20-Minute Tofu Stir-Fry

This is one of my FAVORITE quick, easy dinner! I make it all the time because it’s so easy to sub in and out whatever I have on hand. Tonight, I made the stir fry with salmon (instead of tofu) and veggies in my fridge (cabbage + carrot + celery), didn’t have lime (subbed lemon), didn’t have chili garlic sauce (subbed sriracha + minced garlic), and it still turned out FAB. Plus, leftovers for tomorrow yippee.

I made this with wholewheat noodles and it was a winner for everyone. Including my kids

So very delicious!

Recently I’ve been buying tofu and freezing it, so I’ll always have some on hand. I get locally made tofu that I basically don’t have to press (The Bridge) for some reason. But when it comes out of the freezer, the texture is perfectly made for crumbling, so I thought I’d try a stir fry for the first time. I usually coat and fry or make steaks. This was so simple, it will probably be my go to from now on! Since the texture changed so much after freezing, I just squeezed the block like a sponge to the get the moisture out and it easily crumbled. I used baby bok choy and sweet onions because that’s what I had. I chopped the sweet onion into wedges like I see at asian restaurants. I also had about 3/4 cup of chopped portobello mushrooms in the freezer. So, I defrosted/steamed them in the microwave first, got rid of the excess moisture and added them to the stir fry. I’m so excited! This one’s a keeper! My husband is a fan too. Thank you!

Everyone liked it – even the meat eaters (that’s all of us 😏). Lots of substitutions: basmati rice instead of cauliflower rice, lettuce instead of cabbage, carrots instead of bell peppers, soy sauce instead of coconut aminos; no green onions, ginger, mushrooms, or peanut butter; added slivered almonds. Substitutions we’re only because it’s what we had on hand.
Yum!

I made a fair number of modifications due to pantry limitations, but followed the general instructions. I substituted tahini for the peanut butter-delicious. I used a similar quantity of vegetables to what the recipe specified, but I used broccoli, red pepper and a little red cabbage. It was very tasty! I was not able to get the marinated tofu to brown, it was just too wet. I will definitely make this again!

This is so delicious and an easy way to make any stir fry taste amazing! I used what I had in the fridge and pantry – Leeks, fennel, carrots, broccoli and shitake mushrooms, and I added one green chilli (slit, sliced and seeded). Also, I used rice noodles instead of the cauliflower rice. I garnished the whole thing with green onions, radishes and cilantro.
It’s really all about that sauce! WOW! I added a little miso to mine, and since I didn’t have chilli garlic sauce at home, I used sweet chilli sauce (TJ) and omitted the maple syrup. So you see this recipe can be adapted easily!

Made this tonight and it was delicious! Loved the sauce – so simple but so yum! I didn’t include chilli because of small kids but we didn’t miss it. Will be adding this to our regular rotation. Thank you!

Oh my GOSH this is so good! Having it with some kimchi and steamed broccoli 😋

I apparently forgot to leave a rating for this recipe in my original post! Sorry! We have enough leftovers for dinner tonight!!! I really like to cook and love one bowl meals so this recipe was a real winner.

This is delicious. Loved the cauliflower rice. I used a full block of tofu and added a bit more vegetables but kept the sauce at the same amount and it worked fine. I used a bit of peanut oil and added sesame oil as a seasoning – I have had problems with sesame oil burning if the pan is too hot. Definitely a keeper. Thanks so much!

Holy moly! This recipe was so good! The best stir fry I have ever made and I make stir fry a lot. Thank you so much for all the delicious recipes, I use your website weekly!

Made this (again). Never gets old. Didn’t have green onions (which I love; just ran out) and used red onion. Oh well. Otherwise, followed the rules for a change.

This recipe is amazing, so flavorful and leaves me full. I’ve been sharing with my friends who are interested in incorporating more plant based recipes. Thank you!!

This sauce is to die for!! I feel like I’m constantly coming back for that recipe and interchanging my stir fry. I tend to use a lot of sauce so I double or even triple the original, but it’s just so good.

I also for the first time used silken tofu (firm variety) and steamed them with some sesame oil. I just was getting bored with regular firm tofu – If you’re looking for a tofu change up, I highly recommend! This way makes them like little clouds for your mouth. :)

Came out perfect. I used whole block of tofu and tripled the other ingredients. Important to watch it carefully to make sure the vegetables kept their crunchy texture. Thank you!

Oh my! SO GOOD!

For the sauce I used sunflower/hemp butter instead of peanut (it’s what I had). For veggies I used sliced onion, sliced fennel, sliced carrots, sliced cremini mushrooms, and asparagus cut in 1.5 inch pieces.

