Marinated Tofu Stir Fry (Vegan, GF)

Learn how to make this delicious vegan, low carb, gluten free tofu recipe. Smoked tofu is marinated to yield more depth in flavour then pan fried and tossed with stir fried vegetables/zoodles. This is definitely a vegan dish that is filling, low carb and flavoursome.

Course Main Course

Cuisine American, Asian

Prep Time 20

Cook Time 15

Total Time 35

Servings people

Calories 276kcal

Author Charla

Ingredients

For the marinade

1 Extra firm smoked tofu (8oz/225g) chopped into cubes
¼ cup organic soy(a) sauce or coconut aminos (60ml)
1 tablespoon all purpose seasoning (15g) see notes for the link
1 teaspoon parsley (5g)
1 teaspoon garlic granules (5g)
2 tablespoon maple syrup (30g) agave nectar or coconut nectar
3 tablespoon warm water (45g)
1½ teaspoon tapioca starch (7.4g) can use arrow root or potato starch
1½ teaspoon sesame seed oil (7.4g)
½ teaspoon ground ginger (2.5g)
½ teaspoon chilli powder (2.5g)

For the stir fry

1 lb Mixed stir fry vegetables (550g) I used a frozen pack
1 zucchini/courgette large, spiralised

Instructions

For the marinate

Place the ingredients that are listed for the marinated tofu in a small bowl and whisk together.
Place the tofu cubes in a deep baking dish and slowly pour all of the marinade over the tofu.
Tilt the dish to the side and baste the tofu cubes a few times before setting it aside for a few hours or overnight for more depth in flavour (I highly recommend overnight).

To make the stir fry

Add the coconut oil to a deep skillet/wok/frying pan( use a good non stick pan, very important) on medium heat.
Remove the tofu cubes from the marinade (reserve the marinade, don't throw it away), add them to the pan and brown both sides.
Meanwhile pour the marinade into a small saucepan, on low heat and stir until it starts to thicken slightly (it should take a few minutes) then set aside.
Once the tofu is browned remove from the pan and set aside.
Add the vegetables (you should still have some excess oil left in the pan, if not add melt 1 tablespoon more) and proceed to stir fry until the veggies become tender/crisp (this will take several minutes).
Start to drizzle half of the marinate/sauce over the vegetables and stir.
Fold the zoodles (zucchini/courgette noodles) into the other vegetables and add the rest of the marinate/sauce.
Finally add the tofu cubes to the pan then carefully fold into the stir fried vegetables.

Notes

Make sure you are using tofu that is EXTRA FIRM don't use the stuff that is firm, soft or silken tofu as the texture really doesn't hold up too great for recipes such as stir fries.
If you are using a frozen bag of mixed stir fry vegetables I recommend allowing them to thaw out overnight and blot off any excess water so it doesn't dilute the taste/texture of the marinade/sauce.
I used a rectangular pyrex dish of 7''x5'' when marinating the tofu.
I highly recommend using SMOKED TOFU for this recipe, it is a million times more flavoursome and really enhances the recipe.
The use of pink salt is subjective, this will depend on whether you are using coconut aminos/organic soy(a) if it has sodium or my Homemade All Purpose Seasoning
If you are in the UK stores like Iceland or Asda stir fry vegetables for £1 per bag.
I didn't press out any excess liquid which is what most tofu recipes call for as I didn't see a need to. I simply drained off the excess liquid that comes in the bag.
The amount of chilli that you use will be at your discretion. If you don't care for any spiciness then simply omit it.
Start the marinating process by basting the tofu several times before leaving it. This will help the flavours to absorb.

Nutrition