Crispy General Tso's tofu

Pat the extra-firm tofu dry with a paper towel.

Break the tofu into bite-sized pieces; the irregular shapes give a crisper outer layer.

Toss the tofu with the soy sauce, maple syrup and toasted sesame oil and marinate a few minutes.

Set up two bowls, one dry station with 1 cup of flour, one wet station with half a cup of flour dissolved in three quarters of a cup of water.

Coat half the tofu in the dry station, then the wet station, then the dry station again, and transfer to a plate without handling it much.

Repeat with the remaining tofu.

Variation: bake the battered tofu at 400 degrees with oil sprayed on, flipping occasionally until golden brown.

Heat the avocado oil in a frying pan over medium heat a few minutes, until a bamboo chopstick raises fast moving bubbles.

Fry the tofu in two batches, 4 to 6 minutes on the first side, checking for golden brown.

Flip and fry the other side 3 to 4 minutes, then transfer to a cooling rack; it keeps cooking there while the oil is hot.

Finely chop the garlic and ginger.

Heat the chili oil in a saute pan over medium heat and saute the garlic and ginger a few minutes until fragrant.

Add the dried red chilies and saute another couple of minutes.

Add the maple syrup, plant-based oyster sauce, soy sauce, dark soy sauce and black vinegar and cook about a minute.

Combine the potato starch with the water and pour the slurry into the sauce while stirring; the pan heat thickens it. Stir in more water if it looks too thick.

Add the crispy tofu and coat it in the sauce without cooking it further.

Plate, sprinkle over white sesame seeds and serve with freshly steamed rice.