Sesame Ginger Tofu and Veggie Stir Fry
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Flavorful tofu and veggie stir fry! The tofu is loaded with the sesame-ginger flavor and is crispy without frying! This stir fry is healthy and can be eaten with rice, quinoa, or on its own.
And just like that, it’s Meatless Monday.
I’ll be the first one to admit that in my younger days when I use to see the tofu section on a restaurant menu, I’d quickly shuffle my eyes away, I couldn’t even let my brain consider it for a second. Nope. Not that. Anything but mush on a plate.
But with time came curiosity. And curiosity brought out the adventurous foodie inside (yes, I consider tofu to be adventurous. Gasp! What a daredevil!) My first tofu adventure involved a tofu and veggie stir fry — I nearly fell off my chair — in a good way! Flavorful little crispy bites of protein tossed in a sweet soy glaze with lots of crunchy veggies to accompany. No funky tofu flavors or scents. It was everything I wasn’t expecting.
I’ll never forget it.
Tofu and Veggie Stir Fry Video:
I found myself not being able to get this veggie stir fry out of my mind over the next few days. I did a little research online to see how they could’ve gotten that tofu so crispy and perfect. I’m a texture girl, and this tofu was extra firm, extra crispy, and extra delicious. Check. Check. and Check.
How to make Crispy Tofu for Veggie Stir Fry:
My research turned up a few different routes.
- Frying = meh… not if I don’t have to!
- Baking… okay.. don’t mind.. but it’s hot.. really hot.
- Pan-frying with just a hint of oil and a few tablespoons of that sesame ginger stir fry sauce. <– Caramelized sweet and saucy crispy tofu. I’m liking option 3 a lot.
And just look at that. The basic trick – dry the tofu. I get extra firm tofu and to give it a more dense ‘meat-like texture, I grab a couple of tea towels, 2 plates, and a couple of 28 oz cans (or anything that weighs a ton, like a cast-iron skillet). Place a tea towel on the plate, then the tofu, followed by the second tea towel, another plate, and then place the 2-28 ounce cans on the plate. The weights help release all the water from the tofu, giving it a more firm texture that not only mimics meat but also soaks up any kind of sauce that you dunk it in.
I couldn’t stop myself from popping a few of these crispy tofu pieces while I was sautéing the veggies.
I love getting those crunchy brown bits on my tofu for my veggie stir frys, so I cooked it for an additional minute.
The rest of the recipe is simple. Just your regular stir fry ingredients: ginger, garlic, sesame oil, a little soy sauce, and brown sugar.
When I was recipe testing this veggie stir fry, I almost pleaded Anees to give this a try. Usually, the word ‘tofu’ has him scrambling in the other direction. Reluctantly he agreed. And to my surprise, it was better than he thought it was going to be. And that’s as good as him saying he’ll switch out his morning coffee for a kale smoothie. The second time around he ate a piece of the crispy stir fried tofu and actually liked it. <– Never in a million years did I expect that would happen! But hey, maybe the third time around he’ll love it? High hopes.
I’ll take the ‘I like it’ and consider it a victory!
Sesame Ginger Tofu and Veggie Stir Fry
Flavorful tofu and veggie stir fry! The tofu if loaded with the sesame-ginger flavor and is crispy without frying! This stir fry is healthy and can be eaten with rice, quinoa, or on its own.
Ingredients
stir fry:
- 1- 14 ounce extra firm tofu
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 3 tablespoons oil (vegetable, canola, coconut)
- 2 1/2 cups green beans, roughly chopped
- 1 cup carrots, sliced or baby carrots cut lengthwise
sauce:
- 1 tablespoons sesame oil
- 1 1/2 tablespoon grated ginger
- 1 1/2 tablespoons minced garlic
- 1 tablespoons rice vinegar
- 3 tablespoons soy sauce
- 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 3 tablespoons brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- 2 tablespoons water
Instructions
- TOFU: Place a folded tea towel in the shape of the tofu on a plate. Drain the tofu from the package and place the tofu on the prepared plate. Place another tea towel on top (in the shape of the tofu) followed by another plate and 2-28 ounce cans or anything that weighs 2-3 pounds to help remove the water from the tofu. Let the tofu dry for at least 15-20 minutes and ideally, I like to let it go for an hour. Once dry, cut the tofu up into 1-inch cubes and toss in 1 tablespoon of cornstarch and the 1/2 teaspoon of salt.
