Honey Garlic Air Fryer Tofu
This air fryer tofu is ultra crispy, easy to make and coated in a sticky honey garlic and ginger sauce. It’s perfect with rice & veggies and makes for a simple vegetarian dinner!
I have officially entered that stage of owning an air fryer where I am thoroughly obsessed and make absolutely everything and anything in it. Salmon, veggies, chicken, everything! There’s not much an air fryer can’t do!
Tofu is the BEST thing to make in an air fryer because you don’t have to deal with an oily sticky mess on your stove or oven and it gets SO crispy.
We’ll be finishing off this air fryer tofu with a sticky honey garlic and ginger sauce that is absolutely delicious. Serve it alongside my fried rice for a flavor-packed dinner!
This recipe is also super quick and easy to make, only requiring about 15 minutes of cook time! You can serve it alongside some fresh jasmine rice and steamed broccoli or just enjoy it as is! Try my peanut tofu wraps or peanut butter noodles next!
How to make air fryer tofu
Remove the tofu from the package and drain off the excess water. Wrap in a towel to remove the liquid. If you want ultra crispy tofu, press it for about 20 minutes with a heavy object.
I skip this step most of the time with no issues 🙂
Cut into 1 inch cubes and toss with the soy sauce. In a small dish, whisk together the corn starch, paprika and garlic powder. Add to the tofu and toss to combine. Toss in the breadcrumbs until well coated.
Spray your air fryer basket and add in the tofu. Set the air fryer to 375 Fahrenheit and set the timer to 20 minutes. Remove the basket and shake every 5 minutes to ensure nothing sticks and everything cooks evenly.
At the 15 minute mark, check the tofu. It will be pretty crispy at this point, so stop it now if it is done enough for you, but I usually leave it in for the full 20 minutes.
While the tofu is cooking, add the minced garlic and sesame oil to a small pot. Saute until lightly golden brown.
Add in all remaining sauce ingredients and whisk really well. let simmer over low heat until thick. If after 5 or so minutes it isn’t thickening, whisk in an extra tablespoon of cornstarch.
When both the tofu and sauce are done, let cool for about 5 minutes, then transfer the tofu to a large bowl and toss with the sauce. Serve immediately and enjoy with rice & veggies or just as is. Also great with my Thai quinoa salad!
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Key ingredients
TOFU. I highly recommend extra firm tofu for this recipe, but if you only have firm tofu, that will work too.
BREADCRUMBS. We”ll first coat the tofu in soy sauce, then toss with some spices and cornstarch to absorb excess moisture, then toss in breadcrumbs to give the tofu a really crunchy exterior. I used gluten free breadcrumbs, but regular work too.
SAUCE. This simple honey garlic soy sauce is perfectly sweet, salty and spicy. If you are gluten free like me, be sure to use tamari and not soy sauce. Either way, I suggest low sodium!
Oven instructions
If you don’t own an air fryer, you can absolutely make this recipe in a regular oven.
To do so, follow all of the same instructions, but instead of air frying it, bake at 400 degrees Fahreneheit for 25-30 minutes or until golden brown and crispy. Then, let it cool for 5 minutes and toss with the sauce.
Does it keep?
Unfortunately, baked or air fried tofu of any kind doesn’t keep very well. The crispiness tends to go away after a few hours so it is best served fresh.
However, if you have leftover, it will store in the fridge for up to 2 days, it just won’t stay crispy. You can reheat it in the air fryer or oven to get back some crispiness!
Do I have to press tofu?
You can, but to be honest, I usually don’t! I’m impatient when it comes to cooking but I will admit, pressing tofu for even just 15 minutes will help make it crispier. This is also true for my Kung Pao Tofu!
You can just use a heavy object like a cast iron pan and place it on top of the tofu if you have the patience. But don’t worry, the tofu will be plenty crisp if you skip this step!
Try these next!
Lastly, if you try this recipe, leave a comment below and let me know how it turns out! Be sure to follow me on instagram and subscribe to my newsletter for more recipes.
