Crispy tofu meets a velvety blend of peanut butter, ginger, and garlic, thickened with coconut cream. Inspired by satay, sans the skewers, it’s an enormously satisfying weeknight dinner. The tofu absorbs all the savory goodness, becoming flavorful from the inside out. Be sure to use firm tofu so it can hold up to the thick sauce—anything softer will break apart. Serve with rice for a filling meal.
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What you’ll need
Large Skillet
$74 At Amazon
Microplane
$18 At Amazon
Wooden Spoon
$7 At Amazon
Recipe information
Total Time
30 minutes
Yield
4 servings
Ingredients
3
1
1
1
5
1
1
½
1
2
1
1
1
Preparation
Step 1
Heat 1 Tbsp. vegetable oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high. Cook one 14-oz. package firm tofu, drained, patted dry, cut into ½" cubes, turning once, until golden brown, 5–7 minutes. Transfer tofu to a plate.
Step 2
Heat remaining 2 Tbsp. vegetable oil in same skillet over medium. Cook 1 large shallot, finely chopped, one 2" piece ginger, peeled, finely grated, and 5 garlic cloves, finely grated, stirring often, until shallot is translucent and starting to brown around the edges, 5–7 minutes. Add 1 tsp. ground cumin, 1 tsp. red chile powder or crushed red pepper flakes, and ½ tsp. ground turmeric and cook, stirring, until spices are fragrant, about 1 minute. Add one 5.4-oz. can unsweetened coconut cream, 2 Tbsp. smooth natural peanut butter, and 1 Tbsp. honey; stir to combine. Bring to a simmer and cook, stirring occasionally, until sauce is thickened, about 5 minutes. Whisk in ½ cup water and 1 tsp. Diamond Crystal or ½ tsp. Morton kosher salt. Return tofu to skillet and simmer until heated through, about 2 minutes. Thin sauce with up to ¼ cup water if needed, stirring to combine. Taste and season with more salt if needed. Remove from heat and stir in 1 Tbsp. fresh lime juice.
Step 3
Scatter cilantro leaves and thinly sliced jalapeños over saucy tofu. Serve with steamed white rice and lime wedges.
Do Ahead: Saucy tofu (without cilantro) can be made 1 day ahead. Let cool; cover and chill.
Leave a Review
Reviews (23)
Back to TopBest thing about the dish is that it comes together quickly. Pretty one-dimensional though. Next time I'll definitely try it with additional vegetables,
Anonymous
Detroit, MI
6/19/2024
Followed exactly as written and gave it 5 stars, but we all agreed that it could use maybe half again more sauce (so, so yummy!). You could add all sorts of ingredients instead of or in addition to the tofu -- chicken, shrimp, veggies...although we love tofu and were very happy with it as-is. Could also add a little curry to the tofu while trying it. And some chopped peanuts on top would also be great.
Sherrylkk
Raleigh, NC
6/11/2024
So easy and very tasty! I've already made this about 5 times since discovering the recipe a couple months ago. I've also made it with an almond butter blend instead of peanut butter and it's still delicious. I really appreciate how easy and simple it is to put together on a weeknight.
Anonymous
Lacey, WA
5/5/2024
This was easy to put together and tasty-good weeknight meal. We stir fried about 1/2 cup each red bell pepper strips, thin sliced carrot coins, snap peas, scraped into a dish, then cooked the tofu, scraped that into a dish, and then made the sauce (thank you previous reviewer!) and tossed the veggies and tofu back in to warm through. Ended up adding a bit of tamari to the sauce—it was really good and could easily take any protein. Will def make this again.
Mary
Stowe, VT
3/25/2024
Absolutely delicious..
Rae
Las Vegas
3/8/2024
If you don't like tofu, don't make a tofu dish - crazy, I know! Anyway, great dish!! Was easy to make. Can make it with chicken and can easily add more ingredients to this sauce.
Anonymous
Brooklyn, NY
2/15/2024
Do not like tofu
Anonymous
2/14/2024