Tofu Fried Rice
Upgrade your Fried Rice with Crispy Tofu seasoned to perfection, ready in about 30 minutes, this Tofu Fried Rice is great for a quick and delicious dinner!
After making my popular Crispy Fried Tofu, I realized it was super versatile and could be used in a bunch of different dishes. I used to get Chicken Fried Rice that had Fried Chicken at this one place many years ago, and I’ve always wanted to replicate it. And now I finally have with this Tofu Fried Rice!
What’s the best tofu for Frying?
I highly recommend Super Firm Tofu as it’s vacuum packed and doesn’t require pressing. It has very little moisture so it will crisp up much easier!
ingredients for Tofu Fried Rice
Besides the Tofu, there’s a few key ingredients to this recipe!
- Seasonings – First for the Fried Tofu, we’ll be seasoning it with Soy Sauce, Nutritional Yeast, Garlic and Onion Powder, Smoked Paprika, White Pepper, and MSG (or salt).
- Potato or Cornstarch – To get the Tofu CRISPY, we’ll need some potato starch or cornstarch. You can skip this ingredient, it just won’t’ be as crispy.
- Rice – This is commonly made with leftover rice from the day before. However, I also tested it with some Frozen Rice as well as Shelf Stable, Microwaveable Rice and that turned out great too. So use whatever you like! I recommend long grain rice like Jasmine.
- Green Onions and Garlic – The only chopping in the whole recipe is green onions and mincing some garlic!
- Peas and Carrots – I’m using Frozen Peas and Carrots for a shortcut, but you can use fresh if you like.
- Vegan Egg – It’s optional but you can whip up something like Just Egg or make my Tofu Scramble if you want an eggy element!
- Vegan Oyster Sauce – While I do use a Vegan Oyster Sauce in the Fried Rice Sauce, you can totally use some Hoisin Sauce instead if you can’t find it.
how to make Tofu Fried Rice
Getting everything ready before you start cooking is key with this recipe! So first, mince the garlic and slice the green onions. Separate the harder and whiter parts of the green onion from the softer and green parts. We’ll cook the whiter slices and save the rest for the end as garnish.
Whisk the ingredients for the Stir Fry Sauce and reserve for later.
Pat the tofu dry and break it into bite sized pieces with your hands. Add to a large mixing bowl and toss with the Soy Sauce. Next add the nutritional yeast, garlic and onion powder, smoked paprika, white pepper, potato starch and salt and pepper, and toss to coat.
If using some Vegan Egg (like Just Egg) simply cook in a skillet over medium heat to your liking, then set aside and reserve. If you happen to have some leftover Tofu Scramble you can use this instead.
Add oil to a non-stick skillet or well seasoned wok over medium / medium high heat. Once heated, add half of the tofu. You want to avoid crowding the pan. Fry the tofu until it’s browned and crispy, stirring occasionally. About 6 – 8 minutes. Remove and reserve for later. Repeat with the other half of the tofu.
Reserve tofu and dump excess oil. Then heat up about 1 – 2 Tbsp of oil, and then add in the white parts of the green onions and the garlic.
Then add in the frozen peas and carrots. Stirring frequently until heated up and softened, about 3 – 4 minutes.
Next add in the cooked rice and stir to coat in the oil. If rice feels dry, add a little more oil. Stir frequently for about 1 – 2 minutes, then add in the Stir Fry Sauce. Stir to coat.
Add in the reserved Vegan Egg or Tofu Scramble (if using) and the tofu. Stir and taste for seasoning. I like to finish with a little sesame oil and some MSG or salt to taste.
Serve immediately and top with the reserved green onion, and maybe some Yum Yum Sauce!
can i air-fry or bake these?
Yes, but in my tests, the Air Fryer just couldn’t match the taste and texture of the pan fried version. But if you want to Air Fry them, spray them with a little oil and Air Fry at 375 F for 8 – 10 minutes, flipping halfway through.
Storage
Best eaten fresh, but you can let the rice cool to room temperature and then store immediately (don’t let it sit out too long) in the fridge for 1 – 2 days. Reheat in the microwave or on the stovetop.
other recipes you’ll dig!
Handy Dandy Video here!