- SAUCE: While the tofu is drying, prepare the sauce. Combine all the ingredients for the sauce in a blender or food processor and blend until completely smooth. Set aside.
- STIR FRY: In a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat, add 2 tablespoons of oil and swirl to coat pan. Add the cubed tofu to the pan and let fry for 3 minutes. Flipping the tofu as needed to brown all sides. Add 2 tablespoons of the prepared sauce to the tofu and allow to cook for an additional 2-3 minutes. When the tofu is caramelized, remove to a plate. Add the remaining 1 tablespoon of oil to the pan. Add the veggies and toss to coat. Cook the veggies for 3-4 minutes or to desired doneness. Add the sauce and let it thicken just slightly. Add the tofu and stir to coat. Cook for an additional 1-2 minutes or until the tofu has a chance to soak up the flavor.
- SERVE: Serve warm with rice, quinoa, or on its own. The tofu will lose it's crispness as it sits. Best when eaten fresh.
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108 Comments on “Sesame Ginger Tofu and Veggie Stir Fry”
I could eat this every night of the week and be perfectly happy
I’m totally with you on that! Thanks Matt!
Looks delicious! Love how you got a great crust on the tofu.
Delicious! I added Mushrooms and a bit of Yellow pepper, it came out very well.
Tonight I’ll be making this for the 2nd time! It was so delicious last time – the sauce is perfection! And of course, because it seems I can never quite follow the rules, I added some extra (yellow squash, red peppers, mushrooms, water chestnuts) and it really was super flavorful. Thank you for the awesome recipe!!
This dish is absolutely amazing, and that sauce is to die for. The second time I made it I used tempeh instead, added a red bell pepper and served on top of brown rice. Delish! Thank you!
May I ask how you sliced the temph? I’ve never used it and would love to try it in recipes. Thank you.
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I’ve made this recipe about 5 times now and each time it’s been amazing. I follow it to the letter and wind up with great food every time. I used preminced ginger last night and it made prep time so much faster! Would recommend going with preminced if possible.
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This was really good. I’m a big tofu fan, so it didn’t take much to convince me to try this. The green beans at the market didn’t look very good, so I substituted zucchini. This recipe would be adaptable to whatever vegetables looked good, which makes it even better. I needed more cornstarch to lightly coat my tofu, but it makes a huge difference in terms of the crispness you can achieve. Thanks for a great recipe!
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Absoutely AMAZING! I used the veggies I had on hand and added a little Siracha to the sauce. I’m truly a “newby” at cooking vegan and this recipe was easy to follow.
Loved it! The caramelised tofu was enough to praise this dish, I could have ate them all straight out the wok!
I used a prepacked box of stir fry veg for 2 which had edamame beans, broccoli and carrots and added 2 jumbo mushrooms instead of the veg stated and it worked out great, got 3 servings. Will be making again soon
Nice and fresh recipe. Great flavors without too many seasonings that over power the ingredients. Great Balance!
This looks so good!
I’m always looking for different sauces to use instead of my old tried and true. This was really delicious. Great recipe.
Hi, I made this recipe tonight. It was delicious! Definitely will be making it again. The tofu turned out nice a crispy on the outside & soft in the middle. The flavour of the sauce really makes the dish. Loved it!!
My husband who never wants to eat tofu pretending he hates it, had this recipe for dinner tonight and admitted (oh yé !) that it was very good and that he wanted it for his lunch tomorrow as well . Would you believe it ! I can’t believe it 🙂 I had some bean sprouts in the fridge so I added it and it add a little crunch to the already delicious meal. Thank you for this recipe.
Your husband sounds just like mine! Glad to hear you both enjoyed it 🙂
So good! I was really impressed by how good the crispy tofu was. I wish all the vegetarian dishes I tried turned out this yummy. And the whole family liked it!