I cooked my well-rinsed, white jasmine rice in veggie stock with a little ginger and coconut aminos.

I used large raw shrimp instead of tofu. I marinated the shrimp in the “tofu” sauce sauce for an hour. My go to cooking method for shrimp – I take a very heavy cast iron pan and preheat it in a 400 electric oven on the *high* rack (placed about 3 inches from the top of the oven – the highest rack). When just about ready to serve the meal… I place the marinated shrimp right on the preheated cast iron and spread out. Close the oven, wait 2 minutes. Pull the cast iron out and change oven heat to high broil. Then flip the shrimp and set under the broiler for 2 minutes. The results are perfectly caramelized shrimp.

Thank you, Dana, for the inspiration! My husband could not get enough! He said this was better than any takeout we have had.

This was absolutely delicious! I used an entire 16 oz package of Trader Joe’s Organic super firm tofu and crumbled it. I added 1 TBSP of cornstarch to the marinated tofu crumbles to help them get a nice brown crust in the pan. I also doubled the amount of sauce in the recipe to account for the extra tofu and because my husband likes saucy food. I kept the remainder of the recipe the same and used brown rice. Since my granddaughter doesn’t like green onions, I left them out of the stir fry and then topped mine and my husband’s portions with the green onions, cilantro and placed lime wedges on the side. So good!! I dare anyone who says they don’t like tofu to try this recipe. You won’t be able to say you hate tofu any longer! Thanks for the great recipe!!

This was love at first bite!!! I doubled the recipe and used radicchio instead of cabbage. You make it so easy and fun to eat vegan. Thank you so much!

This super simple recipe changed the tofu game for me. Total flavor bomb and totally nourishing. Love this recipe.

OMG… Before this recipe I have never tried cauliflower rice, just not a fan. But with peanut butter, soy sauce and everything else I loved it. This is now my go to recipe for easy lunch or dinner.

WOW! This is the best stir fry I have ever had. MB’s recipes are my absolute favourite (ok – the only site I visit for new recipes). Always super easy to follow, full of flavour, and wholesome. This recipe is no exception. I prepped the veggies the night before to make for an easy, after work dinner and marinated the tofu overnight which turned out amazingly. I ended up adding a lot more peanut butter to the sauce because I found it to be too thin and much too salty (but I also used tamari instead of coconut aminos).
Overall a FANTASTIC meal that I will definitely be adding to my rotation.

Absolutely delicious especially with peanut sauce and not hard to make, but not 20 mins… more like 2 hours. Still will be in regular rotation

This was so good and so easy! I swapped out the veggies for what I had in my fridge and it turned out great! Will definitely make again.

I just made this!! I’m slowly trying to work over to whole food/vegan lifestyle and am looking for some great tasty recipes to keep in the rotation. This one definitely is there to stay! I just love stir frys in general too!

Dana, you recipes are on another level. There is no one else online that makes recipes that I would follow exactly and actually put in the effort to make, because they seldom turn out as they appear. However, you pay such attention to detail and I TRUST your recipes. Every single one comes out delicious and this was NO exception. Me and my dad split it between us and we were both SHOOK. I have made your peanut sauce before, but only drizzled it on top of things. Mixing the sauce with the veg/rice/tofu takes it to another level. The only thing I did differently was that I increased the sauce, basically used about 1/3 cup PB and made it thinner with hot water. SOO good.

The whole family love this! Tastes just like restaurant quality! So easy to make, absolutely delicious! Has become a staple meal in our house.

YUMMO!

Fantastic stir-fry and very flexible to tailor to your taste. My husband loves things hot and spicy so I increased the chili sauce with great result. I’ve also substituted the coconut aminos for soy sauce or tamari and all have been fantastic. (Tamari is my favorite.)

I’ve also used different veggies depending on what is in the fridge or the market, but never change the tofu…it’s the best tofu stir fry out there. Definitely five stars and not the same as every other stir-fry.

This recipe was delicious, incredible flavor, loved it! We used almond butter because we didn’t have peanut butter and it worked out great! But it took me about 1 hour to make (not 20 min as advertised) and I’m not a novice. In my experience, most of the recipes on this blog (of which I have tried many) take me 2-3 times as long as the listed time.

Was wondering what to make from lunch while working from home today, so my first stop was MB where I typed “lunch” in the recipe search bar and found this gem. Had all the ingredients on hand and in 20 minutes had a delicious lunch! Used quinoa left over from last night’s dinner (sweet potato black bean burgers) and left out the sesame oil (used low salt veg broth instead). Might trying halving the maple syrup next time as I’m trying to cut out sugar (but I do live in the maple capital of the US).

