I remember the first time I tried tofu. It was raw in a whole grain wrap along with some mustard and veggies and I honestly couldn’t finish it. And when it comes to food I’m a trooper. I’ll finish just about anything as I hate wasting food. But, tofu did not strike my fancy from the start and it’s never really been my favorite, even in my hardcore vegetarian days.
But, that all changed recently during a trip to San Antonio when I ate the best tofu of my life. It was in a veggie stir-fry over coconut brown rice at a restaurant called Green Vegetarian Cuisine. If you’re ever in the area you must stop by and try this dish. Your view of tofu will be forever changed – promise.
Two bites in and I was in heaven. I had to flag the waitress down and ask her how in the world they made the tofu taste so good! I thought it was fried, but it wasn’t. Haaaa-llelujah.
The best part? It wasn’t wet or soft or soggy or lacking in flavor at all like all of the tofu I’d tried prior. She rattled off a few instructions and I made a mental note. That same week I hopped in the kitchen and gave it a go myself.
It really worked you guys! I love tofu now. It might not be as delicious as Green Vegetarian Cuisine’s version, but it’s very close. And the more I practice the better I’ll get. I have a very good feeling about this.
The basic trick is first drying the tofu, then baking it at a high temperature to brown it and create a tougher texture, and then letting it set out to dry even more. This gives it a “meat-like” texture, if you will, that makes it much more porous to soak up delicious sauces and far more appetizing in the texture department. With this tofu I can’t help but finish it all – it’s too delicious not to!
For this recipe I made a quick and simple stir-fry* but once you have the basics down this tofu could be used in just about any recipe you already love. It works extremely well in stir fries because they tend to be very saucy, but I also imagine it would be delicious over salad, in faux-egg salads and even with BBQ sauce.
I hope to incorporate it into more of the meals we regularly prepare to see just how versatile it is. But from what I’ve tasted so far, I have very high hopes.
*Note: learn more about stir fry and its origin here.
Because it was diced, baked, left out to dry and then stir-fried in the sauce, the tofu soaked up so much flavor, rendering it absolutely irresistible. Try this tofu and let me know what you think! I think even your tofu-hating friends will approve.
More Tofu Stir Fry Recipes
- 20-Minute Tofu Stir-Fry
- Almond Butter Tofu Stir-Fry
- General Tso’s Tofu Stir-Fry
- Crispy Peanut Tofu & Cauliflower Rice Stir-Fry
Tofu That Tastes Good: Stir-Fry
Ingredients
STIR FRY
- 1 14-ounce package firm or extra-firm tofu
- 2 cups roughly chopped green beans
- 1 cup diced carrots or red pepper
- 2 Tbsp toasted sesame oil for sautéing (or sub peanut or coconut)
SAUCE
- 1/4 cup low-sodium soy sauce (ensure gluten-free for GF eaters)
- 1 Tbsp fresh grated ginger
- 2 Tbsp organic brown sugar (reduce slightly for less sweet sauce)
- 1 Tbsp agave or maple syrup (or honey if not vegan // reduce slightly for less sweet sauce)
- 1 Tbsp cornstarch
FOR SERVING optional
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (204 C) and begin drying your tofu. Drain, remove it from the package and place between two thick towels folded into the shape of the tofu. Then place a plate or bowl on top and top it with something heavy like a book or skillet. Alternatively, use a tofu press.
- Let it dry for about 15 minutes, changing your towels if they get too wet. Once dry, unwrap, chop tofu into roughly 1-inch cubes or rectangles (see photo).
- Arrange tofu on a lightly greased or parchment-lined baking sheet to prevent sticking and bake for a total of 25-35 minutes, flipping once halfway through to ensure even cooking. This will dry out the tofu and help give it a more meat-like texture. If you want a tougher texture, cook it for 30-35. For a slightly more tender texture, pull it out at 20-25 minutes to check.
- Once it’s golden brown and a bit tough and firm, remove from the oven set it out to dry a bit more while you prep your vegetables. Ideally, it would set out another 45 minutes or even longer. I haven’t tried letting it set out for much longer, but I don’t think it would hurt either way.
- If serving over rice, start the rice at this point.
- In a small mixing bowl, whisk together all of the sauce ingredients – set aside.
- To a large skillet over medium-high heat, add sesame oil and swirl to coat. Then add veggies and toss to coat. Cook for 5-7 minutes, stirring often. When the vegetables have some color and have softened a bit, add the sauce and stir. It should bubble and thicken. Then add the tofu and stir to coat.
- Cook the mixture for 3-5 minutes, stirring often. When veggies are cooked to your preferred doneness, remove from heat. Serve as is or over rice for a more filling meal. Best when eaten fresh, though will keep in the refrigerator for a couple days.
Miriam Veffer says
This has become a staple in our home!! We love it so much and the best part is that all 3 of my kids eat it too! Thank you for always coming out with the best recipes!
Yay! Thanks for sharing, Miriam!
Linda Higdon says
Okay, so I made this yumminess tonight for dinner. I loved it and so did my husband. The next time I would not use the maple syrup. For me it was a tad bit heavy, but otherwise talk about quick, simple and loved the tip on how to dry out the tofu. (My husband is not a tofu lover, so this recipe with a way to dry out and bake the tofu worked for him!)
