This is a banger of a recipe from local Brighton blogger, Brighton Food Boy.
Not only is he the go-to for honest restaurant food reviews, he’s “always hungry, just in case”. Char Siu Tohu, this marinade packs a punch, add more chilli if you like it hot, it’s a definite crowd pleaser.

everything you need

Serves 2

For the marinade:
10g garlic, minced
10g ginger, minced
1 tsp Chinese five spice
1 tsp rice wine
2 tsp toasted sesame oil
2 tsp rice vinegar
2 tbsp tamari or soy sauce
3 tbsp hoisin sauce
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For the crispy garlic:
2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
Oil for frying
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For the other stuff:
160g rice (of your choice)
1/3 cucumber, diced
2 spring onions, thinly sliced
2 tsp toasted sesame seeds
chilli oil
baking parchment

Step 1

Mix all of the sauce ingredients together in a bowl.
Cut the block of Tohu into 1/4 inch slices and gently add to the marinade, making sure every slice is well covered.
Cover the bowl and leave to marinade in the fridge for at least 3hrs.

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Step 2

Thinly slice the spring onions and set aside. Prep the cucumber by removing the watery core, then dicing into bitesize pieces.

Put a small pan on a low-medium heat and add oil (sunflower or other flavourless oil) to a depth of 1-2cm. Thinly slice the garlic and add to the oil. Move the garlic around frequently and keep an eye on it to make sure it doesn’t burn. Once golden (about 5mins), remove from the oil and spread out on some kitchen roll to cool.

Toast the sesame seeds in a dry pan on a medium heat. Stir frequently and keep an eye on them to make sure they don’t burn. Once slightly golden, remove from the pan into a bowl to cool and set aside.

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Step 3

Preheat your oven to 180 fan.
Remove the marinated Tohu slices from the bowl and spread out on a sheet of baking parchment, on a baking tray.
Keep any leftover marinade aside. Make sure the slices aren’t overlapping.
We want the edges of each to go nice and crispy.
Put the tray in the centre of the oven for 30-35mins.
Turn the slices every 10mins or so.

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Step 4

While the Tohu is in the oven, cook your rice.
Build your bowl in the following order:
Rice, cucumber, Tohu, 1-2 tbsp of marinade, spring onions, crispy garlic, chilli oil.

back to ingredients
Brighton food boy - Tohu

Born in Malaysia, Gary spent his childhood between Oman, Malaysia and the UK before settling in Brighton.

Running his own web design business for the last 10 years, he has always had a passion for food, and blogs about the Brighton & Hove food scene in his spare time. You’ll find him on Instagram as @brightonfoodboy and his website brightonfoodboy.com is full of great recommendations on where to eat, and more importantly, what to order.

He recently launched his own food brand called Yumlah, producing small batches of Acar (ah-char) – a Malaysian vegetable pickle from his grandma’s family recipe, which he makes at the Plant Stories Kitchen.

Gary-Simmons