I immediately made an executive decision to save the leftovers and serve it for dinner (since I’m the only one who had it for lunch, and would happily eat another serving tonight). Thanks for a great recipe!

I’ve actually never posted a review to a recipe before, but after cooking this I felt like I had to! This was seriously the most amazing stir fry, and the best recipe that involved tofu that I have made to date! My fiancé absolutely loved this meal, and it has been quite the battle to get him to enjoy tofu. So much flavor in this recipe, the sauce really takes this dish to another level! We love spice in our house so I increased the chili garlic sauce. Easy to make, will definitely be putting this in our weekly dinner rotation :)

This turned out great! I used tahini instead of peanut butter and added yellow onions in with the veggies. I had trouble cooking the tofu in the wok – it kept sticking – so I switched it to a cast iron and then added it back to the wok with the vegetables. We’ll be adding this to the rotation!

The perfect stir-fry! I’ve made it multiple time. I like to add more veggies such as carrots, brocoli and sometimes bok choy. Thank you for the recipe :)

Have made this several times now and changed up the veggies a few times to include carrots and broccoli as well! I love the sauce from this recipe. Super easy go-to stir fry. Thanks Dana :)

My boyfriend and I have made this several times! We sub tofu for chicken and use chow mein noodles from our local Asian market. When we run out of coconut aminos we’ve used Sauce and a few more dashes of maple syrup for sweetness and worked great! It also makes really easy left overs for the week. I had it for lunch twice last week.

Definitely took way more than 20 minutes, and I’ve subbed to rice noodles / almond butter / tamari, but it was great!

This is a staple recipe in my weeknight rotation now. I make it without rice and just eat the veg. Delicious.

I cooked the veggies too long so they were not as crunchy as I would have liked, but still yummy. (I forgot to turn on the timer.).
Everything else was perfect. will be making again.

Side story:
I was close-ish by and wanted to grab the cookbook, so I drove 20 minutes to Barnes and Noble to get it only to find out that this particular store was out. He graciously offered to call other locations or order it. Who the heck knows how long that would take. I ran home and called up my buddy Jeff Bezos and he for you, no problem I’ll send it tomorrow. So I’ll have my book tomorrow. End of the story .

I’m slowly dominating the kitchen instead of mom haha. My family loved this recipe! I added bok choy for nutrients and it meshed well with the rest of the ingredients.

I’ve made both your General Tso and Crispy Baked Peanut Tofu multiple times – didn’t think you could come up with a recipe I enjoyed more than those. This, however, is my new favourite! The lime juice adds such a nice kick, I wanted to lick the plate! Used cauli rice and had no cabbage so threw in half a bag of diced carrots – perfection. Thank you so much for another amazing tofu recipe!

We will definitely be making this again! I didn’t have shiitake mushrooms on hand, so I used cremini instead and was happy with the flavor. We also omitted the maple syrup because we were content with the sweetness. The last modification we made was the use of chili powder + garlic powder instead of chili garlic sauce. The flavors mixed so well and it was so nice to have a veggie-and-protein-packed dish! It got better after each bite.

OK…so this is probably a favorite for us, it is so delicious. Before I was vegan I can genuinely say that my stir fries never tasted this good…..crazy I know! We never knew how great tofu tasted. You can tell people this and they think….mmm tofu I don’t think so…..but the proof is in the tasting. I sometimes change the vegetables it just really depends what I have in the fridge. Kale and snow peas are a fav!
Again thanks Dana

This is super delicious! Tip, make sure your nut butter is room temp or slightly melted. It was a pain trying to stir it in from the fridge.

I made this twice in the past 2 weeks and am planning on it again this week. It is so good! The first time I made it, I used precooked rice noodles (rather than rice) and added them to the skillet. We all liked that much better when I added rice the second time I made it. Also, since I don’t really like shitake mushrooms, I used criminis.

Made a slightly altered version of this over the weekend and it’s so good that it’s becoming a part of my weekly rotation. The sauce is SO GOOD, you seriously have the best recipes for sauces that I’ve ever came across.

I made this with a pre-packaged Asian Stir-Fry vegetable mix from Trader Joes because I was super lazy and didn’t feel like cutting vegetables. I browned the tofu after marinading it just to give it some texture, and then added it to the stir-fried vegetables – I also added more mushrooms. Then topped the tofu and veg with the peanut sauce. Oh my god. I still can’t get over how flavorful everything was.

This recipe is great! Subbed out the cabbage for kale and used medium firm tofu as that was what I had. The tofu took a little longer to cook but in the end, mmmm…. delicious! Will definitely make it again.

