Tofu & Tempeh Stir-Fry with Sesame Noodles

Ingredients

• 1 tbsp rice vinegar
• 3 tbsp soy sauce
• 2 tbsp tahini
• 1 tbsp sesame oil
• 1 tbsp sriracha
• 300 g firm tofu, drained, pressed, and cut into cubes
• 200 g tempeh, cut into cubes
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 150 g sugar snap peas
• 1 thumb-sized piece ginger, grated
• 2 tbsp vegetable oil
• 200 g pak choi, halved
• 300 g soba noodles
• 3 spring onions, sliced
• 2 tbsp toasted sesame seeds
• Pickled cucumber, to serve
• Fresh coriander, to serve

Method

1. Whisk the soy sauce, tahini, rice vinegar, sesame oil and sriracha together with 3 tablespoons of warm water until smooth and pourable. Taste it now — it should be punchy, nutty, and sharp from the rice vinegar. Most of the salt comes from the soy, but adjust with a pinch if it needs lifting.
2. Bring a large pan of well-salted water to the boil — it should taste like the sea. Cook the soba for 4–5 minutes until just tender, then drain and rinse under cold water to stop the cooking and wash off the surface starch that makes them clag together.
3. Pat the tofu and tempeh thoroughly dry and season generously with salt and pepper — water on the surface means steam, and steam means no browning. Heat the vegetable oil in a wok over high heat until it shimmers and just starts to wisp.
4. Lay the tofu and tempeh into the wok in a single layer — work in two batches if your wok is on the smaller side. Crowd the pan and they'll steam in their own moisture instead of crisping. Leave them alone for 3–4 minutes until deeply golden underneath, flip and give them another 2 minutes on the second side, then lift out onto a plate.
5. Drop the garlic and ginger into the hot wok and stir-fry for 30 seconds, just until fragrant and pale gold — don't burn it. Burnt garlic turns the whole stir-fry bitter and you can't fix it. Add the pak choi and sugar snap peas and stir-fry hard for 3 minutes, until the greens are vivid and snap when you bite a piece.
6. Return the tofu and tempeh to the wok with the drained noodles. Pour the sauce down the side of the hot pan so it sizzles as it hits, then toss everything together vigorously for 2 minutes until the noodles are glossy, slick, and piping hot. Taste, season, taste again — adjust now, not at the table.
7. Divide between four bowls. Scatter over the sliced spring onions and toasted sesame seeds, and serve straight away while the noodles are still glossy.