Sticky Tofu
Sticky tofu is an easy tofu recipe with a flavorful sauce. Pan fry the tofu in cornstarch for crispy edges, then add the soy sauce based sauce to thicken it up and add lots of flavor to your tofu. Serve with rice and a veggie for an easy 20 minute dinner.
Servings 1 person
Equipment
- clean kitchen towel/paper towel
- heavy skillet or other object
- cutting board
- knife
- storage container or bowl with lid for tossing tofu in cornstarch
- small/medium mixing bowl
- fork or whisk
- small or medium skillet
- tongs
- Serving spoon
Ingredients
Tofu
- ¼ block firm or extra firm tofu (3-4 ounces)
- 1 Tablespoons cornstarch
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt or to taste
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper or to taste
- 1-2 Tablespoons neutral oil canola, grapeseed, avocado, etc
Sauce
- 2 Tablespoons water
- 2 Tablespoons regular soy sauce
- ½-1 teaspoon light brown sugar or honey
- ½ teaspoon tomato paste
- ½ teaspoon minced garlic
- ½ teaspoon sesame oil
To Serve
- ¾-1 cup rice or noodles or to preference
- 1 cup vegetables or to preference
- optional toppings: sesame seeds, red pepper flakes, sriracha, green onions, etc.
Instructions
Prep Tofu by Pressing Out Water
- Before making sticky tofu, prepare tofu by removing block from packaging and liquid. Wrap block in a clean towel or paper towels. Place on top of plate, and place heavy skillet or other object on top of wrapped tofu. Stand for 30-60 minutes. This can occur before preparing sticky tofu, or earlier. Store in fridge until use, if pressing water out ahead of time.
Make Sticky Tofu
- Preheat skillet over medium/medium-high heat. Prepare rice/noodles, if desired.
- After water has been pressed out of tofu, cut about ¼ of the block into bite sized pieces.
- In a storage container/bowl with lid, add 1 Tablespoon cornstarch, and ¼ teaspoon each salt and pepper. Add tofu, and lid. Shake until all pieces are coated.
- Add 1-2 Tablespoons neutral oil to pan. When oil is hot and shimmering, add tofu in a single layer. Cook 3-5 minutes per side. Add vegetables to pan to cook, if desired (use larger pan for tofu + veggies).Cook 2 sides or up to all 6 sides, depending on how much time you have to cook tofu. It's not necessary to cook all sides. I usually like to cook 2-3.
- While tofu is cooking, prepare sauce. Add 2 Tablespoons water, 2 Tablespoons soy sauce, ½-1 teaspoon brown sugar, ½ teaspoon tomato paste, ½ teaspoon sesame oil, and ½ teaspoon minced garlic to a small mixing bowl. Mix together.
- After tofu is crispy on edges, turn off heat and pour sauce over tofu. Toss tofu so all sides are coated. Once sauce is molasses or oyster sauce thick, spoon tofu and sauce, and optional vegetables over rice.
- Top with sesame seeds, green onions, spicy sauce if desired.
Video
Notes
- Check out these tips for great tofu.
- You can cook tofu in small pan, unless cooking vegetables with it. Use large pan if cooking tofu and vegetables, it helps them get crispy and is easier to stir/turn.
- Pan frying the tofu creates a barrier between the sauce and tofu, so you get a slight crunch, but when you add the sauce, it's not the crispiest. That means you don't need to spend time cooking each side. I like to cook 2-3 sides to fully heat it up.
- Sauce won't be very sticky, but it should be thick and coat all the tofu.
- Serve over rice, ramen noodles, rice noodles, etc.
- Serve with pan fried or steamed vegetables, like: cauliflower, broccoli, bok choy, onions, cabbage, carrots, etc.
- Topping options: sesame seeds, sliced green onion, sriracha or chili sauce, red pepper flakes, etc.