Antara Sinha

Silken tofu gives these strawberry-flavored mochi-tofu doughnuts (inspired by pon de ring doughnuts popularized in Japan) a chewy, springy texture, while mochiko (sweet glutinous rice flour) helps the doughnuts get an airy, crispy crust. The dough and glaze get their strawberry flavor from strawberry powder; to make your own, pulse freeze-dried strawberries in a food processor until finely ground. This recipe can be adapted to make lemon-flavored doughnuts; read to the bottom of the recipe for instructions on how to make the lemon pon de ring variation.

Medium-firm tofu has just enough moisture to crumble into a scrambled egg–like texture in this breakfast dish inspired by Indian anda bhurji. Slightly pink in color, the kala namak (black salt) adds eggy, sulfurous flavors to this dish.

Freezing and thawing extra-firm tofu and then wringing out its moisture makes the slabs more porous and receptive to the tangy pickle juice marinade in this craveworthy fried tofu sandwich. After a brief soak in pickle juice, the tofu is dredged in a spiced flour mixture, brushed with a hot sauce and mustard, and then dredged again and fried to yield the crispy, crunchy slabs for a satisfying vegetarian meal that gives fried fish sandwiches a run for their money.

When it's dried, tofu skin (doufu pi in Mandarin, yuba in Japanese) becomes earthy and chewy. It's sold in many shapes and is hardy enough to withstand braises, bold sauces, and stir-fries, mimicking the texture of shredded meat. In this recipe, dried tofu skin sticks are broken into pieces, rehydrated until pliable, and then stir-fried and with an umami-rich chile oil and soy sauce.

Briefly heating spices and dried chiles in oil or ghee allows their flavors to bloom, creating a flavorful tadka that serves as the backbone of this dish. It also adds a crispy, spicy finish to the creamy mixture of mung beans, lentils, and pigeon peas.