Air Fryer Tofu
by: claire cary
Ingredients
Tofu
- 1 14 ounce block extra firm tofu
- 1 teaspoon low sodiu, tamari or soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- ½ teaspoon paprika
- ½ teaspoon garlic
- ¼ cup gluten free breadcrumbs can use regular if not GF
Honey Sauce
- 5-6 tbsp honey (can sub maple syrup) see notes
- ¾ cup vegetable broth
- 3 tablespoons low sodium tamari or soy sauce
- 2 teaspoon minced garlic
- ½ teaspoon ground ginger
- 2 teaspoon sriracha or more to taste
- 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
- 2-3 teaspoon corn starch
- ½ tspteaspoon red pepper flakes optional for more spice
Instructions
- Remove the tofu from the package and drain off the excess water. Wrap in a towel to remove the liquid.
- If you want ultra crispy tofu, press it for about 20 minutes with a heavy object. I skip this step most of the time with no issues 🙂
- Cut into 1 inch cubes and toss with the soy sauce. In a small dish, whisk together the corn starch, paprika and garlic powder. Add to the tofu and toss to combine.
- Toss in the breadcrumbs until well coated.
- Spray your air fryer basket (OR use a parchment liner to make clean up easy! these have holes in them to keep the cooking process the same) and add in the tofu in a single layer.
- Set the air fryer to 375 Fahrenheit and set the timer for 15 minutes. Remove the basket and shake every 5 minutes to ensure nothing sticks and everything cooks evenly. At the 15 minute mark, check the tofu.
- It will be quite crispy at this point, so stop it now if it is done enough for you, but I sometimes give it a few extra minutes if I want it ultra crispy.
- While the tofu is cooking, add the minced garlic and sesame oil to a small pot. Saute until lightly golden brown.
- Add in all remaining sauce ingredients and whisk really well. let simmer over low heat until thick. If after 5 or so minutes it isn’t thickening, whisk in an extra teaspoon of cornstarch.
- When both the tofu and sauce are done, let cool for about 5 minutes, then transfer the tofu to a large bowl and toss with the sauce. Serve immediately and enjoy with rice & veggies or just as is.
Notes
Comments
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I tried tofu 25 years ago and hated it. That all changed tonight when I tried the honey garlic tofu. Airfrying it is amazing. Nice crispy bites. The sauce was a little spicy which I like. I forgot to make a cornstarch slurry so things got a little messy. I ground out the big lumps and left the little ones. I couldn’t even tell. I will definitely eat this again.
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This came out really good! I served it with roasted asparagus. Broccoli would be great also!
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This recipe is fantastic
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Made this for dinner this evening. My husband said “restaurant quality “. It was so good. I used roasted garlic and fresh grated ginger in the sauce. Served with broccoli and jasmine rice.
#eatwithclarity! Thank you!-
Thank you so much, Tammy! So glad it was a hit 🙂
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Wow – GREAT flavor! Loved this recipe. Will definitely do again.
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This is a great recipe and I used breadcrumbs to coat. Amazing sauce and combination was out of this world
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Thank you, Jamie!
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Tastes very good! The breadcrumbs don’t stick so I just dumped them. There was a lotttt of extra sauce -almost wished I had doubled the tofu!
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I love this recipe. I made mine in an oven and all the textures and flavours were amazing. 10/10, will make again!
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Thank you, Edi!
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I love this recipe but the Panko did not stick to the tofu very well. Most of The crumbs ended up in the bottom of my air fryer. I also cut down on the soy sauce As I didn’t want all the sodium. But it still tasted great!
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You can try mixing the breadcrumbs with the cornstarch and spices and add it all at the same time to see if that helps!
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I don’t really like tofu but I tried this one and I have to say, it was quite delicious! What really made it is the honey sauce. I’m making batches of it now as it also works as a terrific stir fry sauce and dipping sauce for spring rolls!
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Love it! Thanks, Lisa!
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Hi can I make this ahead and freeze?
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You can try! And then reheat in the air fryer, the texture will definitely be different though!
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Hi! I’m confused by this recipe. If you role the tofu in cornstarch first and then the bread crumbs, how do the breadcrumbs stick?
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It’s just 1 tablespoon of cornstarch so it won’t really prevent the breadcrumbs from sticking. If you’re worried about it, you can just combine the two and add at the same time.
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Great tofu recipe!! The season on the tofu was very tasty and the sauce was a fantastic addition to the tofu!
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One of the best tofu recipes I’ve ever made.
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Thank you, Jade!
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I made it using maple syrup. My whole family loved it. It was very taste and delicioso.. my new favorite. Gracias
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Thank you, Thelma!
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