Missing the sesame seeds in the recipe and found that 1 tablespoon of cornflour was too much. I didn’t get the tofu that crispy either but other then that, it tasted delicious.
Delicious! Tasted like it came from a restaurant. The tofu had better texture than I’ve ever been able to achieve at home.
I tried a few different ways of cooking tofu & have not been successful.But your recipe even with just firm tofu,was so delicious!IThis sauce can be used for so many other veggie side dishes.Thank you.Will be checking your site often
Made this last night – I doubled the recipe so there would be left-overs for lunch today. Boy was I wrong – it all went. The sauce is AMAZING.
I’d like to make this ahead of time (making sure not to over cook the veges) and re-heat. Will it really ruin the tofu?
I wouldn’t say it would ruin it but as mentioned in the recipe, the tofu may lose some of its crispness as it sits.
I have made this twice. I nuke my veggies a bit first so they cook faster and this time I didnt even have sesame oil and it was still good. I added sweet potato to mine.great!
This one is definitely a keeper! I can’t wait to make it again. The sauce is delicious. My husband loved it too.
Made according to the recipe and it was DELICIOUS! This sauce is to die for and I tossed in extra red pepper flakes for a little more spice. LOVED IT! Also have used the sauce to flavor some edamame and I highly recommend it.
Awesome. Extremely flavorful with a tiny “bite” to it and texture of the tofu is great. My 22 year old son and I ended up eating the entire thing in one sitting!
The sauce was amazing, but my tofu stuck to the pan. I want to make this recipe again. Do you have any suggestions on how to keep the tofu from sticking?
Hi Claudia! I usually use a non-stick pan when making tofu, I haven’t had much luck with any other type of pan and tofu together!
Outstanding! Quick, healthy and extremely flavorful!
I made this, this evening for the first time and it was great. My husband don’t like tofu but he went back for seconds. I will be making this again. I didn’t add anything to it, but next time I will add some mushrooms as well. Thank you
Can I use crushed ginger instead of the grated ginger? I couldn’t find grated ginger anywhere and I didn’t find the root either.
DEELISH! I made this last night for my husband and I and nothing was left 🙂 The sauce was very flavorful and the tofu trick to drain the water out was awesome! The tofu was super firm and made for great texture. Thank you for this deelish recipe.
This recipe is beyond delicious. Everyone i have made it for loves it. Thanks!!
One of my favorite tofu recipes! The tofu was so crispy and covered in sticky, amazing sauce. Absolutely phenomenal and a great way to convert tofu haters. Tofu can be ick, but if you prepare it right, it is the BEST!
THis was awesome! Will make it again
Hi! I’m in the process of making this recipe! The sauce is so yummy! But when I added the two tablespoons of the sauce to the tofu it turned globby almost immediately, I’m wondering if maybe I just had the heat up too high? Regardless, they’re still really good, just not like I expected.
We did enjoy the stir fry. It took a while to prep the veggies, 40 mins. The sugar taste was too sweet in the sauce and I cut out 1.5 Tbsp. Also, I didn’t get enough ginger and soy taste in the sauce.. In the future, I will a sweet component at the end and use a lot less brown sugar.
This was incredible. So happy I found your site. Everything I have made thus far has been a huge hit. The tofu was perfection and the sauce was so delicious. I added some king oyster mushrooms because I had them, but I love how simple and few ingredients the stir fry had.
This is restaurant quality stir fry sauce. Easy to make with accessible ingredients and delicious!
glad that i try this recipe. Thank you for sharing such amazing recipes….
Must Try!!
I had to use apple cider vinegar in place of rice vinegar and omit the garlic for my husband, I also used additional veggies, but we both loved this. Definitely a recipe to keep on hand and make regularly!
Just dropping by to say that I made this for dinner last night and my husband and I thoroughly enjoyed it! Thanks for a wonderful dish.
OMGoodness! I made these because my mom is a vegetarian and wants to learn/try more tofu recipes. We used broccoli instead of green beans because we had some fresh on hand and oh wow was it good!! I mean like restaurant quality. Like I will be serving this as a staple for years. I actually adjusted a little less oil in the cooking because we’re doing WW and didn’t use the cornstarch on the tofu because we baked it on low with some complementary seasoning and it was perfect. Thank you so much for this AMAZING recipe!!! ????
