Shunji Tomato Agedashi Tofu [MOVED]

Japanese Food Los Angeles

Shunji Nakao approximates agedashi tofu with tomato at his West LA restaurant.

The servers are cagey at chef Shunji Nakao’s round restaurant in a former West LA rib joint by the I-10 on-ramp. During a recent dinner, whenever I asked questions about how certain dishes were made, my server would quickly rattle off a couple of the most obvious ingredients and end her sentence with “some other things.” This got to be a running joke. Still, it’s hard to begrudge Chef Shunji and his staff for maintaining a veil of secrecy surrounding some of his most impressive dishes. However, his signature Tomato Agedashi Tofu ($9) remains my favorite dish, and probably the biggest head scratcher.

Agedashi Tofu, creamy bricks of deep-fried tofu served in dashi broth, has become famous at restaurants like Raku in Las Vegas. Shunji actually makes “tofu” from tomatoes. Five tomatoes to be exact, formed into a square and blistered on the outside, creating sticky, delectable caramelization. His “tofu” rested in a shallow pool of savory broth. On top, Shunji placed a single eggplant medallion and a mild shishito pepper. Was the tomato’s consistency anything like tofu? Hardly, but tomato agedashi tofu is still a sensational dish.

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Joshua Lurie

Joshua Lurie founded FoodGPS in 2005. Read about him here.

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