Crispy Teriyaki Tofu (照り焼き豆腐)

Name: Crispy Teriyaki Tofu
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 25 min
Ingredients: 2 pieces Firm Tofu ((Can use firm or medium firm)); 1/4 cup Sweet potato starch; 1 stick Green onion; 2 tablespoons Homemade teriyaki sauce; 3 tablespoons Vegetable oil

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Crispy teriyaki tofu is a delicious and tasty appetizer, party food and side dish like California roll and chicken udon stir fry. It’s a great vegetarian dish because it has a great source of protein. Also, this crispy teriyaki tofu recipe is a perfect quick and easy meal that goes well with rice, fried rice and noodles. Let’s learn how to make crispy teriyaki tofu in 25 minutes with step by step photos and a video!

Love Japanese food? Check out these California rolls, chicken udon stir fry, Japanese chicken curry, gyudon beef bowl, teriyaki chicken rice bowl, homemade teriyaki sauce, miso soup, tonkatsu and Japanese milk bread rolls recipes.

Crispy teriyaki tofu on a white plate with a blue striped towel

What is crispy teriyaki tofu?

Crispy teriyaki tofu is a dish made from tofu and drizzled with teriyaki sauce. The tofu can be pan fried, baked, and air fried until it becomes crispy on the outside. Also, it is plain and has the ability to absorb flavors; therefore, it is versatile and can go with any sauce to make different dishes from savory to sweet dessert such as mapo tofu, kimchi tofu soup, miso soup, hot & sour soup and tofu pudding.

Crispy teriyaki tofu is not only crispy outside, but also soft inside. Also, it tastes amazingly delicious when served with homemade teriyaki sauce. This crispy teriyaki tofu recipe is crispy because it is coated with sweet potato starch, then pan fried to golden brown. Then, drizzling sweet and savory teriyaki sauce gives this dish a rich, savory and sweet flavor. Often, it sprinkles with sesame seeds and sliced green onions to serve as an appetizer, party food, side dish and as a main course that is served with rice and vegetables. Besides, it’s an excellent vegan dish option because of its high protein.

What makes this crispy teriyaki tofu recipe so good?

This crispy teriyaki tofu recipe is good because of the crispy and crunchy outer layer and soft and moist tofu inside. Also, the crispy tofu is pan fried over the stove. If you don’t have an oven or air fryer, you can still make this crispy tofu on the stove top. I will show and tell you the secret for making crispy and crunchy tofu. Besides, dipping the crispy tofu with homemade teriyaki sauce is amazingly delicious with a savory and sweet taste. Or, you can dip other sauces like sweet Thai chili sauce.

What is tofu?

Tofu is also known as bean curd. They are prepared by coagulating soy milk. Then, they are pressed into a small box and shaped into a solid block. It has different softness such as silken, soft, medium and firm bean curd.

2 blocks of bean curds on the circle white plate

Moreover, tofu originated from China over 2000 years ago. Nowadays, it’s very popular in Asia and throughout the world. Nutritionally, tofu is low in calories and higher in protein, iron and calcium. Thus, a lot of vegetarians like to consume tofu and substitute for protein intake.

What does tofu taste like?

On the other hand, bean curd doesn’t have much flavor and it's very plain. Therefore, it can be savory like hot & sour soup, miso soup, mapo tofu, kimchi soup or sweet dessert like tofu pudding. Often, they are seasoned or marinated to suit the dish and flavor. Plus, tofu absorbs flavor very well.

What are the ingredients for crispy pan fry tofu with teriyaki sauce?

In this crispy teriyaki tofu recipe, the ingredients are tofu, sweet potato starch, green onion, vegetable oil and homemade teriyaki sauce.

I like to use sweet potato starch instead of cornstarch or regular flour because sweet potato starch has a strong water absorption ability and high viscosity. It creates a nice crispy layer and texture on the fried exterior when cooking it. Also, it maintains crunchiness even after cooling down.

How to make homemade teriyaki sauce?

