Will prepping ahead of time affect this vegan chili?

November 8, 2017 10:34 AM

I've made this recipe once before and was pretty happy with the results...I would like to make the chili tomorrow but do as much prep as I can today, while chopping/working on a separate meal. There are 2 main components to the dish; the chili and the tofu crumbles that you stir in, and I'm hoping to cook the tofu today and be able to stir it in tomorrow.

However, i'm worried this might affect the overall outcome of the dish, since stirring the freshly baked but dry tofu into the chili right after cooking seems to help absorb the moisture. If I bake the tofu today, refrigerate overnight and then stir in tomorrow, can one say definitively if it would affect the taste? (If it's risky I could bake the tofu tomorrow, but since I'm firing up the oven today trying to combine as many things as I can.)

posted by andruwjones26 to Food & Drink (6 answers total)

Best answer: I'd roast the tofu today, seal the cooled tofu in a bag or other airtight container so it doesn't absorb any moisture from the air, and put it in the fridge overnight. I can't imagine the texture will be far off from where you expect. It's hard to see how the taste will change at all.
posted by Sunburnt at 10:42 AM on November 8, 2017

Is there any way you could just make the chili today? The recipe write-up says that leftover chili is 'even better the next day,' which is true for all chili, imo. I feel like if you roast, refrigerate, and then reheat the tofu, it might be closer to rubbery than chewy, or get recalcitrant about absorbing the liquid well.
posted by halation at 10:56 AM on November 8, 2017 [2 favorites]

Best answer: I have baked and frozen tofu and it's fined. Any difference shouldn't be noticeable if you are crumbling it into chili.
posted by grobstein at 11:15 AM on November 8, 2017

I doubt you'll notice any difference, so yes, cook the tofu today.
posted by O9scar at 12:19 PM on November 8, 2017

Honestly, if you can, the best option might be to make it all today. Every chili I've ever had on two separated days, was better on the later date.
posted by notsnot at 2:18 PM on November 8, 2017 [3 favorites]

Thirding "make it all today." Chili gets better in the fridge.
posted by Johnny Wallflower at 10:14 PM on November 8, 2017