated fat; 7 grams polyunsaturated fat; 63 grams carbohydrates; 11 grams dietary fiber; 17 grams sugars; 22 grams protein; 1166 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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Preparation
Step
1
In a medium pot, heat 2 tablespoons sesame oil over medium-high. Add mushrooms, onion and ginger, and cook, stirring, until golden and tender, 7 to 10 minutes.
Step
2
Add sweet potatoes, dashi, kombu (if using), 5 tablespoons soy sauce, the mirin, sake and sugar. Bring to a lively simmer. Place a piece of parchment paper or another cover directly on top of the liquid (see Tip) and simmer gently until the sweet potatoes are very tender, 30 to 35 minutes.
Step
3
While the stew simmers, line a plate or baking sheet with a clean kitchen towel or paper towels, and place tofu cubes on top. Place another layer of paper towels or wrap up the kitchen towel around the tofu and weigh down with a skillet or plate topped by cans. Let sit for at least 15 minutes. Unwrap and place half of the tofu cubes in a small bowl; drizzle with remaining 1 tablespoon soy sauce and a pinch of salt, and set aside to marinate.
Step
4
In another bowl, toss remaining tofu with cornstarch. Heat a nonstick or well-seasoned cast-iron skillet over medium-high and add the remaining 1 tablespoon sesame oil. Once the oil is hot, add the tofu cubes and fry until crisp, 5 to 7 minutes, turning them on all sides. Transfer cubes to a paper towel-lined plate and season lightly with salt. (Or you can crisp the tofu in the oven or an air fryer; see Tip.)
Step
5
When the sweet potatoes are tender, uncover the stew. If the sauce seems thin, simmer uncovered for a few more minutes to reduce it.
Step
6
Stir the greens into the stew to wilt, then stir in the soy sauce-marinated tofu, any extra soy sauce from the bowl, and the rice wine vinegar. The potatoes may start to fall apart from all the stirring, and that is OK: They’ll thicken the sauce. Taste, adding more salt, soy sauce, sesame oil and rice wine vinegar until it’s bright and savory.
Step
7
Ladle stew into bowls and top with scallions and crispy tofu. Drizzle with more soy sauce if you like, for serving.
Tips
- You’ll need to lay something directly on the top of the stew to allow for some evaporation while keeping the vegetables submerged. You can use parchment paper. Either cut a round just large enough to fit inside your pot, or press a larger piece into the pot touching the surface, and letting the edges stand up. Or, if you can, use a silicone steamer lid or a collapsible steamer basket small enough to fit inside the pot. It’s fine if the lid is smaller than the pot by an inch or so, as long as most of the vegetables stay submerged so they cook evenly.
- You can crisp tofu cubes in the air fryer or roast them on an oiled baking sheet in a 425-degree oven. (Drizzle the top of the cubes with a little oil as well; bake for 20 to 25 minutes.)
Ratings
4
out of 5
142
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Cooking Notes
Em L
Love the new (to me) addition of Prep Time in the recipe metadata! Gentle suggestion to under-promise and over-deliver on those estimates. I might just be a slow line cook, but to me, 10 minutes is an awfully tight timeframe to:* de-stem and slice 8oz of shiitakes* halve and thinly slice an onion* grate 1T of ginger* peel and dice 8c of sweet potatoes* cube 1lb of tofu* thinly slice 4 scallionsAgain, love to see those prep times bubbled up now for readers! Hope they keep dialing that in
Joanne
Hi Theresa, (1) if you put in "tempeh" with an H, you'll get a few more recipes. Silly, I know, but the computer is stupid. (2) I'd say just try subsituting tempeh for tofu in the recipes and see what happens! I would guess the results would be a bit more flavorful since tempeh has more flavor than plain tofu.
Lucille
I wish Melissa would give us her opinion regarding whether recipes freeze well, or can stay a few days in the fridge or neither. Most of her recipes are for four people and we are usually two for dinner.
Whitney M.
What a great recipe! I had everything except the mirin so it was the perfect choice for dinner. The two different tofu techniques was a nice touch although I would be completely happy with just sautéing if time was an issue. I will definitely make this again.
