How To Make Crispy Tofu (Baked & Pan Fried) (baked or pan fried) - Damn Tasty Vegan (2024)

This crispy tofu recipe will get you started cooking tofu if you’ve never cooked it before. Never eat bland, mushy tofu again! Learn how to make delicious tofu every time by pan frying or baking with this easy recipe.

So, the thought of cooking with tofu overwhelms you. You’re not sure where to start. Maybe you’ve tried cooking tofu before and it just turned into a bland, mushy mess.

Instead of overwhelming you with 100 ways to cook tofu, I’m going to give you one simple recipe to get you started cooking the best crispy tofu.

Let’s learn how to make crispy baked tofu and pan fried tofu that will turn you into a tofu lover.

If you need more help cooking tofu, check out my article called how to cook tofu for beginners, next.

❤️Why you'll love this recipe

• It's a great beginner recipe if you've never made tofu before.
• It's a great recipe to learn to level up your tofu if it has always turned out rubbery and tasteless.
• It's versatile, delicious and easy to make.
• Tofu is full of vitamins and minerals, is high in protein and is a great meat replacement.

🧂 Ingredient notes

• Extra firm tofu (whole block) - If you want crispy tofu, it's important to use extra-firm tofu. It has the best texture and is the least mushy of the tofu varieties.
• Oil - I like using olive oil, coconut oil or avocado oil.
• Seasonings - Tofu is a blank slate, so use your favorite seasonings. I like to keep it simple with just garlic powder, onion powder and nutritional yeast.
• Salt or soy sauce - If I'm not using any sauce after cooking the tofu, I'll use soy sauce. It adds an amazing umami richness to the tofu.
• Corn starch - This is the secret weapon to getting tofu crispy. It adds a nice outer layer. You can also use arrowroot powder, potato starch or tapioca starch.

Make sure to scroll to the recipe card for full list of ingredients.

• Tofu press - This will save you from the waste of having to use layers of paper towels and a heavy large skillet and books to press the water out.
• Baking sheet - If baking the tofu pieces in the oven. Parchment paper is also helpful if you want to keep you baking sheet clean.
• Cast iron skillet - or your favorite pan if you're choosing to pan fry the tofu.
• Cutting board - To cut the block of tofu into smaller cubes.
• Shallow dish - To mix the tofu with the seasonings and oil before cooking

👨‍🍳 Expert tips

🍚 Pressing tofu

Pressing the tofu takes out the excess water, so it crisps up better. This makes the tofu fry and bake, instead of steam and ensures that the tofu comes out nice and crispy and golden brown.

It also takes less time to cook because you don’t have to cook the water out.

The easiest way to press tofu is to buy a tofu press. They’re really affordable and easy to find online. Use the code DamnTasty for 10% off.

If you don’t have a tofu press: wrap the tofu up in a clean kitchen towel, put it on a plate and put some heavy books or pans on top.

Let it press for 30 minutes.

🥕 Prep and season

Step five: Add tofu to a large mixing bowl. Drizzle on the oil, then sprinkle on the soy sauce and gently mix.

Step six: Sprinkle on the corn starch, garlic powder and onion powder. Gently mix with a wide flat utensil, being careful not to break the tofu, until the corn starch looks mixed in.

💥 Baking tofu

Step one: Line or grease a baking sheet. Arrange tofu in a single layer with space in between.

Step two: Bake for around 30 minutes or until golden and crispy. If needed, bake an extra 5 minutes. The tofu will further firm up as it cools.

See Also

Corned Beef Spice Packet SeasoningChinese Scallion Pancakes (Gluten-Free)Dak Galbi (Korean Stir-Fried Spicy Chicken) - Baek Jong Won | chopsticks and flourMomof*cku Bossam - Korean Slow Cooked Pork Roast

Make sure to scroll to the recipe card for full step-by-step instructions.

🔥 Pan frying tofu

Heat 2-3 tablespoons of oil in a pan over medium heat for 2-5 minutes. Add tofu, then set a timer for 5 minutes without touching it. This ensures a crispy coating and prevents sticking. Cook each side for 5 minutes.

🥢 How to add sauce

Some great sauce options:

You can make it easy by using store bought buffalo wing sauce, asian sauces, teriyaki sauce or BBQ sauce, like in this Easy BBQ Tofu.

Or you can make your own sauces, like this Sesame Ginger Tofu, Sticky Maple Miso Tofu and this Tofu Peanut Sauce.

Adding sauce: if you want to add a sauce, bake or pan fry the tofu first. After it's crispy, add the sauce to a pan on medium heat on the stove. Stir until it heats up, then add the crispy tofu. Stir and coat well. Keep heating it up until the sauce starts to caramelize. This should take about 5-8 minutes. Then serve

♨️ Serving suggestions

The beauty of crispy baked tofu is that it's so versatile. You can use it any way that you would use chicken. This tofu is great to add to a tofu wrap.

You can also add it to a Tofu buddha bowl with some rice, broccoli, veggies and a nice sauce or in a Tofu Quinoa Bowl.

❓ Recipe FAQ's

🍱 More tofu recipes to try

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