These Thai Tofu Bowls with Spicy Peanut Sauce are not just a meal, they’re an experience! Packed with fresh vegetables, perfectly marinated tofu, and a yummy peanut sauce that has just the right amount of kick, this dish is a fun blend of textures and tastes. Whether you’re a seasoned foodie or simply looking to spice up your weeknight dinners, this vegan recipe packs a ton of flavor and is sure to please. Ready to transform your mealtime? Let’s dive into this high protein recipe that’s sure to become a favorite in your household.
serve it with:
Spicy Thai Peanut Sauce
This sauce is perfect on top of noodles, as a dipping sauce, or even as a salad dressing! You control the spice with the amount of chili garlic paste.
Ingredients and Substitutions
Here’s what you’ll need to recreate this Thai Tofu Bowl recipe at home:
- Tofu – Go for the extra firm variety for this recipe. If you don’t like tofu, you can certainly cook up some chicken or beef like flank steak instead.
- Edamame – Shelled edamame adds a nice kick of protein and fiber to this recipe. You can find it in the frozen veggies section of the grocery store. I don’t recommend skipping or substituting it, but you could opt for another veggie like broccoli or asparagus if you must.
- Spicy Thai Peanut Sauce – This is a quick and easy homemade sauce that brings the dish together! The best part is that all the ingredients you need for the tofu sauce/marinade overlap with what’s in this peanut sauce, so no need to go hunting for a bunch of extra ingredients.
- Red cabbage – Finely shredded red cabbage alone would add freshness, but we’re bumping this cabbage up a notch by turning it into a quick slaw with lime juice, sugar, and salt. This helps it bring an almost vinegar-y brightness to the bowl and is totally necessary to balance out the flavors!
- Jasmine rice – I prefer jasmine rice as a base to this bowl, but you could skip it or opt for cauliflower rice if you’re looking for something lower carb.
- Avocado – The spicy tofu and sauce are nicely balanced with the cool creaminess of fresh avocado.
- Carrots – I shave them into ribbons with a vegetable peeler so they can bring an almost noodle like feel to the bowl, but with an earthy, cooling, slightly sweet flavor.
Tackling Tofu
To make sure you end up with flavorful tofu, you first need to start by pressing out all the excess liquid. Tofu is stored and sold in water and because it has a somewhat spongy texture when raw, it can hold on to that water. If you were to cook it right away, you’d have a hard time getting any crispiness to it. Instead, remove it from the water and place it on a paper towel lined baking sheet. Cover it with more paper towels and another baking sheet, then put something heavy on top – a couple plates, a heavy skillet, or even these silly pink paperweights that are shaped like dumbbells (they’re silly because you should lift heavier, get it?!). Let it rest for about 20 minutes before chopping up the tofu into 1/2″ chunks.
There are also several ingredients you’ll need for the tofu sauce – luckily all of these ingredients overlap with what’s used to make the Spicy Thai Peanut Sauce, so no need to find or buy extra stuff that you’re not already using! For the tofu sauce, we just need to skip the peanut butter, lime juice, and water. The peanut butter will burn in the oven and both the water and lime juice add too much liquid which will prevent crisping.
- Soy sauce
- Chili garlic paste
- Grated ginger
- Honey
- Sesame oil
- Fish sauce
tips to
Meal Prep this Recipe
Here are my recommendations for how to meal prep this recipe for maximum freshness!
- Use a 2-compartment container and a dressing container for the sauce. Layer the tofu on top of the red cabbage slaw in the smaller compartment to keep the cabbage from turning all the other ingredients pink.
- Use silicone muffin cups to separate ingredients further if you want to keep everything separate for heating up. I personally just stick everything but the lime wedge and dressing container in the microwave for 45 seconds to 1 minute, but I know not everyone likes the idea of warm cabbage slaw 😉
- To prevent browning, give the avocado a bath in plenty of lime juice or cut the avocado up fresh if you’re planning to store it for more than 2-3 days.
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Recipe
Thai Tofu Bowls with Spicy Peanut Sauce
Ingredients
- 28 oz extra firm tofu, cut into 1/2" cubes
- 10 oz frozen edamame, thawed
- 3/4 cup Spicy Thai Peanut Sauce, (6 fl oz)
- 2 cups red cabbage, shaved, (140 grams)
- 2 large carrots, cleaned and shaved into ribbons, (120 grams)
- 2/3 jasmine rice, prepared according to package directions, (124 grams dry)
- 2 small avocados, peeled and sliced, (220 grams)
- 1 lime, juiced
- 1/3 cup cilantro, chopped
- 1 tsp sugar
- 1/2 tsp salt
Tofu Sauce
- 3 tbsp low sodium soy sauce, (1.5 fl oz)
- 3 tbsp chili garlic paste, (1.5 fl oz)
- 1 1/2 tbsp fresh grated ginger, (0.75 fl oz)
- 1 tbsp honey, (0.5 fl oz)
- 1/2 tbsp sesame oil
- 1/2 tsp fish sauce
Instructions
- Press tofu. Place tofu on a paper towel lined plate, then cover with another paper towel, and place another plate on top to press the excess liquid out of the tofu. Set aside in the refrigerator for 20 mins.
- Prepare tofu sauce. Whisk together all sauce ingredients until smooth. Set aside.
- Bake tofu. After the tofu has been pressed, remove from refrigerator and cut into bite size chunks (about 1/2" square). Pre-heat oven to 425°F and line a baking sheet with SILPAT (if desired). Toss tofu chunks with tofu sauce and bake for 20 minutes at 425°F. Flip tofu, then reduce heat to 350°F and bake another 15-20 minutes or until crisp and edges of tofu are browned.
- Prep cabbage. While the tofu bakes, toss shaved cabbage with juice of 1 lime, 1 tsp sugar, and 1/2 tsp salt. Set aside.
- Assemble bowls. Layer rice, edamame, cabbage, carrots, and avocado in a serving dish. Top with tofu, Spicy Thai Peanut Sauce, cilantro, and crushed peanuts (optional) before serving.
Tips & Tricks
Nutrition Information
WITH RICE
WITHOUT RICE
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