RATE THIS AN “A”
Thanks for sharing, Linda! xo
Frances Cowan says
Afraid it’s too salty for me even with a low sodium tamari.
The tofu came out well. I used much more ginger & much less sugar
Hi Frances, sorry to hear that! Feel free to scale back on the tamari next time or maybe try coconut aminos?
Heather says
I was making a Gordon Ramsey stir fry that included mushrooms, which I didn’t have; so, I substituted tofu, baked as you suggested. Wow! I’ve never baked tofu like that and what a huge difference it made to the finished dish. I served the stir fry over brown rice, and included your peanut sauce, (to which I added a teaspoon of sesame oil), serving it in a little jug at the table, along with chopped almonds and chopped green onions. What a delicious meal! From now on, I will always bake our tofu when adding it to stir fries. Thanks!
Right?! SO glad you enjoyed it, Heather! Thanks for sharing!
Michelle says
Im not very familiar with cooking with tofu & want to give your recipe a try. How long do you press the tofu for? I didn’t see the recipe for the peanut dipping sauce that’s you have in the photo. Pls send. Many thanks!
Hi Michelle, press for about 15-30 minutes. Hope that helps!
Max says
It was a tasty dish but I unfortunately used regular soy-sauce and it ended up being wayyyyy too salty or my girlfriend and I’s taste. But I will go to the store next time and pick up the low sodium soy sauce and I am positive that this will come out exactly how I want it. Thanks for giving me the motivation to start trying to make stir fry’s again.
Sorry to hear it was too salty! Low sodium should help for next time. Let us know how it goes!
Jo says
Hello, the dish looks delicious and I’d like to try making it. What is the oven temperature you used for baking tofu? Thanks.
Hi Jo, it’s 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
Kathleen says
Had never baked / dried out the tofu before putting it in the stir fry. Yowza! Game changer! It really does get more of a meatier consistency this way. Thank you so much for this recipe!
Whoop! So glad you enjoyed it, Kathleen! xo
R says
This was the first successful tofu dish I’ve ever made, which was incredibly exciting for me. Even my partner, who is convinced they hate tofu, loved it and ended up eating the leftovers.
I substituted cauliflower rice for the rice and that was okay, but I think next time I will just add broccoli and keep the rice. For everything else, I just stuck to the recipe and I couldn’t be happier with how it turned out.
Whoop! We’re so glad you enjoyed it! Thanks so much for sharing! xo
Kristin says
This was so delicious! I switched it up a bit and sautéed the tofu with a little of the sauce separately and sautéed a chicken thigh in sauce separately as my husband is a meat eater, but it was wonderful! I usually don’t like the texture of the tofu but the oven and sitting out made it chewy and perfect and it soaked up all of that delicious sauce! Will definitely be making this again soon.
We’re so glad you enjoyed it, Kristin! Thanks so much for the lovely review! xo
Kesia says
Absolutely love this recipe. I’m commenting as I’m eating lol I added mushrooms and broccoli and it came out delicious! I attempted similar recipes and failed miserably. This recipe just brought back my confidence. Thank you so much!!!
Whoop! We’re so glad you enjoyed it, Kesia! Thanks so much for the lovely review!
Nicolette says
Thank you, from the bottom of my cold, millennial-ish heart, for writing the first recipe my partner has ever requested of me to repeat! haha
Ha! We’re so glad it turned out well =) Thanks for sharing, Nicolette!
Deb says
Absolutely wonderful flavor!
Tyson says
This was really good! I took the suggestion from the note and cut the sugar down, and cheated and used a frozen pre-packaged stir fry.
But the big deal here… I’ve tried stir-frying tofu a few times and never really liked the way it fell apart. Problem solved with the oven. Thank you!
We’re so glad you enjoyed it, Tyson! Thanks for sharing!
aamna says
i made this and it was amazing!! my whole family loved the flavor as did i. one thing id say is to have the pan at med-low heat instead of med-high heat when you add the sauce. the cornstarch in the sauce stuck to the non-stick pan i was using lol. i think it’s bc the heat was too high! i used mushrooms and red bell pepper for my veggies and overall the dish was great. i’m gonna make this again for sure!
Lovely! Thanks for sharing, Aamna!
Ella says
I used the method of cooking the tofu, not the whole recipe. It came out PERFECT for our stirfry and honestly so easy. Next time I would slice the tofu into strips and not cubes.
Thanks for sharing, Ella! We’re so glad you enjoyed the tofu!
Tariq says
Really enjoyed this recipe, came out great and very easy to prepare!
Thank you! 🙏🏼
We’re so glad you enjoyed it, Tariq! Thanks so much for sharing!
Rachel says
Loved this tofu technique! I cut the block into 3 rows on the shorter side, then turned and cut 4 rows on the longer side, then cut each resulting rectangle in half height-wise. (Does that make sense??) So I wound up with 24 cubes. Did 12 minutes in the oven, flipped them over, did another 10, then took them out and let them sit another hour til I was ready to make the stir fry. They had a nice hearty chewiness, but were still spongy enough to soak up the sauce. This is definitely my new go-to way to prep tofu, thanks!
