Teriyaki Tofu

Close-up of a crispy tofu cube coated in white sesame seeds.

5 from 35 votes

Teriyaki Tofu with a crisp coating but wobbly, oozy center- the trick is to use the right type of tofu- coated in a deliciously savory teriyaki sauce. (I have shown you how to make your own teriyaki sauce, but you can also use shop-bought.)

Prep Time5

Cook Time20

Course: Side Dish

Cuisine: Japanese

Servings: people

Calories: 145kcal

Author: Zen

Equipment

Knife and cutting board
Small bowl
Wok or frying pan

Ingredients

For the crispy tofu

1 14 oz block of tofu (about 396g- don't worry if your tofu is bigger/ smaller- just adjust the quantity of the other ingredients accordingly.) Cut into 1-inch cubes. I like to use Chinese tofu as it is firm enough to pan-fry but still very soft when you bite through the crisp exterior. Do NOT use silken tofu as it'll be VERY difficult, almost impossible, to fry! In a pinch, you can use firm tofu, but you won't get the same delightfully oozy interior that you will with Chinese tofu.
1-2 Tablespoons cornflour Substitute: potato starch
½ Tablespoon sesame seeds lightly toasted: white or black work though I find white sesame seeds make the dish more appealing.
½ sprig green onions Optional
a drizzle of sesame oil Optional

For the sauce

5 Tablespoons low-sodium light soy sauce if you're on a gluten-free diet, you can use coconut aminos or 1 of these light soya sauce alternatives. Do not use dark soy or sweet soy instead.
2½ Tablespoons sake Substitute: soju or mirin
2½ Tablespoons mirin Substitute: soju or sake + sugar
1¼ Tablespoons white sugar I don't recommend brown sugar or maple syrup as I prefer the cleaner taste of white, but if you have no choice, it won't ruin the recipe.
3 cloves garlic: peeled and minced, optional
½-1 Tablespoon white rice vinegar or to taste, optional, substitute: juice from 1 calamansi lime

Instructions

Frying the tofu

Cut all the tofu into 1-inch cubes. Handle the tofu gently so it doesn't break.
Put the cornflour in a small bowl, followed by the tofu cubes. Turn them round till every side is coated with cornflour then shake off any excess.
Do this for all the cubes.
Using medium-high heat, fry all the tofu cubes till all sides are golden brown.
Note: Make sure you place them in a single layer in the frying pan, and not too close to each other.
For crispy teriyaki tofu, the oil needs to be hot enough before you add the tofu. To test if the oil is hot enough, you can use a food thermometer (180C/ 356F) OR insert a wooden chopstick into the hot oil. When you see bubbles around the chopstick, the oil is hot enough.
Place the fried tofu on a paper towel to soak excess oil.

For the sauce

Whilst the tofu cubes are cooling, pour the soy sauce, sake, mirin and sugar into a wok and stir-fry over medium heat till the sugar has dissolved and the sauce has thickened. (2-3 minutes but not too long or the sauce will be salty,
If using the 2 optional ingredients: Add the minced garlic, stir-fry briefly then add the vinegar or lime juice.
Taste to check the sauce is not too salty (if it is, add a bit of water and mix well.) Toss the fried tofu in the teriyaki sauce till well coated.
Serve with rice, a drizzle of sesame oil and maybe miso soup!

Notes

The sauce can be batch made and kept in the fridge (without the garlic) for 1 week. (If you've already added the garlic, keep it for up to 3 days.) It tastes great with fish and chicken too!

Note: the nutritional information is an estimate automatically calculated using the WPRM recipe maker and I am not responsible for its accuracy.

Nutrition