Nice and simple. I added sliced fresh bamboo shoots, swapped out the brown sugar with Neem honey – got 2 thumbs up!
I used tempeh instead of tofu and a mix of different veggies but this was sooo good! The sauce is amazing! Definitely will be a regular in our household!!!
The recipe says 1/2 tsp of salt…but where does it get added, directions don’t mention it. Thank you!
My apologies, it’ll go in at the end of step 1 with the cornstarch!
I make this recipe all the time- it’s so good. I add a little something for spice every time, and reduce the sugar. But otherwise the original recipe is gold.
OMGoodness!! This recipe was amazing!!! Like better than a restaurant. I didn’t have beans so I used broccoli and oh mama was that some tasty stuff. I’ve since tried it a couple ways with only small alterations such as using shrimp or chicken and adding snow peas. But I don’t like to mess with much because it’s kind of perfect. Though I will say I substituted Swerve brown sugar and didn’t notice any difference in flavor or how it cooked up. Thank you so much for this new go to recipe!!! So delish ?
Had to use variations on a few ingredients, powdered garlic & ginger, I was out of fresh &actually subbed chick pea flour for the corn starch & varied our veggies a bit as well, but this recipe OMG AMAZING! A definite keeper & obviously versatile lol! One of my daughter’s favorite foods is Sesame Chicken but she is recently vegetarian & I’m recently vegan. She was literally licking her fingers ! Excited to try more of your recipes, Thank you!!!
I cooked this tonight, first time ever cooking tofu. The tofu was very flavoursome, crispy on the outside and soft in the middle. I added baby corn and asparagus to the recipe, it was perfect. I’ll definitely be making this again.
Do you have to use a food processor or blender for the sauce? I don’t have either…. other than a ninja bullet thing I use for smoothies.
Hi there! The food processor just ensures that the garlic and ginger blend right into the sauce and that the sauce is smooth. If you don’t mind mincing the garlic and ginger finely, you could just skip the step where you toss it into the blender, a ninja bullet blender works too!
Super flavorful and delicious! Red pepper flakes have quite a bit of heat so next time I will do them on the side so the littles can enjoy it 🙂
Hi
I made the sesame ginger tofu last night. OUTRAGEOUS !!!!! SOOOOO delicious!
I just used spinach instead of the green beans. The sauce is seriously out of this world!!
I’m going to make the sauce tonight on salmon!
I LOVE your recipes ! My mouth waters when I look at your photos.
Recipes are flavorful and easy !
I’m glad I found you!
Karin
So happy to hear you enjoyed the stir fry, Karin! Thank you so much for all your kind words and for taking the time to come back and comment 🙂
Loved this! Grandson is a tofu lover and he gobbled it right up. He even commented on the sauce. It will be a favorite here from now on.
Delicious. The kids love it too and normally it can be a bit tricky to get them to eat beans. The tofu texture is great, crispy, chewy, sticky and soft all at once. Will be a regular for us. Great recipe and quick to make too.
Can you save leftovers for a couple of days, say for lunches?
Yes, you can refrigerate leftovers for a few days. I do find that the tofu loses its crispness, however, the flavors in the marinade are more pronounced and more delicious as they sit!
Best tofu recipe I’ve made in a very long time! Thank you!
That’s awsome; happy to hear it!
This recipe was amazing and the sauce is incredible! My family who is not vegan, loved it!!
That’s so great, Jennifer! Appreciate you taking the time to circle back and leave a comment 🙂
Delicious! We all loved it, even my picky 5 year old.
Love hearing that! Thank you for taking the time to come back and comment, Ann!
I use tofu a lot. We like the sauce. Since I follow WW , I reduced the amount of oil and I baked the tofu and roasted the vegetables and combined everything with the sauce.
Thianks for this quick uncomplicated
delicous recipe for tofu.
So happy to hear you enjoyed it, Diana!