We’re so glad you enjoyed it, Rachel! Thanks so much for sharing!
Jeanie Donovan says
Great recipe! Thank you so much for the wonderful explanation. I work for a Dr who loves this recipe and requests it so often, it’s written in the house notebook! It’s especially great for someone like me who has never cooked tofu! Now I’m a tofu stir fry 🌟 star Thanks to you!
Whoop! Thanks for sharing, Jeanie!
Lisa says
I’ve made many variations of tofu stir fry since my daughter gave up eating meat. This one was loved by all 5 members of my family. Thank you for a recipe I will keep on regular rotation!
Thanks so much for the lovely review, Lisa. We are so glad you enjoyed it! Next time, would you mind leaving a rating with your review? It’s super helpful for us and other readers. Thanks so much! Xo
Shane says
This is one of my favourite recipes of all time! I make this at least once a week and it never fails. It’s incredibly easy to make and really versatile. I find that increasing the amount of sauce used by 50% and then adding-in broccoli makes it even more filling. As well, if you can find it, using any sort of sesame-infused tofu is absolutely perfect for this dish.
Whoop! Thanks so much for the lovely review, Shane!
Kyle Hislip says
My wife said this was “Restaurant Quality” food, and she has pretty fine taste in eating. We served this on top of Farro and it was delicious. Came together pretty quickly too. Used Trader Joe’s extra firm tofu, but drained/cooked it per your recipe.
We will be enjoying this again. Thanks for sharing this excellent recipe!
Whoop! We’re so glad she enjoyed it! Thanks for sharing!
Gail says
I always wondered how Asian restaurants got the tofu to have such a great taste and texture. Now I know. I’ve made this 4-5x, and it’s now a regular in the meal rotation. Thanks!
We’re so glad you enjoy it, Gail! Thanks so much for sharing!
Celene says
I did everything. Maybe a little less drying than you. Tofu came out hard and absorbed nothing.
Sorry to hear that, Celene! It sounds as if it cooked too long as it should not end up hard. Better luck with the next one!
Ayla Goddard says
This recipe will be my new go to! I used smoked tofu to give it that extra meat like flavour, a combination of green beans, asparagus, carrots and green capsicum. I also found adding some chinese spice, rice wine vinegar and chill flakes for extra zing and heat you would enjoy from Asian dishes. Thanks so much!
How great! thanks for sharing, Ayla! Next time would you mind adding a rating to your review? It’s super helpful to us and other readers! xo
Ekaterina Tarasova says
Stir-fried tofu and veggies is our basic receipt. But this time I decided to refresh the dish and make it your way. Baked the tofu about 20 minutes and it turned into rubber and could not absorb the sauce. Not chewable, not eatable at all
Hi there! Sorry to hear that. This method of baking before stir-frying is intended to give the tofu some texture and “chew” and if you prefer it to be soft I’d say skip this step. Or, you could bake for half the amount of time!
Julie Moyes says
Pretty delish…..loved the sauce. I found the tofu to be bit tough, but will give it another try. A keeper.
Randyloves says
Thank you! The food tasted amazing. I didn’t have ginger but substituted it for garlic and it still came out fantastic. Definitely bookmarking this one for the next lunch!
Craig says
This was terrible, the tofu just went hard and dry and did not take on any of the sauce flavours. Marinating the tofu prior to frying works much better
So sorry that was your experience, Craig! It sounds as if it cooked too long as it should not end up hard. Better luck with the next one!
Will says
The only way me too will ever make tofu again from today onward! I dried out the tofu on a hand towel that I moved. I rotated the tofu to get dry bit of towel on top and bottom, weighted down, in a snug fitting container. Cubed the tofu, baked 30 minutes on a greaseproof paper lined baking sheet – no oil – perfectly light cubes, and crunchy as crisps!
Agreed! Glad you enjoyed it, too!
clyde mailes says
Super tasty but the 1 hour total time is a little misleading do to the rest time for the tofu. Also the the 2 times I made this the vegetables needed way more time then suggested.
Thanks for sharing your experience, Clyde! We’ll take a look at the recipe and see if modifications can be made.
Ann says
The only way I’ll do tofu cubes again! No more cornstarch, splattering oil and messy stovetop. Super easy and great texture. I used a foil-lined baking sheet with a generous coating of olive oil spray. I’ll admit I didn’t really follow the rest of the recipe for the stir fry but just winged it based on what was in my fridge – ‘inspired’ by the recipe would be fair to say. The method for the tofu would be great for grain bowls, noodle salads etc. Thank you for asking for ratings only ‘after you’ve made it’. I get so tired of discovering all the 5 star ratings are “mmm, looks good, must try this” from a bunch of other food bloggers.
So glad you enjoyed this method, Ann! Thanks so much for sharing!
Margaret says
This works really well for crispy tofu! Here’s my lazier hack for getting meaty, chewy tofu that soaks up sauce (but this shortcut only works for tofu in sauce, not crispy tofu!)…
When I open a pkg of tofu, I drain it and freeze half of the block. I never use a full block anyway. Then pop the frozen block into boiling water for approx 10 mins., before cutting up and using as normal in a sauce. Freezing causes the water inside the tofu to expand, creating crevices to soak up the sauce and create a chewier texture.
