First, she presses extra-firm tofu for at least 30 minutes—ideally an hour—using either a tofu press or a cutting board weighted down with cans. Then she slices it into roughly 1-inch cubes, so each piece crisps up evenly. There’s a quick flavor boost next: a marinade of 1 tablespoon soy sauce, 1 teaspoon rice vinegar, and 1 teaspoon neutral oil. She soaks the cubes for 10–15 minutes, just enough to season the interior without rehydrating the tofu’s surface. For coating, she settles on 2 tablespoons of cornstarch per 14-ounce block of tofu. Tossed lightly, each cube gets a thin, even dusting that will puff right up in the pan. She heats 3 tablespoons of vegetable oil in a heavy skillet over medium-high heat—about 350°F if you have a thermometer. The tofu goes in in a single layer, undisturbed, for 3–4 minutes. When the bottoms are golden-brown, she flips each piece and continues cooking for another 3 minutes. A quick drain on paper towels removes excess oil. She tested four other methods—oven-bake at 400°F for 30 minutes, air-fry at 375°F for 15 minutes, shallow pan-fry without a press or coating, and deep-fry at 375°F. The oven-bake method was the easiest but left the cubes pale and only mildly crisp. Air-fry produced decent crunch but dried out the centers. Pan-fry without coating yielded floppy edges and uneven browning. Deep-fry delivered maximum crunch but soaked up too much oil and overwhelmed the flavor. This skillet method nails that balance: each cube has a crackling shell and a tender, moist core. The soy-vinegar marinade gives a subtle tang without making the tofu soggy. Cleanup’s minimal—just wipe out the pan and rinse the bowl. It’s a technique you can scale up or down and tweak with spices—smoked paprika, garlic powder or chili flakes—right in the cornstarch layer.