As a mostly vegetarian with a serious love for Chinese food, I've spent years perfecting my favorite sauce for rice bowls. The thing is, chinese sauces are made for chicken and pork; on tofu, they often fall flat. But when I came across a recipe for Hoisin-Glazed Chicken in a friend's Food Network magazine, everything changed. The recipe was for a marinade, but it came pretty darn close to that perfect balance of sweet and savory that makes Chinese sauces so wonderful. It even called for my beloved, lip-numbing Szechuan peppercorns. Since my ideal Chinese sauce has ma-la qualities, I upped the peppercorns and added a dried Asian chile to the mix. I also reduced the honey. Over crisp-fried tofu and still-crunchy blanched broccoli, nothing tastes better. <br /> <br />Also, a note about light soy sauce. It's lighter than dark soy sauce, and it's traditionally used in marinating. Try to find Pearl River Bridge Superior Light, but if you can't find it, any Chinese light soy sauce will be great. It's not the same thing as low-sodium soy, though that will work in a pinch. Regular soy sauce will be way saltier than Chinese light, so if using that, reduce amount to 3 tablespoons.

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