Great tip! Thanks for sharing, Margaret!
Ani says
I was at first apprehensive while making this but my GAWD was it delicious! So flavorful and that sauce! I will definitely add this to my normal rotation.
CWlaz says
Made this for our main meal today — cooked the tofu about 25 minutes, which was a nice solid texture. I think I will try 30-35 next time to see how it is just a little more crispy. We mixed in a multi-grain rice blend just before serving, and I will definitely make something similar, or maybe brown rice, in future, as that was a really good mix.
Overall this was a very tasty meal, with nice mix of flavors and textures.
Thanks for sharing! Glad you enjoyed it!
Ken O'Quinn says
Hi Dana,
Thank you; I look forward to creating this delicious meal. When I saw that the recipe has 19 grams of fat, I wondered if there’s a way to reduce that. I realize that sesame oil or any kind of oil will increase the fat content of a recipe, but sometimes there are substitutes or other “work-arounds.”
Thanks very much.
Ken O’Quinn
Yes – you can likely use a seasoned cast iron or non-toxic nonstick pan and omit or reduce the oil for less fat!
Alisha says
I didn’t follow the whole recipe, just stopped by to grab the tofu technique! We love it. I sprinkled some cornstarch on top to make it crispy and baked the tofu for 30 min (forgot to turn, but it still turned out great). My tofu hating friend loved the texture, and I ended up using it in a broccoli lo mein stir fry. Coming back soon to try the full recipe!
Brigette says
Can you dry and cook the tofu the day prior and leave in the fridge for use the next day?
That’ll work!
Virginia A Ebert says
I’m not thrilled about the amount if sugar in this dish. Have you had anyone try this dish without the sauce and just use other seasonings? Maybe garlic powder, onion powder or cayenne? I’m pretty easy going when it comes to flavoring so bland doesn’t bother me. I just don’t like a lot of sugar.
Dyanarra says
I am eating this delicious recipe as I’m typing this. I substituted the soy sauce completely with coconut aminos from TJ (Trader Joe’s) and only a tbsp of the honey and brown sugar. It’s a little sweet despite the modifications but not too bad. I added some snow peas as well. The tofu is well coated with the sauce and taste yum! Thanks for sharing this recipe. Will definitely cook this again ?
Ainsley Thor says
The tofu in this recipe still tasted like tofu. The sauce was good but didn’t penetrate the tofu so I will be marinating it next time.
Ainsley Thor says
Also, I doubled the soy sauce and added water and the sauce turned out nicely.
Thanks for the feedback, Ainsley! Let us know how it turns out with marinating. You may like this recipe which does involve marinating: https://minimalistbaker.com/crispy-peanut-tofu-cauliflower-rice-stir-fry/
Emily says
Perfect tofu, delicious sauce. Thank you for this!
Cas Donovan says
If I’m doubling this recipe, should i double the cornstarch in the sauce? It’s just serving as a thickener, right? Seems like I would not double it.
Hi Cas, we would still probably double it, but it might still work with the same amount!
Gaynor says
So delicious!! Agreed, best tofu we have tasted! Easy and super yum! ??
Kelly says
I definitely wouldn’t cook the sauce for 3-5 minutes. Following your instructions it let off a huge cloud of steam, bubbled, and then hardened into little gelatinous globs.
Thanks for sharing! Adjust as needed depending on appearance of sauce. It can fluctuate greatly depending on freshness of peanut butter and other ingredients.
Ann says
Peanut butter? Is there supposed to be peanut butter in the recipe?
Nope! I was confusing it with another recipe.
Kara says
Officially love tofu after making this recipe! I dialed down the sweetness and only used 1 tablespoon of maple syrup and 1 tablespoon of brown sugar. I added more veggies and sauteed everything in sesame oil with a bit of hot chili oil — jalapeno, yellow onion, yellow and red pepper. Since I added more veggies, I used 1/2 cup tamari instead of 1/4 cup. Served it over brown basmati rice/quinoa blend with green onions and sesame seeds to garnish.
We’re so glad you enjoyed it, Kara! Thanks so much for the lovely review!
Patty says
I tried out this recipe for the tofu last night and have to say that it turned out quite tough and rubbery. I love all of your recipes thus far but this one , I don’t know. Maybe you could give me some advise as to why it may have turned out this way.
Thanks
Patty
Hi Patty, sorry to hear that was your experience! We’ve had a couple people who don’t like it so tough (which we honestly kind of like). So next time, we’d recommend baking it for just 20-25 minutes then adding it directly to the sauce. That should yield a much more tender result!
Zed says
The tofu in this recipe is ah-mazing!! We eat it frequently in different recipes and it has never turned out this meaty. We marinated it a bit in some soy sauce, siracha, and a bit of fish sauce before cooking and served it over udon noodles. Even the kiddos ate it – including one picky toddler.
Whoop! We’re so glad everyone enjoyed it, Zed! Thanks for sharing!
Emily says
Tofu came out perfectly. Sauce is amazing. Used an Asian stir fry veggie mix: broccoli, snap peas, water crest, carrot. Delicious, thank you!