This recipe is amazing! I’ve made it a few times now with a variety of vegetables like broccoli and green peas. We’ve subbed the peanut butter for almond butter too and still tastes amazing. It makes enough for leftovers the next day and still has the same great flavor. Thanks for a great dinner rotation recipe!

This recipe has become a weekly staple in the house! Leftovers are amazing and just as good cold. I still haven’t found coconut aminos, but Braggs/tamari/soy sauce works just fine (add 1/2 of what recipe calls for FIRST and taste due to different salt levels). I use Sambal Oelek for the Chili garlic sauce and double all garlic/ginger amounts. I also use whatever other veggies I have! Tonight is baby carrots, shiitake, cabbage and red peppers. I like to keep the rice separate as well because otherwise I can’t find everything in my fry pan – I often have 6-7 cups of veggies, so I always DOUBLE the sauce too which I recommend. ;) – love love love this recipe.

This turned out great. And I was not surprised as ALL your recipes always work perfectly. Your website is my go to place whether I want to make a 20 minute entree or a dessert or a dip or a salad dressing . You guys are the BEST !

This is the first recipe I have tried from MB and wow….THIS WAS SO GOOD!! Used white rice (forgot to pick up cali rice at the store) and it was great. Any sauce with peanut butter I typically don’t enjoy however this sauce doesn’t have a super heavy peanut flavor! I don’t handle spice well, but this had the perfect amount of kick. I will be making this again and again!

Quick and so delicious! I was perusing your Instagram for inspiration and saw that I had most of the listed ingredients. Subbed rice vinegar for the lime juice as my tree is empty, added some snow peas and used one of those microwaveable pouches of brown rice and quinoa instead of cauliflower rice. Have already shared this recipe with my daughters. Another winner! Thank you!

Such a hit for me! I used my Air Frier instead (400 degrees for 15 minutes) and the tofu was amazing. Had the texture of fresh sea scallops (which is weird I know) but I loved it! You’re the sauce queen.

One of my new favourite tofu recipes! Loved the sauce and the marinate for the tofu. I mixed up the veggies a bit to use what I had on hand. Will make this again!

This was ah-mazing! Quick to make, and family friendly! My 9 month old loved it too! Will definitely be in our dinner rotation!

Forgot to leave rating!

Just made this… I didn’t have coconut aminos (I subbed tamari) or Chili Garlic Sauce (couldn’t find any) and it still turned out fabulous! So far I’m 3 for 3 with Dana’s recipes. I couldn’t be happier. Thank you Dana!! Before your site, I was relegated to eating out because I can be a picky eater and I usually hate everything I cook. Maybe there’s hope for me.

I found this recipe three weeks ago and have already made this four times…yes, my boyfriend and I are obsessed (to say the least).

My suggestions to those trying the recipe:
– Really take time to dry out your tofu! I was having a hard time getting it to brown because I was too quick to throw it into the marinade. Took my time tonight pressing the tofu and it’s browning beautifully.
– This recipe is EASILY adaptable and keeps it’s integrity with different variations! Use any veggies you have, use honey if you don’t have maple syrup, etc.!

Dana – I cannot thank you for this magic dish!

Yummy stir fry! I didn’t have any ginger or coriander and know it would’ve been sooooo much better with it, and some fresh red chili slices too (I like it hot!) – next time I’ll add cashews too ? I threw in whatever veg was in the fridge, luckily it was a good combo!

So delicious! I tweaked the recipe slightly by cooking my tofu in the oven, adding more veggies and using GF noodles (we’re upping the carbs right now). On the menu again next week! Thank you!

Delicious!
I made this yesterday, didn’t have amino acids, so used soy sauce instead. It was little saltier than I would prefer, but oh mine it was delicious!
Will be definitely making again. Thank you so much!

Forgot to leave a rating with my last post! Was delicious and will make this again.

This is a winner in my household. I have made this twice in the last 3 weeks. Once with the same veggies, and used almond butter instead of peanut butter. Second time substitutes the cabbage for broccoli. Good either way. ❤️ this recipe.

So quick and easy to make. So yummy too!

My friend and I just made this tonight and it was FLAMEEEE. So delicious. I’m in college and don’t have excess amount of time to make food, and this recipe came together so quickly. We used a cabbage kit from the grocery store and added radishes and sugar snap peas, plus fresh lemon squeeze, which I would highly recommend. Everything else was followed according to the recipe. This was filling, easy to put together, but still a variety of fresh ingredients to equate a nice substantial dinner. No question will make again.