Howard
Fry all of the tofu, rather than 1/2. more flavorful.
Anita
A delicious dish! I skipped the dashi, kombu, mirin ingredients. I fried all my tofu, no cornstarch. I used cremini mushrooms, added garlic, sliced ginger. It was easier to cook in a wok. I fried with grapeseed oil. For me, sesame is only a "finishing" oil. Tasty, served with jasmine rice. Thanks Melissa. Plant based cooking for the win.
Gidian
I would guess the weight is before discarding the stems. But I would also guess that the exact weight of the mushrooms doesn’t even matter that much.
Joan
Hi Anita, toasted sesame oil is a finishing oil. Plain sesame oil is called for here, I believe.
Maria Brooks
I'm a big fan of Melissa and love sweet potatoes - so could not go wrong! I used Japanese Murasaki sweet potatoes. This recipe gives sweet potatoes a wonderful new flavor.
xtiam
Delicious. But the liquid amounts—dashi broth—is too little and the cook time for the sweet potatoes is too long. You end up with a liquidless mush. I would add greens and other 1/2 tofu at the 15 min mark and watch the sweet pot cubes closely, turning off once done but still a little firm. A real stew insues, rather than a mush (however tasty) flecked with tofu.
JKY220
The potatoes needs a lot longer to get soft. I may have had too many in pot (used what I had)
Guy Walker
His Majesty Jack Bishop has one similar with chick peas and cilantro and onion and cumin that doesn't have corn starch and sugar or vinegar, but prunes which make an irresistible gravy.
Kona SF
It was good but will make some changes next time. Too sweet, like sukiyaki, so will eliminate sugar next time. Didn’t have sake so substituted dry white wine and it was fine. Used a tofu press on the whole block of tofu, then cubed, instead of method suggested in recipe - faster and easier. Used the parchment but to really submerge the potatoes I placed a plate on top of the parchment as a weight. Agree with other posts, make it your own.
Kathrine Edwards
This is a recipe where you can shop your kitchen for ingredients. Any mushroom will work. A tsp. of toasted sesame oil combined with olive oil seems safer than over seasoning. Use about half the soy sauce. You can add more later. Add mirin at the end of the sauté to quickly cook off the alcohol. No sugar. Use another cup of broth to submerge the potatoes. Precook kale. Tempeh has more flavor and texture than tofu. Lemon juice tastes better than vinegar. Make it your own.
Trudy
Kathrine, I'd love to try the tempeh, but I've never cooked or even eaten it! Would I sauté it in oil as suggested for the tofu? Does it need the cornstarch? Thanks for your suggestion(s).
Shirley Kaplan
I made this dish without Sake and Tofu and added Chic peas. I totally recommend trying this.
Gayle
I made this stew last night. I started at 5:00 and it took me 45 minutes to do my mise en place! We ate at 7:00 and by then I was pretty tired out. It was absolutely delicious and I'd like to make it again, but maybe try to cut some corners, like sautéeing all the tofu and doing without the marinated half. Also, pour liquid ingredients directly from their bottles instead of setting up all the little cups of mirin, sake, etc. The flavors are great, to be sure. But, how many calories?
Persimmon
When there’s a weight given for mushrooms is that BEFORE or AFTER trimming stems?
Lucille
I wish Melissa would give us her opinion regarding whether recipes freeze well, or can stay a few days in the fridge or neither. Most of her recipes are for four people and we are usually two for dinner.
Melanie
After cooking this one, I’m with Dave. It was sooooo much sweet potato and not enough liquid. Preparing the tofu two ways seems odd and unnecessary. I use the NY Times cooking app with great regularity and love it. This is my first real disappointment, so not bad odds!
peggy
Made this with winter squash. It was wonderful.
Sue
No. I love Melissa's recipes generally, but this just didn't work for us. It's too sweet and it's overpowered by the sweet potatoes. I won't be making this again.
Ken
Recipe is wonderful as written. One adjustment which makes a surprising difference… for the topping, rather than cubes one can tear the tofu slab up by hand. The rough edges create more surface area for cornstarch and result in a crispier crunch.
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