Meri says
I love this sauce! I roughly made about double with whatever I had including some rice wine vinegar and some sirracha. The tofu consistency was very untofuy and quite meat like but perhaps marinading it before baking would increase the flavour throughout it? It was delightful nonetheless and the veggies were incredible just like our favourite take out joint. Thank you so much for this recipe it broke in our new wok perfectly!! ?
Patricia Muir says
I do not like sesame oil. Is there an alternative that can be used?
We haven’t tried it, but avocado oil or another neutral-flavored oil might work. It might not be quite as flavorful though. Let us know if you give it a try!
Sarah says
I’ve made it with avocado oil and it was great. Fantastic recipe!
Thanks for sharing, Sarah!
Keily Fulton says
Made this tonight and it was a hit! My husband is doing oil-free plant based so I left out the oil. I cooked and sautéed the veggies in the sauce. Next time I will double the sauce and cut the cornstarch in half since I had to keep adding water bc it got too thick. Any tip on making the tofu a little more flavorful? It kinda tastes like chicken without salt. Even with the sauce, it just seems flavorless. I also left out the recommended reading time of 45 mins after taking it out of the oven. Didn’t seem to take away from the crunchiness. I do recommend using parchment paper if you don’t use oil, mine got stuck but I was able to scrape it off the baking sheet, just took rime. Delicious overall, hope to make it again soon!
Hi Keily, Thanks for sharing your experience! Hmm, without the oil, it is harder to make it flavorful. But perhaps refer to this post: https://minimalistbaker.com/how-to-make-tofu-taste-good/
Alisha says
When I make oil free recipes, I like to switch out the oil with a sodium free vegetable broth. If you aren’t vegan/vegetarian, you could also use chicken broth. I do this for all of my healthier sauteeing and roasting! Sometimes I even do half oil and half broth for extra flavor. Turns out wonderfully.
Tiffany says
Forgot to rate with my below comment :)
Tiffany says
This is my all time favorite tofu recipe. Whenever I hear someone say that they don’t like the consistency or taste of tofu, I send them this link. The sauce is also amazing.
Thanks so much for the lovely review and for passing along this recipe to others, Tiffany. We are so glad you enjoy it! Next time, would you mind leaving a rating with your review? It’s super helpful for us and other readers. Thanks so much! Xo
Laura says
Super yum! I love the baked tofu. I’ve always fried it before, but I think I prefer it baked, and it was really easy to do. My husband and I are saucy people, so I doubled the sauce and I don’t regret it. :)
We’re so glad you enjoyed it, Laura! Thanks so much for the lovely review!
Mary Nolan says
I must be the only person on earth that hated the tofu !! The sauce and stir fry was wonderful!!
Angela says
Oh my gosh amazing, amazing, aMAZING. It literally tastes like Panda Express, I love your recipes so much. I usually always have all the ingredients and they don’t require that much effort. I made your peanut sauce recipe and used it as a topping and it made it even better. Love your page so much.
Thanks so much for your kind words and lovely review, Angela. We are so glad you enjoy our recipes! Next time, would you mind leaving a rating with your review? It’s super helpful for us and other readers. Thanks so much! Xo
Murb says
Just started on a plant based diet and I’m quite a fussy eater so spent a lot of time looking for dishes that look appealing and came across this one. Literally the first time I have tried tofu or eaten this healthy and it was amazing thank you so much!
I read the other comments about the sauce but it was perfect I wonder if others who thought it was too sweet didn’t use enough soy sauce?
Wonderful! If you thought it was too sweet I’d simply cut back on the sugar!
Anna says
Appreciate the tip of drying and baking tofu before stir frying it. Thanks!
Judith says
We only have a solar oven and it’s cloudy sometimes. Could I use a dehydrator instead to dry it out a bit? I have been making some bad tofu and I feel like this recipe is a good solution.
I think that would work well! Let us know how it goes, Judith.
Linda Harris says
The flavors on this dish are good, but only after I salted the tofu. The tofu would have benefitted from some flavors added prior to baking (perhaps some of the sauce?). Also, the sauce quickly thickened, really too much; so I added a small amount of water a few times to give a little more sauce and to allow the vegetables to continue tenderizing just a bit.
Linda, thanks for sharing. The sauce can get quite thick which largely depends on the type of peanut butter you’re using. Thinning with water is fine!
Dominic McClarey says
Hi Dana, um, peanut butter?
Ah, sorry for the confusion! Waw confusing it with another recipe! Adding a little water here is good to thin as needed!
An says
Sorry, I’m a little confused…where in the recipe is the peanut butter? How much are you supposed to use?
-An
Ah! My bad. I was confusing it with our peanut tofu. Nevermind!
Kylen says
This is one of my all time favorite recipes and I’ve made it more times than I can count, so I wanted to share a couple of things I’ve found that make the recipe work a little better for me.
1) Cut the amont of cornstarch in half! This might just be a me issue, but every time I made the sauce with the written amount of corn starch, it ended up clumpy and unappetizing looking. It still tasted great, but it wasn’t very pretty. Cutting the amount of cornstarch in half makes a beautiful, thick sauce without clumps.
