Easy Peanut Butter Tofu
Here’s an easy, family-friendly dinner that’s packed with flavour (and protein!) – creamy peanut butter tofu. The luscious peanut sauce is irresistible – it’s rich and velvety, and coats the crispy tofu wonderfully. I also added some green veggies to cut through the richness a little, and served it with some fluffy rice. A seriously feel-good meal!
Peanut butter and tofu might sound like an unusual combo, but they’re a match made in heaven – it’s giving satay vibes. This easy vegan recipe is full of plant-based protein (more than 30 grams per serving!), and it’s really easy to customise too – feel free to add extra veggies, swap the green beans for broccoli or peas, or use noodles instead of rice if you fancy something a bit different.
🥟 Crispy Tofu
Some people don’t seem keen on tofu, and I’m convinced it’s because it’s sometimes cooked poorly, ending up squidgy and sponge-like. But if you use my easy method for cooking tofu, it will end up with a wonderful firm texture, crispy on the edges, with plenty of flavour absorbed from the sauce.
Essentially, the method involves cooking the tofu until it’s a bit too dry and crispy (it’s a real trust-the-process kind of thing). Then, when you add the sauce, the tofu rehydrates and sucks up all those tasty flavours. It’s easy, and delicious.
Becca’s Top Tip
For an even better texture, try tearing the tofu into bitesized pieces, rather than cutting it with a knife. The rough edges become even more crispy, giving a really lovely chewy texture.
🥜 Creamy Peanut Butter Sauce
Using peanut butter makes this peanut sauce really straightforward to make, with no hard-to-find ingredients – mainly just the peanut butter, plus some soy sauce. I also added some spring onions and a little red chilli for heat. The end result is part vegetarian curry, part vegetarian stir fry… and fully delicious.
It’s really easy to adjust the sauce to be as thick or as runny as you like. A thicker version would work well for a dry satay-style tofu, or make a runnier version like I did, to beautifully coat your rice or noodles.
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🥗 Ingredients and Substitutions
Here’s what you’ll need to make this creamy peanut butter tofu. See the printable recipe card below for detailed ingredient quantities.
- extra firm tofu
- green veggies – I used frozen green beans, but all sorts of green veg would work well in this recipe, e.g. broccoli or peas.
- peanut butter – I used crunchy peanut butter, which gave a nice texture to the sauce. If possible, choose a peanut butter that’s made from 100% nuts, rather than one with lots of added salt, sugar or sweeteners.
- soy sauce
- ginger and garlic – I used the lazy forms of these, which come pre-minced in a jar. You can use fresh ginger and garlic if you have more time on your hands.
- red chilli – start with a small amount, as you can always add more if needed!
- spring onions
- cilantro (fresh coriander), for garnish
🖨️ Printable Instructions
Easy Peanut Butter Tofu
If you’ve cooked this recipe, don’t forget to leave a star rating!
Print Pin CommentIngredients
- 1 Tablespoon oil
- 280 g (~ 10 oz) extra firm tofu
- 1 teaspoon garlic paste
- 1/2 teaspoon ginger paste
- 1/2 small red chilli, finely chopped (more or less to taste)
- 2 spring onions, chopped
- 1 cup green vegetables (e.g. green beans, peas or broccoli)
- 1 heaped Tablespoon peanut butter (I used crunchy)
- 1 Tablespoon soy sauce
- 100 ml (~ 1/3 cup) water
- To serve: fresh cilantro (coriander); rice or noodles
Instructions
- Heat the oil in a frying pan over a medium heat. Cut or tear the tofu into bitesized pieces (I like to tear it, as it leaves rougher edges that crisp up nicely). Add the tofu to the pan, and cook for about 10 minutes, until crispy and slightly dried out (it will rehydrate when you add the sauce!).
- Add the garlic paste, ginger paste, finely chopped chilli, and chopped spring onions. Cook for a couple more minutes.
- Next, add the green veggies (I used frozen green beans, but broccoli or peas would work well too), along with the peanut butter, soy sauce, and the water.
- Allow the sauce to warm through – the peanut butter will mix in nicely with the other ingredients as it gets warm. Simmer for 5 more minutes, or until the vegetables are cooked to your liking. You can add a little more water if you’d like your tofu more saucy.
- Serve with rice or noodles, topped with fresh cilantro, if desired.
Nutrition
Nutritional information is approximate, and will depend on your exact ingredients. Please calculate your own nutritional values if you require accuracy for health reasons.
💭 Recipe FAQs
Yes – the recipe will reheat well in the microwave or in a saucepan. You may need to add an extra splash of water when reheating if it looks like the sauce has dried out a little.
I haven’t tried freezing this recipe, but it’s the sort of thing that I imagine would freeze very well in an air-tight container.
If you make the dish nice and saucy, like I did, it’s wonderful served over rice or noodles. If you prefer, you could reduce the water a little to make a thicker sauce, which will make a drier satay tofu.
This peanut butter tofu is totally vegan. However, it’s not gluten-free unless you specifically find a gluten-free soy sauce.
Absolutely delicious and so easy .
I made it for my work lunch for 2 days and ate it cold .
Loved the tofu , have me confidence to use it more
That’s great to hear, thanks Donna!
Really easy and really tasty.
Thanks Kinlay!