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Tofu is always a treat in my house since I don’t make it very often. (I love it, but the hubs…not so much, so it is a real rarity!)
One of my favorite things about tofu is that it’s kind-of like the vegan version of chicken breast in that it’s a completely blank canvas for whatever you want to season it with. There are so many possibilities.
Cooking tofu is a little bit of a process, but it isn’t difficult at all. It’s quite sponge-like, so first you have to drain the water out by letting it sit with a heavy object on top. Then you can add flavor back in by marinating it, seasoning it, or adding sauce for flavoring.
For this recipe, I used a pretty basic marinade that packs a lot of flavor with just a few ingredients by using things like soy sauce, garlic, and ginger. Sesame seeds and sesame oil add a nice nutty flavor dimension, and fresh scallion as a garnish really brightens up the dish.
- 1 (14 oz) block of extra-firm tofu, drained
- 2 tablespoons sesame oil, divided
- 2 teaspoons rice vinegar
- 4 teaspoons soy sauce
- 2 large cloves garlic, grated on a microplane
- 1-inch piece ginger, grated on a microplane
- ⅛ teaspoon black pepper
- 4 tablespoons chickpea flour/besan (or any flour you like)
- 2 tablespoons toasted sesame seeds
- 2 scallions, green and white parts, thinly sliced on an angle
- To drain the tofu, put it on a paper towel-lined plate; cover it with another paper towel, and then a tray. Weigh the tray down with a heavy object (such as a large can of tomatoes or beans) and let it drain for 30 minutes.
- To make the marinade, whisk together 1 tablespoon of oil (reserving the other 1 tablespoon of oil for cooking later), the vinegar, soy sauce, garlic, ginger, and black pepper in a medium bowl. Cut the tofu in half so you have 2 blocks, then slice each block cross-wise into 6 equal slabs; put the sliced tofu in the marinade and let it sit in the fridge for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Combine the flour and sesame seeds in a shallow dish; dredge both sides of each tofu piece in this mixture. Heat the remaining 1 tablespoon of oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat; add the tofu and fry until golden on both sides, about 3 minutes per side.
- Serve garnished with scallion.
I’m the writer, recipe developer, photographer, and food stylist behind this blog. I love finding the human connection through something we all do every day: eat! Food is a common ground that we can all relate to, and our tables tell a story. It’s my goal to inspire you to get in the kitchen, try something new, and find a favorite you didn’t know you had.
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I hate tofu, and when I cook it, i never finish my portion because it just does nothing for me. In desperation, I tried your recipe, and guess what, I ate all of it! It was delicious!
thank you for this nice recipe!!!
I made this tonight, it was good but a couple notes.
Ignore the prep time in the recipe, it skips the 30 minutes spent pressing the tofu and the marinating the in refrigerator step.
Basically you will want to spend at least an hour extra (30 mins pressing and 30 mins marinating)
I also found that I needed a lot more sesame oil in the pan frying step.
Sesame oil is tough since it burns so easily but the ones I likde best are ones where the oil was very hot.
I ate it with rice and steamed veggies which was a good combo.
My 8 year old LOVED it, she added some soy sauce when she ate it.
Jeff, I’m so happy to hear you and your family enjoyed this recipe! Sorry for the confusion, yes, I don’t include inactive prep time in the prep time calculation. Thanks so much for taking the time to leave a comment and share your tips!
It looks good . I’ll try it tonight. Never really like tofu, but this one might do it for me.
I made this over the weekend for three adults and two toddlers. I should have doubled it! Everyone LOVED IT! I used AP flour and had to skip the vinegar but added a dash of fish sauce in its place. I will absolutely make this again it was fairly easy and super delicious. Thanks!
Your pictures are gorgeous! I love how you stage your shots.
I also don’t use tofu often enough – this looks really tasty!
Your tofu looks fantastic! I do not do allot with tofu either, only here and there…weird as a vegetarian I know. But I do like it and should do more with it :) Delightful recipe!
I love tofu! This looks so good!!
A really healthy and tasty tofu dish. I love it.
I am a long time fan of tofu (if that’s the right word) and extol it ad nauseum on my blog for just the reasons you espouse:you can make it taste like what you want it to. My favourite trick is to press out the liquid and cube it before brushing over a little oil and baking it, then adding it to other ingredients. Great texture this way with minimal added fat. This looks a lovely recipe, especially for those put off by the texture. You should be able to win over quite a few tofu-phobes with this.
This looks really great…I\’m more a fan of fish than tofu…I could totally do this by replacing the tofu with fish! The sauce looks so yummy!
This looks really great…I’m more a fan of fish than tofu…I could totally do this by replacing the tofu with fish! The sauce looks so yummy!
I love the blank slate tofu provides, too..and obviously it’s healthy to boot! Great photos, as always :)
I’m not the greatest tofu fan, but did love it when I had it in the islands once and they prepared it in a similar manner. So pleased to find this recipe!
It looks crunchy and delicious with the sesame seeds so much so that I would be tempted to eat it
Yum! Healthy and tasty :) I love how tofu is so versatile and you can make so many dishes with it ~
Mmm, this sounds so delicious and looks it too!
I love tofu. It’s my major source of protein. THis dish would be a wonderful addition to the Lunar New Year dinner display. :)
Oh, this looks SO good and healthy, Faith. :-) It reminds me of sesame-crusted halloumi I made a while ago – I still dream of that warm, nutty crust, so I know I’d love this. :-)
I love how versatile Tofu is!
This looks so easy and delicious!
Super healthy and definitely irresistible tofu..
This sounds great :-)
Yummy! I actually didn’t like tofu up until I learned how to cook it properly(and press and marinate it too!). Now I love it! I love the sesame flavor yours must have from the seeds and the oil and it looks great :)
I grew up with lots of tofu in my house but could never get over the texture as a kid. But, it’s finally making a resurgence in my household now so I’ll definitely have to try this!
A wonderful way of preparing tofu!
Cheers,
Rosa
I recently tried tofu, in fact in my last post I have the full story about it, and I agree with you. Because of its neutral taste you can create anything you want making many combinations of flavors. Sesame has a very unique and intense flavor and aroma thus goes perfectly with tofu!