Honey Sesame Tofu | Hello Sakura

Another tofu recipe! This time we are making Honey Sesame Tofu! I am all about posting recipes for tofu that will make people LIKE tofu. So many people say, “I don’t like tofu because the texture is weird…”, but I bet 99% of the people who say that, haven’t had tofu cooked properly, and if they did learn to cook it right, they would love it. Tofu is one of those foods that takes on the flavor of whatever it’s cooked in; so if you make a delicious sauce, that is what the tofu tastes like- bada bing, bada boom! This Honey Sesame Tofu is crispy, sweet, a little spicy, and just delicious

For this Honey Sesame Tofu, you can cook the tofu using the dry frying method, baking, or frying. I ended up baking it, so that is how I will show in the recipe below. If you want more breading on the tofu, follow the frying process I use for my General Tso’s Tofu – it works very well.

Don’t forget the most important thing while preparing the tofu – you MUST drain out all the extra liquid:

cut the tofu block in half long wise (so you have the full size block, but now it’s only 1/2 inch thick or so, you want to make it skinnier when you cut it)
place a folded clean kitchen towel on the counter
place the 2 tofu halves next to each other on top of the towel
top tofu with another clean folded kitchen towel
Place something heavy on top of the towel – a cast iron skillet, a heavy cutting board with skillet on top, a bunch of books
Allow to press/drain for at LEAST 20 minutes, the longer the better

Ingredients

1 block extra firm tofu, drained (see post for instructions)
1 TBS low sodium soy sauce  + 1 TBS
1 tsp red pepper flakes
3 TBS honey + 1 TBS
2 tsp Oyster sauce (look for vegetarian oyster sauce if you want to keep this vegetarian)
½ tsp sea salt/salt
1/8 tsp black pepper
1 TBS rice wine vinegar
1 tsp sesame oil
2 tsp corn starch
2 TBS sesame seeds
3 green onions, chopped

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Lightly spray a non-stick baking sheet with oil or use a silicone mat.
2. In a medium bowl, stir together the 1 TBS soy sauce, red pepper flakes, 3 TBS honey, oyster sauce, salt, pepper, rice wine vinegar, and oil. Cut tofu into 1/2-inch cubes. Gently add/stir tofu cubes into sauce. Cover, and marinate at least 15 minutes.
3. Place the tofu on the baking sheet in a single layer (reserve marinade). Spray tops with olive oil (I use the Misto) and bake in a preheated oven for 20 minutes. Turn tofu, and bake until the tofu turns golden brown, about 20 minutes more or until develops a nice crisp crust.
4. Add additional soy sauce and honey ( 1 TBS each) to the marinade bowl. Add corn starch; whisk to combine.
5. In a large skillet over medium high heat, add the marinade. Place the tofu cubes into the skillet as well, and stir to coat. Bring the sauce up to a quick boil, then reduce heat to a low simmer. After a few minutes the sauce will thicken; stir to coat tofu. Sprinkle with sesame seeds and green onions and serve immediately.

Notes

If you would rather fry tofu (a bit fast than baking), see link above in post for General Tso's tofu.
Serve over rice or quinoa!