Meatless Monday just got a whole lot better with this plant-based orange tofu! Crispy, baked tofu nuggets tossed in a sweet citrus orange sauce and served over rice with steamed vegetables. It’s the perfect vegan take-out style dinner.
Orange tofu
Tofu is one of my favorite plant-based proteins because of its versatility. It can be prepared in endless amounts of ways, and pretty much takes on any flavor you give it!
Orange tofu is an easy weeknight meal that can be paired with your favorite rice and side of veggies. It’s packed with delicious sweet citrus flavor, and honestly tastes like take out!
How to make crispy tofu
I wanted to give the tofu a more realistic look, like the classic orange chicken. Instead of evenly slicing the tofu into cubes, I broke it apart with my hands into large chunks and baked it until crispy.
Before breaking apart the tofu, let it sit in paper towels or a thin dish rag for 10 minutes to release some of the liquid. Then break it up into chunks, and season it with garlic powder, salt and tapioca flour before baking.
The tapioca flour truly gives it that perfect crunchy exterior, so don’t skip it!
Homemade Orange Sauce
You’ll need just a few simple ingredients to make the delicious orange sauce. It pairs so well with the tofu, but can also be made and served with your choice of protein.
Here’s what you’ll need:
- orange juice- you can squeeze your own orange juice, or use the bottled kind like I did
- coconut aminos, or low-sodium soy sauce
- coconut sugar (or sweetener of your choice)
- garlic
- ginger
- rice vinegar
- orange zest
- tapioca flour (or substitute cornstarch, or arrowroot flour)
- salt
- red pepper flakes
Whisk together all of the sauce ingredients, then cook it in a skillet until it thickens. Toss in in the baked tofu once its ready, and mix it into the sauce until its evenly coated.
This simple and delicious orange tofu is easy to make, so delicious, and is the perfect weeknight meal when you’re craving comfort food.
I can’t wait for you guys to try it!
Other tofu recipes you’ll love:
Honey Garlic Tofu
Buffalo Tofu Nuggets
Crumbled Tofu Tacos with Kale Slaw
Crispy Orange Tofu
Ingredients
- 1 block extra firm tofu
- 2 tbsp tapioca flour, or use cornstarch or arrowroot starch
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 3 tbsp olive oil
Orange Sauce
- 1/3 cup coconut aminos or 1/4 cup low-sodium soy sauce
- 1/4 cup orange juice, fresh squeezed or bottled but fresh is best
- 2 cloves garlic, crushed
- 1 tsp grated ginger
- 2.5 tbsp coconut sugar
- 1 tbsp rice vinegar
- 1 tbsp orange zest
- 2 tsp tapioca flour
- 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
- Pinch or salt if needed *recommended only if using coconut aminos
Directions
- Preheat the oven to 375 F
- Drain the tofu, and wrap it in paper towels or a thin dish rag and let it sit for 10 minutes.
- Pat it dry, and break it apart into large chunks directly into a mixing bowl.
- Season the tofu chunks with the garlic powder, salt, and tapioca flour and gently toss it together with your hands to coat the pieces evenly.
- Transfer the tofu to a parchment lined baking sheet and drizzle it with the olive oil.
- Bake it for 25 minutes, remove the pan from the oven, flip the tofu over and bake for an additional 15-20 minutes until golden brown and crisp.
- Once the tofu is done, remove it from the oven and let it sit for 10 minutes while you prepare the sauce.
- Mix all of the sauce ingredients together in a bowl until smooth except for the salt. I suggest tasting the sauce first once it’s thickened to adjust the salt to your liking if needed.
- Heat a skillet on medium heat, and pour in the mixed sauce. Cook on medium/low heat, stirring occasionally, until the sauce begins to thicken, for about 5 minutes.
- Once the sauce is thick, add in the tofu and toss together until evenly coated.
- Top with fresh orange zest and serve with your favorite sides!
- Leftovers will stay fresh in the fridge for up to 4 days.
Hi! I have this in the oven currently and it smells great. Question on the sauce…is it really 1/3 cup aminos or soy sauce? I added that in and mine is tasting pretty amino-y and looking pretty brown. Just wondering if I read the recipe wrong or can maybe add more citrus to offset it? Thanks a bunch!
Hey Ali, yes 1/3 cup! Mine was pretty dark too, but if it doesn’t taste as citrus-y I would add a little more orange zest rather than OJ so that it wont be too tart
Your tofu recipes always turn out great, and this was no different. I could not believe how much this sauce tasted like real take-out orange chicken. This will definitely become a new go-to recipe!
this was absolutely delicious!!! this recipe made me fall in LOVE with tofu and i will be remaking!! i never knew tofu could taste this good and i’m so happy to be lucky enough to discover this.
I’m so happy to hear that, Carla!
Thank you so much!! 🙂
Looks Awesome! If I wanted to use chicken instead of tofu, do I still bake the chicken for the added crisp? Thanks.
Hey Liana, yes! I would suggest only baking it for half the time though since it will cook through faster. You can check it after 20-25 minutes! Another option is to pan-fry it until brown on all sides and them remove it from the pan, cool the sauce until thick, and add it back in.