This is the first time I ever made tofu and I was pleasantly surprised that it turned out soooooo delicious. Didn’t have green beans on hand, substituted with broccoli. Will definitely make again. Thank you so much for this recipe.
I’m so happy to hear you enjoyed it, Eve! Love that you made it your own with broccoli!
Don’t even think twice… make this! So easy, so delicious! Definitely will be making again very soon like possibly in a few days;) Thanks for an amazing recipe!;)♥️
I truly enjoyed this meal. Even my picky 4 year old ate it, on her own without me having to feed her hahaha win/win!
That’s so good to hear! Appreciate you circling back to leave a review!
This is amazing! Even my son that didn’t even know what tofu was loved it! We will definitely be making it again.
Love hearing when someone who doesn’t like/know what tofu is is converted over! So happy to hear it was enjoyed, Lynn!
How many servings does this make?
Easy to follow directions and turned out delicious!
Hi there!
My family is obsessed with this recipe. I want to make the sauce for friends for Christmas. How long would the sauce last in a container?
Thanks!
Hi Rochelle! I would say a max of 5 days since we’re using fresh garlic and ginger!
Yum; definitely a keeper. This sauce is delicious; rivals Chinese takeout from my fav restaurant. Even my meat-eaters loved this recipie.
Big hit tonight. I used sugar snap peas and peppers worked great. Will. E making this again.
I am so excited to try this recipe tonight! I do not have a non stick skillet, only cast iron or stainless steel. Would one of those work? I have never cooked tofu on the stove (only baked) so I don’t know how much not using a non stick will matter.
I absolutely LOVED this recipe!! Quick and easy and delicious. I cooked the tofu and veggies much longer than suggested to get everything crispy, used low sodium soy sauce and 2T of brown sugar (instead of 3) . Perfection! Loved it so much, am making it again a few days later.
Trying to eat healthy these days.love this dish.thanks to see it here.love Valentina. I will use it.fit up.
Delicious! Have made multiple times and its always great.
I made this last night for my son who has just turned vegan. It was a really useful dish for the whole family as the sauce can also be used with salmon fillets (poured over some of the sauce and then baked in foil), king prawns (tossed in seasoned cornflour, fried and then simmered in the sauce). All served with rice….
The flavours were lovely, but the sauce was a bit thick and gloopy – wil definitely make it again but will use less cornflour.
Great recipe! Even my meat-crazed husband loves it. Very versatile, just add whatever veggies you like! I also add cashews which are a great addition. A keeper for sure.
This was so delicious! I used asparagus because I didn’t have green beans. I think it’s my favorite tofu recipe! Thanks so much for posting it
Dee-lish!! I’ve made it twice in two weeks, once with Tofu (yummy crusty saucy) and once with chicken. I use arrowroot instead of cornstarch and I doubled the sauce the 2nd time! I used packaged stir fry frozen veggies for more variety. I love it!
Absolutely delicious. This was the best tofu stir fry. Love the sauce. Will definitely make it again.
It’s a way of making tofu I haven’t tried until now. I really like the texture and the sauce was good, but next time I make it I’ll use a little less cornstarch because I like to have extra sauce for rice.
Absolutely delicious. One of the best recipes ever. Had a different mix of veg … with this awesome flavor could have almost eaten with a spoon
It is so much delicious that i am making this fourth time.
Anyone have a substitute for cornstarch??
I usually don’t leave reviews or follow recipes to a T much but I loved this sauce so much I had to leave a review! I did not follow the tofu and veggie directions, only the sauce. First, it uses all pantry pulls for me and uses ingredients that don’t require a trip to the asian market. Secondly, it was the perfect viscosity for what I feel a good asian sauce should be. Third, wow flavor was great!
This is fantastic. Everyone right down to the five year old commented on how good it smelled while it was cooking and our littlest, who had been having a bad stomach week, gobbled it up (all that ginger!). Super simple, super delicious recipe – thanks!
Added some red peppers and baby corn to get the colours going! Very good!
This is the best stir fry recipe we’ve ever had! We’ve used tofu AND chicken and it tasted great with both proteins. The sauce has the perfect combination of spicy, sweet, and salty.