Sweet and sour tofu, made in just 30 minutes. A plant-based version of this classic Chinese food that is much better and healthier than take out!
Tofu is a staple in our kitchen, we use it a lot and also to make recipes for you guys. It’s a great meat alternative, especially when you’re trying to recreate meat-based dishes because if you cook it properly, you can get a similar texture.
General Tso’s tofu used to be my favorite tofu recipe, until I tried this, I couldn’t choose between them, both are out of this world!
Tofu can be so bland and boring if you don’t know how to cook it. I didn’t like it at the beginning, but when you find some recipes you enjoy, you’re going to fall in love with this versatile ingredient.
This recipe is perfect for carnivores, people transitioning to a plant-based diet or anyone that is looking for a vegan version of sweet and sour pork.
looking for more tofu recipes?
- General Tso’s tofu
- Easy marinated tofu
- Simple tofu scramble
- Korean stile spicy tofu
- Buffalo tofu wings
Did you make this recipe? Please leave a comment below, share it, rate it or tag a picture @simpleveganblog on Instagram and hashtag it #simpleveganblog. We’d love to see what you cook!
Sweet and Sour Tofu
- Prep: 10 mins
- Cook: 20 mins
- Total: 30 mins
- 2-4 1x
- Main dish
- Asian
Servings 2-4 1x
Sweet and sour tofu, made in just 30 minutes. A plant-based version of this classic Chinese food that is much better and healthier than take out!
Ingredients
For the sweet and sour tofu:
- 2 tbsp tamari or soy sauce
- 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
- 10 ounces firm tofu (275 g), cubed
- 6 tbsp cornstarch
- Extra virgin olive oil to taste
- 1 carrot, chopped
- 1/2 green bell pepper, chopped
- 1/2 red bell pepper, chopped
- 1/2 onion, chopped
For the sweet and sour sauce:
- 4 tbsp cane, coconut or brown sugar
- 2 tbsp tomato paste
- 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
- 1 tsp tamari or soy sauce
- 6 tbsp water (100 ml)
- 2 tsp cornstarch
Instructions
- Mix tamari or soy sauce and apple cider vinegar in a bowl until well combined.
- Add the tofu cubes and let rest for at least 5 minutes.
- Drain the tofu and transfer 1/3 of the tofu cubes to a freezer bag with 2 tbsp of cornstarch and toss to coat. Repeat this step with the rest of the tofu and cornstarch. Add more cornstarch if needed.
- Cook the tofu cubes in a skillet with a little bit of extra virgin olive oil over medium-high heat until all sides are golden brown. Remove tofu from pan and set aside.
- Cook the veggies in the skillet with some water or oil over medium-high heat until golden brown. Set aside.
- To make the sauce just mix all the ingredients until well combined.
- Add the sauce to a saucepan and cook until it thickens, stirring frequently.
- Mix the tofu, veggies and sauce in the skillet, stir and cook for about 5 minutes over medium heat, stirring occasionally. Serve with some sesame seeds on top (optional).
- Keep leftovers in a sealed container in the fridge for 4 to 5 days.
Notes
- Some people add pineapple to this recipe, but I don’t because when I ate sweet and sour pork at restaurants here in Spain (before going vegan), they didn’t add it. If you want your sweet and sour tofu with pineapple, just sautée it with the veggies.
- Use any veggies, starch, vinegar or sweetener you have on hand.
- Tomato paste can be replaced by tomato puree, ketchup or tomato sauce.
- The real amount of sodium of this recipe is not 1248 mg because you’d need to marinade the tofu for hours until it absorbs all the tamari or soy sauce.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1/2 of the recipe using 2 tsp oil
- Calories: 380
- Sugar: 25.8 g
- Sodium: 1248 mg
- Fat: 10.8 g
- Saturated Fat: 1.9 g
- Carbohydrates: 58.6 g
- Fiber: 5.2 g
- Protein: 15.9 g
This as so delicious. Thank you for sharing this recipe.
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Thanks for your kind comment Erika 🙂
Simple and delicious. Thank you!
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Hi! I’m so glad you liked it 🙂
Fab recipe. Added extra hot chilli powder to the cornflour as we like it hot. Worked really well. Added a bit more soy sauce and some sriracha to the sauce. Served with Pad Thai noodles with bean sprouts, water chestnuts, spring onions and soy sauce. Loved it, was very sophisticated, thank you.
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Sounds so good 🙂
This was delicious! I warmed the tofu back up on the oven rather than in the sauce so it stayed crispy. Thanks for the great recipe!! X
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Thanks for your comment 🙂 Have a nice day!
I had to improvise a little as I had no peppers, but added green beans instead and a couple of cloves of garlic.
I steamed the carrots (sliced lengthways) before frying them off with the onions and garlic.
The beans I added to the top of the rice, and not in the pan so they kept their shape a little more. The tofu i marinated for about 10-15 minutes before frying off, setting aside and then reading once the onion was tender with the carrots.
The sauce was fantastic – we did add pineapple (the kids loved the pineapple). And for my wife and myself I topped with some sliced chillies and sesame seeds.
Will definitely make this again.
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Thanks for your comment! Sounds amazing! Have a nice day 🙂
Great recipe, I made the sauce x1.5 and adjusted a bit more to taste and it was great with some rice.
I’ll be making this again, but I’ll try to put the tofu last in the sauce so it stays a bit crispier.
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Hi Daniela! So glad you liked it 🙂 That’s a good idea!