If you made and enjoyed this recipe, please leave a rating & review! It really helps out the blog and it makes my day, thank you!
Tofu Fried Rice
Ingredients
Stir Fry Sauce
- 1.5 Tbsp Soy Sauce
- 1 Tbsp Vegan Oyster Sauce (or 1 – 3 tsp Hoisin Sauce)
- 1 tsp Mirin
TOFU
- 16 oz Super Firm Tofu (See Notes)
- 1 Tbsp Soy Sauce
- 2 Tbsp Nutritional Yeast
- 1 tsp Garlic Powder
- 1 tsp Onion Powder
- 1 tsp Smoked Paprika
- 1/4 tsp White Pepper
- 2 Tbsp Potato Starch (or Cornstarch)
- MSG (or Salt) & Pepper (to taste)
Rice
- 3 Garlic Cloves (Minced)
- 3 Green Onion Stalks
- 1 cup Frozen Peas and Carrots
- 3 cups Packed White Rice (See Notes)
- 1/2 cup Vegan Egg (or Tofu Scramble, optional)
- 1 tsp Sesame Oil
- MSG or Salt (to taste)
Instructions
Prep
- Getting everything ready before you start cooking is key with this recipe! So first, mince the garlic and slice the green onions. Separate the harder and whiter parts of the green onion from the softer and green parts. We'll cook the whiter slices and save the rest for the end as garnish.
Stir Fry Sauce
- Whisk the ingredients for the Stir Fry Sauce and reserve for later.
Tofu Prep
- Pat the tofu dry and break it into bite sized pieces with your hands. Add to a large mixing bowl and toss with the Soy Sauce. Next add the nutritional yeast, garlic and onion powder, smoked paprika, white pepper, potato starch and salt and pepper, and toss to coat. You may get some little bits of tofu when you toss in the seasonings. I like to fry them as they are nice crunchy little bits. You can stir the tofu around in the oil and the little bits will stick to the big pieces and create even more crunch!
Vegan Egg (optional)
- If using some Vegan Egg (like Just Egg) simply cook in a skillet over medium heat to your liking, then set aside and reserve. If you happen to have some leftover Tofu Scramble you can use this instead, or if you want to make some now and have a bunch leftover for later, you can make my Tofu Scramble recipe.
Tofu Fried Rice
- You can use as much oil (Neutral Flavored like Vegetable, Canola, etc) as your comfortable with but I like to add a layer of oil so it covers the bottom of a non-stick skillet (you can use a wok if you got one too) over medium / medium high heat. The more oil you use, the faster the tofu will cook. But you will also have to discard more oil, so again, use what you are comfortable with (but at least 1 – 2 Tbsp I would say).Once oil is heated, add half of the tofu. You want to avoid crowding the pan. Fry the tofu until it's browned and crispy, stirring occasionally. About 5 minutes. Remove and reserve for later. Repeat with the other half of the tofu.
- Once tofu is cooked, if there is more than a tablespoon or two of oil in the pan, remove and discard the excess. You can also dump all the oil, wipe down the skillet and start with fresh oil if you like as well. Either way, heat up about 1 – 2 Tbsp of oil, and then add in the white parts of the green onions and the garlic.
- Fry onion and garlic for 1 minute or so, careful not to burn the garlic. Then add in the frozen peas and carrots. Stirring frequently until heated up and softened, about 3 – 4 minutes. Next add in the cooked rice and stir to coat in the oil. If rice feels dry, add a little more oil. Stir frequently for about 1 – 2 minutes, then add in the Stir Fry Sauce. Stir to coat, and cook for another minute or so.
- Add in the reserved Vegan Egg or Tofu Scramble (if using) and the fried tofu. Stir and taste for seasoning. I like to finish with a little sesame oil and some MSG or salt to taste, but add whatever you like!
- Serve immediately and top with the reserved green onion, and maybe some Yum Yum Sauce!
Notes
Rice – This is commonly made with leftover rice from the day before. However, I also tested it with some Frozen Rice as well as Shelf Stable, Microwaveable Rice and that turned out great too. So use whatever you like! I recommend long grain rice, I used Jasmine and it was delicious!