This homemade simple Asian teriyaki sauce recipe, I use ginger, garlic, sesame oil, soy sauce, sugar and sesame seeds. You can see details and a video for how to make homemade teriyaki sauce.

teriyaki sauce pouring from a glass bottle into a glass container with ginger and garlic background

What’s the secret to making crispy tofu?

To make tofu crispy it is important to press the tofu to remove excess water and moisture. You can place the tofu on paper towels, wrap it around with the paper towel and gently apply pressure on the tofu. Repeat this 2-3 times. By pressing the tofu, it allows the moisture to come out and it helps to make the tofu crispy when cooking it.

Also, choosing the right texture of tofu is curial. To make crispy teriyaki tofu, using firm tofu is the best because it won’t break easily when you apply pressure to dry the tofu and pan fry them. Besides, cutting the tofu into smaller cubes allows and increases the tofu contact surface area with heat and makes it crispy.

In addition, coating the tofu with sweet potato starch before cooking it can help create a very nice crispy outer layer. My secret to making tofu crispy is to use sweet potato starch, not regular flour or cornstarch. The coating helps absorb mixture from the tofu and browning crispy during cooking.

Then, heat up the pan with oil, make sure the oil greases evenly in the pan. When cooking tofu, try not to flip or stir it many times. Let one side cook a few minutes until it is golden brown and crispy, then flip the other side. If you bake or air fry it, spray oil over the coated tofu and use a high temperature 400 F to bake or air fry it for 20 minutes.

Can I make tofu crispy in the air fryer?

Yes, sure you can air fry the tofu. Coat the tofu with sweet potato starch, spray some oil on the tofu. Then, put it into the air fryer at 400F for 20 minutes. Each 10 minutes, flip the other side.

Cooking tips for how to make crispy teriyaki tofu:

Personally, I like to use firm tofu for stir fried, pan fried or deep fried because they don’t break easily. (You can use medium firm or firm tofu.)
Slightly press and use paper towels to absorb excess water or moisture from the tofu.
If you want to make crispy tofu, the trick is to use sweet potato starch instead of cornstarch or flour. It creates a nice and crispy layer.
I recommend using a non-stick pan, so the tofu will not stick on the pan when you pan frying them. Or, you can deep fry, air fry and bake it.
I love to use homemade teriyaki sauce for this crispy pan fried tofu because of the sweetness and savory flavor.

FAQs:

What kind of tofu do you use?

Tofu has a different softness and is used for different kinds of dishes. For example, silken and soft tofu is often just eaten with sauce or used for soup like miso soup or kimchi tofu soup.
Personally, I like to use firm tofu for stir fried, pan fried or deep fried because they don’t break easily.

Can I eat tofu raw?

Yes, tofu can be eaten raw. But, some people like to pan fry, stir fry or cook them before consuming it.

How to store and reheat leftovers

The best is to not add the teriyaki sauce on the crispy tofu and store them separately. You can warm the crispy tofu in the oven or air fryer 400F for 3-5 minutes.

Instructions for how to make crispy teriyaki tofu:

1. Dry 2 pieces of tofu with a paper towel.

cut bean curd into cubes on the chopping board

2. Dice the tofu into 9 small cubes.

sweet potato starch in a glass round plate

3. In a container, put ¼ cup sweet potato starch (It will have extra, so you can put 2 tablespoons at a time).

bean curd tofu cover with sweet potato starch in a glass plate

4. Then, add the diced tofu and make sure all sides of the tofu are covered with sweet potato starch.

pan fry tofu in a non-stick pan over the stove

5. Pour 3 tablespoons of vegetable oil into a non-stick pan. When the oil is hot enough, put the tofu and pan fry them with medium small fire.

golden brown pan fried crispy tofu in the non-stick pan

6. Pan fry them for about 1-2 minutes each side. Make sure to turn the fire to medium small, so it will not burn them. Until it turns golden brown.

7. Cut one stick of green onion.

8. After that, put the pan fried crispy tofu on a plate and pour 1-2 tablespoons of homemade teriyaki sauce over and top with some green onion.

Enjoy this crispy teriyaki tofu recipe! Also, check out these wonton soup, spicy lemon shrimp, ham fried rice, Vietnamese spring rolls, salt & pepper calamari and ma yi shang shu recipes.