Miss Kim's Fried Tofu

Slice tofu blocks into 1-inch cubes (about 60 cubes). Arrange tofu in an even layer on a baking sheet lined with paper towels. Let drain at least 15 minutes or upto 1 hour. Place paper towels on top of drained tofu, and press lightly to remove additional moisture.

While tofu drains, stir together brown sugar, soy sauce, mirin, 1/2 cup water, vinegar, gochugaru, sesame oil, garlic, and ginger in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium. While mixture comes to a boil, whisk together 3 tablespoons water and 2 tablespoons cornstarch in a small bowl to make a slurry. When brown sugar mixture comes to a boil, reduce heat to medium-low, and stir in slurry. Simmer, stirring occasionally, until sauce thickens and reaches a maple syrup–like consistency, 2 to 3 minutes. Remove from heat.

Stir together 1 cup cornstarch, salt, and 1 tablespoon baking powder in a medium bowl. Using a pastry brush, dust tofu cubes with cornstarch mixture. Place dusted tofu cubes on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper; refrigerate until ready to fry.

Place a wire rack on a baking sheet; set aside. Pour vegetable oil to a depth of 4 inches in a heavy saucepan, and heat over medium until oil reaches 350°F. Whisk together rice flour, remaining 3/4 cup cornstarch, and remaining 1/2 tablespoon baking powder in a medium bowl. Whisk vodka and remaining 1/2 cup water into rice flour mixture until batter is completely smooth.

Preheat oven to 200°F. Working in batches of about 15 cubes and working with 1 cube at a time, use your hand to gently dip 1 dusted tofu cube into batter to coat. Gently place in hot oil, keeping cubes separated to prevent sticking. When tofu floats to the surface and is golden and crispy, 5 to 6 minutes, use a spider or slotted spoon to transfer to prepared wire rack. Place in preheated oven to keep warm while frying remaining tofu.

Rewarm sauce over low. Transfer fried tofu to a large heatproof bowl. Add 1 to 1 1/2 cups of warm sauce to tofu and, using tongs, gently turn tofu to coat, adding more sauce as desired. Using spider, lift glazed tofu from bowl, allowing excess to drip back into bowl, and transfer to a plate. Sprinkle with scallions and sesame seeds, and serve with remaining sauce, if desired. Serve immediately.