2) Pull the veggies off the heat when you add the sauce and stir quickly – mine always thickens in about 10 seconds. I toss the tofu in and serve immediately.
3) I’ve noticed no difference in the tofu if you let it rest after baking or not. I normally pull it out, immediately start cooking the veggies, and toss all the tofu in immediately after the veggies are done!
So helpful! Thanks for sharing, Kylen!
Alyssa says
I am really excited to make this! But I was wondering, is it possible to use coconut aminos instead of soy sauce? Thanks!
Hi Alyssa, that should work! You may need to play around with the amount a little as soy sauce tends to be stronger. Let us know how it goes!
Merry says
This recipe has become one of our almost weekly staples (making it again tonight)! I throw in whatever veg I have on hand – carrots/beans/sugar snap peas/capsicum/asparagus etc – and it turns out DELICIOUS every time.
I actually got told off for making it too many times……its just too good!
I often don’t let the tofu sit out, as I am usually pressed for time, and I serve over rice or noodles.
I’m fairly liberal with my soy sauce and salt, so it probably balances out the sweetness of the sauce.
Thank you for always sharing such awesome recipes. You have expanded my culinary range hugely over the last few years!
Thank you so much for your kind words and lovely review, Merry! We are so glad you enjoy our recipes! Next time, would you mind leaving a rating with your review? It’s super helpful for us and other readers. Thanks so much! Xo
Erika says
This was disgustingly sickeningly sweet! I even reduced both the brown sugar and the syrup and it was still awful. The tofu was reasonably good, I would probably try that method again but the sauce made me want to throw the whole thing out. Definitely not a recipe I will make again.
Hi Erika, Sorry to hear this wasn’t for you! We have added a note to reduce the sweetener for those who don’t like things as sweet. Better luck next time!
Sylvia says
Hi Dana!
Thanks for sharing your recipe. It looks irresistible! Unfortunately, when I cooked it according to instructions earlier, the tofu was really hard and chewy (I ate it anyway, because I don’t like wasting food ;-)) I have to add, that I’m writing from Germany, so perhaps there is something different about our tofu?! Perhaps it needs less time in the oven? I so like your idea of baking it, so that it gets porous and soaks up the sauce in the stir-fry later. I’ve been wondering about the consistency of your tofu when it comes out of the oven? Is it very hard, too?
Thanks!! Sylvia
I’d say you should just cook yours for a little less time! I prefer that chewiness (vs soft texture). But cook for less time for a more tender tofu!
Julia says
I’m a little wary of turning on the oven when it’s hot out. Can this be made on the stove top?
Thanks!
Try this one instead as it’s much quicker. You still use the oven but only briefly.
Tricia says
Hi. This recipe looks great! I haven’t made this yet but I have a couple of questions. Firstly, with the temperature of the oven, does it matter if it is fan assisted or not? Secondly, would you ever marinate the tofu in the sauce before cooking? I do this when I am doing a beef stir fry, so was wondering if this would also work with the tofu. Thanks in advance, Tricia
It doesn’t need to be fan assisted / convection. I have a tofu recipe that’s marinated before cooking in our print cookbook, however I find that it never gets as crispy as this method!
Sal says
Just made this! Lots of substitutions. I had carrots, mushrooms and zucchini, so used those! Also cut out the 2nd sweetener (agave/ maple syrup/ honey) altogether and cut the cornstarch in half. Also, I had little time so didn’t let the tofu sit 45 min, more like 20. Thank you! Will make this again, with onion, sesame seeds and the green beans too!
Thanks for sharing, Sal!
Meghan says
The sauce was so easy to make and the tofu was perfectly firm. I didn’t have any fresh ginger so I used ground ginger and still thought it tasted great. Is this the best substitute or should I do something different? Also if okay do have a good amount I should use in place of fresh ginger?
Hi Meghan, fresh ginger will definitely provide more flavor. If you can find fresh ginger, we would definitely recommend giving it a try! Fresh ginger can also be frozen and then grated- it won’t be quite as pungent, but will likely yield better results than dried. Hope that helps!
Adam says
It looks really yummy. My only problem was after adding the sauce mixture to the vegetables, the sauce thickened way too quickly into a paste-like substance.
Hi Adam, it should thicken, but if it thickened too much, you may want to try less cornstarch next time. Hope that helps!
Melody says
I appreciated the simple recipe as a young adult trying to learn how to cook for myself. I ended up using broccoli and carrots, and put in the sauce too early. It was all evaporating and I was like, “Oh Heavens Almighty”, so I poured in some orange juice, soy sauce, and turned down the dang heat. As to say, even after the fiasco and my own creative liberties, it was still a great recipe, and pretty flexible if you apparently don’t know how to read like me.
haha, thanks Melody!
Carole says
I made this tonight. I didn’t have green beans so I used snow peas, red peppers, red cabbage and green onions. I cut the sugar in half and added child garlic sauce for a bit of zing. I served it with rice vermicelli noodles. It’s a keeper.
Carole says
I made this tonight. I didn’t have green beans so I used snow peas, red peppers and green onions. I cut the sugar in half and added child garlic sauce for a bit of zing. I served it with rice vermicelli noodles. It’s a keeper.