I made this and it came out great! Doubled the recipe and made it for the wife and mine’s Sunday meal prep. Only thing I changed was instead of riced cauliflower, we used soba noodles. Wow this was delicious! Have a block of tofu sitting in the fridge that I intend to sacrifice to the same cause later this week.

I didn’t have tofu when making this, so I did pretty much the same thing with Tempeh except I marinated the tempeh in coconut aminos, sesame oil, white rice vinegar, salt, some ginger, and garlic. Still came out super delicious! Thank you so much for this recipe!

Made this for dinner on a weeknight. It was easy, quick and fantastic tasting. One thing I love is that this would be easy to “personalize” using varying vegetable combinations, dependent on what you had available at the time. I also love how easily the sauce is adjusted to the flavor you want to be more noticeable- sweet, salty, etc. Will absolutely make this again!

Just made this and it was AMAZING! I didn’t put any red cabbage but it still came out delicios, but I’m definitely going to include it next time so it adds a little crunch and balances out the spicy flavors.

The “20 minute stir-fry” is lying a bit because it took 2 hours to prep and cook for me, even then, cooking it took around 30-40 min for me. But it doesnt even matter because it came out really good!

Also, if you’re trying to feed a family on this recipe, or even a hungry couple, I would go ahead and double it. I made it for my gf and I, but I barely left any for her because I ate so much of it, so I hope she doesn’t kill me when she comes home lol wish me luck guys!

I’ve tried countless stir fry recipes and have always been disappointed. I finally found one that both my husband and I love. It’s got all the right flavors.

So so yummy! I doubled the recipe and it took me more like an hour start to finish, but I will make this again and again.

This will now be one of my staple meals!
I love these kind of recipes, they’re quick, simple, and easy to modify in order to use what’s on hand… and delish!

I decided to try and crumbled the tofu method – awesome! Mine was also served on a bed of baby spinach.

I used diced portobello mushrooms, broccolini (brocolette?), red capsicum (red pepper) and tri-colured quinoa. On typing this up I realised I forgot to add the ginger, but didn’t notice (next time I’ll add it though). I also opted for the aminos over tamari, and only a drop of the sesame oil in the pan before cooking everything up.

Thanks for another great recipe! :-)

This was amazing. I loved the flavor. I doubled the recipe so that I could have it as my lunch or dinner for the rest of the week. If I made it again, I would probably add one more veggie in there to bulk up the dish. This recipe could also be good cold and tossed with greens for a salad. I think I will try that this week!

Loved the concept of this, and was really excited to try it after reading the reviews. BUT I will need to make a few tweaks for next time.

I made a 4 serving portion, but it was totally dominated by the fresh ginger and the chili garlic sauce. I couldn’t taste the lime (which I doubled), the almond butter, the garlic, nor the sesame oil. Note: the 4 serving size portion calls for 2 tsp of chili garlic sauce and I had only used ONE tsp. I used “Yai’s Thai Chili Garlic Hot Sauce”. I don’t know if this one is hotter than other brands?

Next time I make this I will use less ginger and even less chili garlic sauce. I have a pretty high spice tolerance and so does my boyfriend, and we both had the same opinion.

This ended up taking me 1 hour and 15 minutes from start to finish, sooooo very off from the title! End result was a little watery (perhaps from all the covering from cooking?), and needed more salt.

This is in my top 5 favorite vegan recipes to make!!! I added broccoli as I didn’t have cabbage. My daughter tells me it should be on the weekly rotation. Double recipe if you want leftovers because you will want leftovers:-)

Just made this for dinner with basmati rice and my husband and I loved it! Not a veggie combination I’d normally think to use, it was fantastic!

It definitely took me more than 20 minutes, but it was worth it! It was so delicious. I doubled the recipe so we would have leftovers, and I was glad I did!

Yummy! I cooked the tofu on the stove, not the oven (can’t manage balance needed for the oven), and used brown rice, not cauliflower rice. Good as leftovers, too, though there’s not much left.

OMG! I absolutely **LOVE** this. This is a great way to use leftover rice/quinoa as well as when you have random vegetables and you need inspiration. I have already found your other stir fry recipes and going to try them all.

I’d say the 20 minutes is aspirational, but the dish was delicious. I plan to make it a lot to get it down to 20 minutes. Also, this was the first time I’d made cauliflower rice. So easy and delicious. So thank you for that.

Absolutely delicious! Thank you for sharing this great recipe. ?

This was outstanding! I add broccoli, sugar snap peas and zucchini because I needed to use them before they got nasty! Hubby doesn’t like tofu so I left that out. Delicious.