Crispy Baked Sesame Tofu
For an easy weeknight dinner, look no further than this crispy baked sesame tofu! It’s so easy to make, requires only 10 minutes of prep time and is completely vegan and gluten free.
It’s no secret around here that I’m a big, ok huge, fan of sesame anything. Sesame noodles, chickpeas, cauliflower, sesame chickpea meatballs, now sesame tofu?! Sesame salmon is next on my list but I’m always open to suggestions!
Easy dinners are my favorite kind of dinners. Easy dinners that are so flavorful are the absolute best. This baked tofu recipe is exactly that and I cannot wait for you to try it!
I love to serve it up with some rice and broccoli to make a sort of buddha bowl, but you can also serve it in a stir fry or with my vegan fried rice.
Tofu does not contain sesame as it is just made with soy beans, but this recipe contains sesame oil for a delicious sesame flavor. If you love this recipe, try my crispy garlic tofu, gochujang korean tofu or tofu burrito bowl next!
Why you’ll love this recipe
- Vegan & gluten free
- Packed with flavor
- Crispy
- Easy to make
Tips for crispy tofu
I’ll admit, I totally understand why some people are so turned off by tofu. It doesn’t look all that great straight out of the package, and without any sauce, it doesn’t have much of a flavor.
However, (and a big however!), if you know how to cook tofu properly, then you can make it taste seriously delicious. Crispy, flavorful, easy to make, high in protein… basically everything you could want.
The key to baking tofu is to bake it plain and with some sort of flour or starch. Baking it without any sauce ensures the tofu on its own is able to crisp up and without burning the sauce.
The flour/starch works to absorb any excess moisture to give us a super crispy exterior and soft interior. We’ll then coat it in the sauce after it bakes so it stays crispy!
How to make sesame tofu
Cut tofu. Cut a slit in the side of the tofu container and drain out all of the excess liquid. Remove the tofu from the package and wrap it in a towel just to get off as much liquid as possible without having to press the tofu. Once it seems dry, cut the tofu into 1 inch cubes.
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Prep tofu. Once the tofu is cubed, add it to a large bowl and toss with the soy sauce. Next, toss in the cornstarch then the breadcrumbs.
I like to just shake the bowl so the tofu doesn’t break (sometimes it breaks if you use a spoon) and toss until every piece is well coated.
Bake. Add to a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, and try to ensure none of the tofu pieces touch each other. I know that seems annoying, but the space between really helps it get crispy.
Make sauce. Add the tofu to the oven and bake for about 30 minutes or until golden brown. While the tofu is baking, we’ll prepare the sauce on the stove.
Serve. Once the sauce and tofu are done, toss both together until well coated and enjoy! I like to serve it with brown or white rice and some steamed broccoli. Try my chipotle sofritas tofu next!
Do you need to press tofu?
Yes and no. You can absolutely get away with not pressing the tofu for this recipe. I don’t list it in the instructions because this recipe turns out really well without any pressing. Plus, it saves a lot of time!
Tofu is basically a sponge that sits in water and absorbs all of it. Pressing out the excess water does help make it more crispy and ensures it cooks evenly through the center.
If you’re trying to get flavors into the tofu, you do want to press it. In the case of this sesame tofu, we’re trying to get a crispy outside so the sauce will stick on the outside, so pressing isn’t necessary.
Moral of the story, nothing bad will happen if you don’t press tofu, but if you want the crispiest and most flavorful tofu around, press away!
How to store and reheat
Once prepared, this sesame tofu will keep in the fridge for 3 days. It is best served fresh, but you can pop everything back in the oven at 200 for 10 minutes to crisp it back up.
The microwave also works, but tends to make things a bit soft/soggy, but the flavor will still be delicious.
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Garlic Sesame Tofu
by: claire cary
Ingredients
Tofu
- 1 tablespoon low sodium tamari or soy sauce
- 1 16 ounce block extra firm tofu
- 1 tablespoon corn starch
- 3 tablespoons gluten free breadcrumbs can sub for regular
Sauce
- 5 cloves garlic
- 1 tablespoon oil I used avocado oil
- ⅓ cup low sodium tamari or soy sauce MUST be low sodium!
- 2 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
- 2-3 tablespoons honey or maple syrup depending on preference
- 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
- 1 tablespoon corn starch
- 4 tablespoons water divided
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400 Fahrenheit.
- Drain the excess liquid from the tofu and dry it off with a towel*.