Liz says
Hyped to make this tomorrow. Btw, is there a way to make the sauce sugar-free, to ensure my diabetic family member can have the dish as well? Thanks in advance!
Hi Liz, unfortunately sweetener is pretty important for balancing the flavors in this dish!
Liz says
I see, thanks for the info!
Ann says
Wow I just made this recipe but with tiny changes. I had a cabbage so added some shredded cabbage and almonds to the stir fry. I added a glut og sweet chilli to the sauce. What was great was how firm and crunchy the tofu was and stayed in the sauce. Left overs for tomorrow can’t wait. Thankyou.
Ann Bonner says
Am drying tofu as I write. The re pie looks amazing. I once had tofu in the Chinese quarter in London many years ago and have tried to replicate the taste unsuccessfully ever since. I think this may be the closest. Get back to you later. Thanks. Love all your recipes
Leesa In Beaverton, OR says
One word! DELICIOUS!!!!! A hit with everyone! Going into regular rotation! Especially during CSA season! All those fresh veggies! Made with snow peas fr M week one of CSA!!
Thanks so much for the lovely review, Leesa. We are so glad you enjoyed it! Next time, would you mind leaving a rating with your review? It’s super helpful for us and other readers. Thanks so much! xo
Leesa says
Oops! I missed that! Definitely a 5star rating for me!
Irene says
Wondering if the tofu can be marinated after drying, or will that just make it soft again.
It makes it soft again – I’d recommend following the recipe as instructed. OR, if you’re OK with the tofu being a bit more tender go for it!
sha says
This was absolutely so delicious! I’m vegetarian and am always looking for yummy ways to get the correct nutrients. Yummy and fun. Please try!
Lovely – thanks for sharing!
Faith says
This recipe is fantastic! I have made it several times and we love it. I am wondering if it would work to bake and dry out a large quantity of tofu in the beginning of the week then store in fridge for later use?
We haven’t tried it, but think that should work! If you give it a try, we would love to hear how it goes!
Faith says
I tried it this week and it was a big success! I had made the original stir fry recipe earlier in the week (with different veggies, but same idea) and baked up some extra tofu to save for another quick meal. I only did the tofu for 20 minutes this time, and on the first night I felt like I maybe wished I had cooked it longer. But today I took the extra tofu and threw it in a pan with some sesame oil then added some bottled thai peanut sauce and it cooked up beautifully! I think the key was that there was plenty of room in the pan today for the tofu to crisp up, whereas when I made the stir fry the other night my pan was pretty crowded. Anyway, I definitely am pleased with the results and will do it again in the future!
Thanks for sharing, Faith!
Stephanie says
So did you dry out the tofu in advance for that second night? Since the drying takes some time I want to dry it today and use it for dinner tomorrow. I have 2 little ones that make cooking an obstacle course! Lol
Jenelle says
I’m always hesitant trying tofu recipes because me and tofu just don’t get along apparently. Anyway, I’m happy to say that my meal tasted amazing! I used one spoon of sugar and 1/8 cup soy sauce diluted with 1/8 water (just for sodium intake purposes) and it still tasted great.
Highly recommend recipe!
Leighanne says
Thank you! My Celiac / Vegetarian son loved this recipe. It’s a keeper!
Jen says
This is delicious! One of our go-to meals now. My 3 year old boys LOVE it and that makes mama happy! One thing I do is i cut the sugar amount in half because it was too sweet for me. I have a major sweet tooth but for some reason the sugar in this seemed too much. Otherwise this is amazing. I never cooked tofu this way before and honestly this is a game changer! I will never cook tofu another way. Thank you!!
Joan Hinchcliffe says
Delicious. Easy to make. Thank you for sharing.
Madison says
Okay I did something terribly wrong.. everything was going great and when I went to add the sauce to the veggies.. it instantly clumped. Like huge big black clumps instead of a sauce like texture. Nobody else seems to have this issue so it’s definitely something I did… :/
Hi Madison, it sounds like maybe the cornstarch didn’t whisk in well. We didn’t have this issue when testing, but some ideas would be to either omit the cornstarch if your sauce is already thick or to stir the cornstarch into just 1 Tbsp of soy sauce and then add to the remaining sauce ingredients. Hope that helps!
Marie says
My kids and I love this recipe so I keep coming back to it. Right now I’m making the tofu for tomorrow so after making this maybe 50 times, I’m back to leave a review. :-) I make this in parts (mostly in advance) so it’s easy to pull together on a school night. I blanch the veggies we like most (broccoli and carrots) and also make the tofu and sauce in advance. Then, the only part I have to “make” day of is the udon noodles we eat with it. The noodles take 10 minutes so it’s a super easy meal if you’re just a little bit prepared. Thanks for the delicious recipe!
Great idea, Marie! Thanks so much for sharing!
Zoey says
After trying SO MANY tofu recipes (frying, baking with cornstarch…etc) I’m so glad I found this one! I made the recipe as written (plus a tiny bit of soy sauce for flavor while baking), and I’ve never had crispier tofu! This has become a go-to tofu cooking method. Thanks!
