Three Cup Basil Tofu

From the garden

• 2 cups fresh basil leaves, leaves picked, packed · Thai basil if you grow it, sweet basil if you don't
• 8 cloves garlic, peeled and left whole
• 4 green onions, cut into 2-inch lengths

From the pantry

• 14 oz extra-firm tofu, pressed dry and cut into 1-inch cubes
• 8 oz king oyster or cremini mushrooms, torn into thick pieces
• 1 piece fresh ginger, sliced into thin coins · about a 2-inch knob, skin on
• 3 tbsp toasted sesame oil · the first of the three cups; it is the cooking fat here, not a finish
• 3 tbsp soy sauce
• 3 tbsp dry white wine (or Shaoxing rice wine)
• 1 tsp granulated sugar
• 1½ cups long-grain rice · steamed, for serving

1. Press the tofu between towels for 10 minutes, cut it into 1-inch cubes, and start the rice now so it steams while the sauce reduces.
2. Heat the sesame oil in a wok or heavy skillet over medium, then fry the ginger coins and whole garlic cloves 2–3 minutes, until the ginger curls and the garlic turns gold.
3. Add the tofu and mushrooms in one layer and leave them alone 4–5 minutes, until browned in patches, then turn them, brown the second side, and add the green onions.
4. Pour in the soy sauce, wine, and sugar, the three cups the dish is named for, and simmer 4–5 minutes, spooning the sauce over until it thickens into a clinging glaze.
5. Pull the pan off the heat, pile the basil on top, and cover for 30 seconds so it wilts in the steam without darkening. Fold it through and serve over rice.