Honey Garlic Tofu Recipe

A plate filled with cooked white rice topped with honey garlic tofu. Everything is garnished with black sesame seeds and chopped scallions.

This Honey Garlic Tofu Recipe is an easy-to-make dish that's packed with flavor! It's sweet, salty, tangy, and comes together in just 20 minutes!

Course Main Course, Side Dish

Cuisine Gluten-Free, Vegan, vegetarian

Keyword easy recipes, garlic, honey, quick, spring, summer, tofu

Prep Time 5

Cook Time 15

Pressing the tofu 1

Total Time 20

Servings

Calories 278kcal

Author Sherri Hall

Equipment

Tofu Press

Ingredients

For the tofu

14 oz (400g) extra-firm tofu, pressed and cubed*
1 tablespoon cornstarch (or arrowroot starch)
½ teaspoon garlic powder
A pinch of salt and black pepper
1-2 tablespoon olive oil, for cooking

For the sauce

3 tablespoon honey (use maple syrup to make it vegan)
3 tablespoon soy sauce (use tamari to make it GF)
1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
1 tablespoon rice vinegar
4 cloves of garlic, minced
1 teaspoon minced fresh ginger
1 tablespoon cornstarch (or arrowroot starch)
1 tablespoon sesame seeds (optional)
2 green onions, chopped (for garnish, optional)

Instructions

Either use a tofu press or wrap a tofu block in a clean kitchen towel and place something heavy on top. Press for 1 hour to get rid of the excess moisture. Then, cut the block into 1-inch cubes
In a mixing bowl, toss the tofu with cornstarch, garlic powder, salt, and black pepper. It should be well coated on all sides.
Heat 1-2 tablespoons of olive oil in a cast-iron skillet over medium heat. Once hot, add the cubes in a single layer, and fry for 3-4 minutes on each side, until golden brown.
In the meantime, make the sauce by mixing all of the ingredients together in a small bowl- honey, soy sauce, sesame oil, rice vinegar, garlic, ginger, cornstarch, and sesame seeds (if using).
Pour the stir fry sauce over the tofu pieces and cook for 1-2 minutes, until the sauce thickens and sticks to the tofu. Serve with chopped green onion!

Notes

Use extra-firm tofu. This type of tofu has less moisture, therefore it's chewier and yields a better result.
Press the tofu ahead of time. This is the most time-consuming part of the recipe. You can press the tofu and save it in the fridge 2 days ahead of time. This way the recipe will take only 15-20 minutes to make!
Adjust the consistency of the sauce if needed. If the sauce is too thick, you can thin it out by adding a splash of water or vegetable broth. On the other hand, if it's too thin, you can thicken it by dissolving 1 teaspoon of cornstarch in a little bit of cold water and adding it to the sauce.
Add vegetables. This recipe is even better if you throw in a bunch of veggies. My favorites include red bell peppers, bok choy, eggplant, broccoli, and green beans.

*The total time doesn't include the time it takes to press the tofu as this is considered inactive cooking time.

The nutrition information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. Accuracy is not guaranteed. Information shown should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

Nutrition