So glad you enjoyed this recipe, Zoey! Thanks for the lovely review! xo
Kirsten says
This was so easy and tasty! I added it to the “Noodleless pad thai” (but I added noodles too. :)
Lucy says
Well, my tofu stirfry was a disaster. I dried it out per instructions, set the oven for 400 degrees, the tofu came out of the oven after 30 minutes looking golden brown and beautiful. Unfortunately, when I started to eat the sensation was like eating a rubber duck! The tofu actually squeaked when I stuck my fork into it! Don’t know where I went wrong. I can’t comment on the sauce…I bought a cooking sauce off the shelf…another mistake!
Don Martin says
There are different types of tofu – some have greater moisture content than others. I usually buy Nutrisoy brand which doesn’t need all the fuss with drying/baking/etc.
Tracie says
I live in San Antonio and haven’t even eaten at Green Vegetarian Cuisine! Thank you for the suggestion. I will have to try it <3
Kat says
Your sauce was exactly what I was looking for! I added some chili garlic sauce for some spice.
Thank you so much!!
Julie says
Restaurant tofu has always been so mysteriously delicious to me – I made this recipe last night and it was wonderful! The tofu prep instructions are a game changer, it turned out beautifully and I can’t wait to use this technique more! Thank you!
Kara says
I made this baking the tofu 25 minutes, and that seemed about perfect for my 1″+ish cubes. Some gave the feedback it was too tough for them, so I thought I might write and share my experience. Mine came out golden brown with a nice shell, but tender inside.
I also left the sweeteners out of the sauce completely, which was good flavor wise. The sauce was a bit saltier and thicker than I would have preferred, so next time I am going to use less of it and maybe try with a bit less cornstarch. I used low sodium gluten free tamari. I have to imagine what you need in the sauce varies with the veggies you use and resulting moisture; I’m imagining that’s where I got off the recipe as I used my own veggies.
Love the tofu part of the recipe in particular; felt it left me with a technique I can use again and again. I’m wondering if anyone has tried marinating the tofu in this recipe before or after baking and how that went. I was happy with the tofu as is, but if I was going to serve to less tofu-friendly folk I might have wanted it more flavorful on the interior.
Rhonda says
I live in San Antonio,TX and go to Green as often as I can! Love their food! A couple other places to try are Vegeria (vegan), dog father (if you like hot dogs, vegan) and Tong’s Thai. Mamacita’s Mexican has vegetarian options and Indian Oven has great vegetarian food! Most of the vegetarian/vegan places are located close to downtown, but you can find others spread out all over the city. Little by little vegetarians and vegans are demanding somewhere to eat in a city that used to not be friendly to us. Google for more great places! Just FYI:)
Mika says
Tha K you for posting his amazing recipe. I wanted to make a yummy tofu stir fry for my husband and came across this recipe. It came out wonderfully! I did make a small change as I wanted it to be more saucy, I added Sriracha and oyster sauce to the sauce mix. It was delicious and my hubby loved ♥ thank’s a ton,
gill ryder says
This recipe was great, love your blog! xx
Vanessa says
How would o make this a little more spicy?
Another reader added spicy chili garlic paste for some heat!
Vanessa says
Awesome! I’ll try that for next time. Thank you!
Vanessa says
I loved this recipe! Cooked the tofu for 20 min and it was a perfect consistency! I’m going to make this more often!
Krystal says
I have made many recipes from your blog and cookbook and LOVED them all. This was quite disappointing, though. I love tofu. And I love stir-fry/ Asian inspired dishes, but this was not a hit with my family. We all thought the sauce was way to sweet and lacking in flavor. The texture of the tofu was nice, but quite time intensive.
Sorry to hear this one didn’t hit it out of the park for you, Krystal! Better luck next time :)
Vanessa says
Hello! Regarding the nutrition info, where are all the carbs and sugar coming from? Is it the sauce? Also, jusr for clarification, is the nutrition info for one serving or two?
Thanks so much! :D
Hi Vanessa, the nutrition info is for 1 of 2 servings and yes, the primary source is the sugar in the sauce, but a small amount from carrots and green beans. Hope that helps!
Juli Martin says
This was the first recipe I have made with tofu and loved it! I think my pan was too hot when I added the sauce as it solidified pretty quickly and clumped. It was still good. Loved the flavours and the tofu texture. I will definitely make this again and use the sauce for other dishes too!
Marilyn says
I made this for dinner and loved it! I almost followed the recipe but added in garlic and basil. Absolutely delicious!
Yay! We’re glad to hear it, Marilyn!
Mary says
This was incredible!!! Thank you so much for this amazing recipe. Absolutely delicious- I could not stop eating it!
Ann says
Thank you, thank you, THANK YOU!
I have looked for years for a way to cook tofu. Your instructions are amazing. I haven’t even made the stir fry yet, but tasting the tofu straight out of the oven, I am overwhelmed. I know that I can now get the taste, look and feel that I have been looking for with my recipes!!!!!!
It is so good, I could even imagine just dipping it in a sauce and skip the stir fry. Can’t wait to try more recipes from your site.
Thank you again!
We’re so glad to hear you enjoyed the stir-fry, Ann! Thanks for sharing! :D