- Cut into 1 inch cubes and add to a large bowl. Toss with the soy sauce.
- Toss with the cornstarch and the breadcrumbs until all pieces are evenly coated.
- Add to the baking tray lined with parchment paper and bake for 30-35 minutes or until golden brown.
- During the final 10 minutes, prep the sauce.
- Mince the garlic and saute with 1 tbsp oil in a small saute pan for 2-3 minutes or until lightly browned.
- Add in the soy sauce, honey or maple syrup, rice vinegar, 2 tbsp of water and sesame oil.
- Whisk together the cornstarch and other 2 tbsp of water in a bowl and add to the pan.
- Heat over low heat for 3-5 minutes or until the sauce bubbles and thickens.
- When the tofu is done, toss with the sauce. Garnish with sesame seeds if desired and serve over rice with steamed broccoli or enjoy as is!
Notes
Comments
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This recipe is absolutely the best!!! The flavor is amazing and even if you have not had tofu before this is a must try!! Me and my 12yr old son eat it at least 3 times a month! And certainly no leftovers💕
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This was sooooo good and incredibly photogenic! It’s true that you eat with your eyes, and I know this would be delicious before even tasting it. I didn’t have low sodium soy sauce so yes it turned out really salty, but I’m excited to make it again with the proper ingredient. So tasty and easy to make with things I always have on hand! Thank you!!
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Glad you loved it anyway! Thanks, Alyssa!
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Very delicious. I add red pepper flakes just to give it a kick. I decided to press the tofu so it would not get soggy.
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Yes this is delicious! my family (4) approved yeah, I will check another recipes, Thank you.
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Looks delicious! If you wanted to add sesame seeds to the tofu-when would be the best time to add it? Thanks!
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You can add it with the breadcrumbs or just after cooking with the sauce!
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Thank you for providing this recipe – I will definitely try it again, this time with low-sodium soy sauce. I didn’t have any, so used regular tamari cut in half with water (so 1/3 cup liquid total) and it was still too salty for me. Also, I would rarely ever saute garlic for more than 30 seconds, so will revert to my normal cooking time. Even at 1:30, the garlic was much too brown. Last, if the food needs to go on parchment paper, please put that in the actual recipe. Many of us don’t read all the lead-up text, so info like this needs to be in the actual recipe instructions. I ended up with stuck-on tofu. My bad, I guess, since cooking with tofu is new to me.
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Sorry for the confusion with the parchment paper – just updated that in the recipe. Let me know how it goes with the low sodium soy sauce!
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I’m just starting out on my tofu journey, and this was only my second recipe. It was good! Even my wife liked it, but I ate most of it myself. I’ll be saving this and looking for more. I prefer sweet foods so I’ll be looking for those.
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This is delicious! Did not change a thing. And this is coming from a person who does NOT usually enjoy tofu. Portion was not enough for 4 ́people, even with sides. This quantity might be more convenient for or 2 adults, or 2 adults and a toddler.
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Servings are generally based on what the package states, which for tofu is usually 4. So glad you enjoyed it though!
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Hi, I am making this now and can’t figure out the olive oil…
I used avo oil as you said to use a neutral flavor oil. So at the bottom of the recipe it says: 1tbsp olive oil but it is never mentioned in the directions… What do you do with the olive oil?
Will come back and rate after we eat it!
Thanks,
Anne-
Sorry for the confusion! The neutral oil/olive oil are inter-changeable here. It’s just to saute the garlic- will update this!
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I’ve never made tofu before, mostly bc my boyfriend says he doesn’t like it, this was my first time. I must say, and I never post comments, thank you, it was delish!!!! My boyfriend is now a tofu lover!
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Love to hear that! Thank you, Cathy!
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Great recipe! Tofu is one of my favorite food always. Thanks.
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Way too Salty! I suggest cutting the soy sauce in half, then making up for it in water, or some other Asian condiment.
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Did you use low sodium? What percentage was it?
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Perfect! Had it with Bockchoy l!
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Yum!
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Fantastic! We used panko crumbs and did not put the cornstarch on before baking. The panko that fell off, we sprinkled on top for some extra crunch. We ate every bite and wished we had made more.
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So glad you loved it, thanks Mary!
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I think I messed up. The taste is good but my tofu wasn’t crunchy. Are there any tips for this? I want to try again the right way.
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Did you make any subs or leave out any ingredients? It should definitely be crispy!
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Can I substitute the corn starch for potato starch?
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Yes, that’ll be fine!
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