Soy-Braised Tofu With Bok Choy
- Total Time
- 20 minutes
- Rating
- Notes
- Read community notes
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Ingredients
Yield:4 servings
- 1(14-ounce) package extra-firm tofu, drained and patted dry
- Neutral oil, such as grapeseed or vegetable
- Salt and black pepper
- 1tablespoon doubanjiang or chile oil
- 2garlic cloves, peeled and finely chopped
- 1(1-inch) piece ginger, peeled and finely chopped (about 1 tablespoon)
- 4scallions, trimmed, white and green parts separated and cut into 1-inch pieces
- 1bell pepper (any color), stem and membrane removed, cut into 1-inch pieces
- 2teaspoons Shaoxing wine (optional)
- 4baby bok choy, trimmed and halved through the stem
- Cooked rice or noodles, for serving
- 2tablespoons soy sauce
- 1tablespoon vegetarian stir-fry sauce or oyster sauce
- 1teaspoon cornstarch
- ½teaspoon granulated sugar
For the Tofu
For the Sauce
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)
251 calories; 12 grams fat; 1 gram saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 6 grams monounsaturated fat; 4 grams polyunsaturated fat; 26 grams carbohydrates; 3 grams dietary fiber; 4 grams sugars; 13 grams protein; 689 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
Powered byPreparation
- Step 1
Cut tofu across into ¾-inch-thick slices, then cut each slice in half so you have roughly 12 squares.
- Step 2
Heat a large (12-inch), deep-sided nonstick or well-seasoned cast-iron skillet on medium-high. When hot, add 1 tablespoon of oil and swirl to coat the base. Place the tofu in a single layer, season each piece with a little salt and black pepper, and fry for 3 to 4 minutes until golden and crispy. Flip and cook on the other side for 3 to 4 minutes more, adding more oil if needed. Remove tofu from the skillet and set aside on a plate.
- Step 3
Make the sauce: Combine the soy sauce, vegetarian stir-fry sauce or oyster sauce, cornstarch and sugar with ⅓ cup of water. Whisk until smooth.
- Step 4
In the same skillet over medium heat, add the doubanjiang or chile oil (if you’re using doubanjiang, add about 1 teaspoon of neutral oil) and stir for 15 seconds. Add the garlic, ginger and white parts of the scallion, and toss for 1 to 2 minutes, until the scallions are softened and everything is fragrant. If the pan starts to look dry, add a drop of oil.
- Step 5
Add the bell pepper and Shaoxing wine, if using, and stir-fry for 2 to 3 minutes until slightly softened. Pour in the seasoning sauce and let it sizzle for 30 seconds, stirring once or twice.
- Step 6
Add the baby bok choy, tofu and green parts of the scallion, toss gently to coat the tofu. Let it simmer on low heat for 1 to 2 minutes until the sauce thickens, the baby bok choy is wilted but still green and crisp-tender, and the tofu has absorbed some of the sauce. Serve with rice or noodles.
Private Notes
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Cooking Notes
John L
Tofu can also be baked. In a bowl, put equal by volume oil and cornstarch (about 1 tbsp each), and gently turn the tofu (sliced into whatever size you wish), until coated. Place on sheet pan (or better on wire rack on sheet pan), and bake at 425F until it goes a pale brown. It's done at this point, edges crisp and tofu slightly chewy. Add to sauce and veggies and finish per recipe. This takes about 20 minutes.
Linda
Recipe should call for low sodium soy sauce and adding a tbs of water to the sauce. The dish as instructed was too salty....no reason to salt and pepper the tofu either as the doubanjiang and sauce are adding all the flavor and sodium that's needed. Also....baby bok choy needs longer to cook than 1 to 2 minutes (this also depends on the size of the bok choy). In order to release its sweetness, bok choy should be cooked through, not crisp-tender. Otherwise it retains its natural bitterness.
maureen
Make the sauce before starting to cook tofu. Added snow peas and broccoli to peppers, and mizuna with the bok choy. Covered it all to steam @2 minutes, then stirred it all to serve with rice. Plenty of sauce for us.
Denby Fawcett
You absolutely need to double the sauce. I was wishing for more to flavor my rice I didn't have the Shaoxing wine so threw in a dash of rice wine vinegar and another dash of New Zealand sauvignon blanc wine. I have a feeling you can't go wrong with this recipe no matter what you toss in as a substitute..
jessica
Thanks John L for the tip on baking the tofu. I really liked the texture that resulted. Also following some recs I doubled the sauce, but only used about 2/3 of what I made; there was plenty of sauce for rice. Definitely use low-sodium soy sauce and don’t add any other salt until you taste it at the end.
Bill
Consider putting the sauce on individual servings, not in the pan. It would preserve the crunch on the tofu and still add the great flavor.
KB
Doubled the sauce, added torn shiitake caps with the (yellow) bell pepper. Excellent.
JB
This is a huge amount of salt.
Elizabeth Ball
Baked the tofu, doubled the sauce, added Shitake mushrooms. Delicious! Great weeknight meatless meal!
Bill M.
I cook a lot of tofu and this is my favorite recipe so far. Excellent crisping... better to have shallower rectangles than chunky cubes (more sauce on on crisp). Sauce is excellent with the oyster and fush sauces though too little; will double next time. One of the best balanced recipes with the bock choy, sauce, etc. Mushrooms would be great too. Mine turned out terrific in a 12" cast iron pan.
Rachel
This was delicious! Used optional real oyster sauce & instead of Shaoxing wine. Doubled the aromatics & sauce ingredients as suggested by others - I love sauce! I also used a wonderful handcrafted 3-year fermented Dounamjiang paste plus the suggested tsp of oil & that gave the dish some pleasant and savoury heat, but not too much. I got mine at Mala Market (no affiliation!) - they have wonderful, handcrafted ingredients, many sourced directly from small makers in China!
QUAASAM
Very nice and easy. Double the sauce portion. Do not salt the tofu.
Margaret
Made this and thought it was just okay. Couldn’t follow the recipe exactly because I used “adult” bok choy that I grew myself. Because older bok choy benefits from longer cooking to reduce its bitterness, I added it and cooked a bit before adding the peppers. I caution to exercise care when adding the doubanjiang to the hot skillet as it really sputters and produces irritating chili fumes. Finally, I doubled the sauce but wouldn’t again because the final dish was far too salty.
Jo Beth
I made this tonight, and it was a big hit with both my husband and me. I did use paper towels and a weight to absorb excess liquid from the tofu before sautéing it. I also sprinkled the tofu with cornstarch to make it crispy when sautéing it. The vegetables I used were baby bok choy, red bell pepper and red onion. I added some coarsely chopped cashews. I added fish sauce to the sauce, and doubled amount of sauce. I like the fact that the recipe lends itself to substitutions. A winner!
tawny
Too salty. Wrong timing. Other better and easier tofu like Chile crisp sheet pan
michelle
This was great! Added a handful of sliced fresh shiitakes and one of snow peas. Followed the advice of doubling sauce, but I think that was a bit much. Next time will try 1.5 times. It was also really pretty (we used a mix of yellow and red peppers).
Dane
Would double or add another 1/2 portion of the sauce. Otherwise a tasty stir fry option
kaw
Made this as written except for the exclusion of the bell pepper since we aren't huge fans of them. Served over noodles. It was fine. Nothing we haven't made before, and not a recipe we'll repeat.
Misa
This was so easy and so good. I used gailan that I bought at the farmer’s market and it was perfect for this. Next time I want to try air frying the tofu, as the method in my frying pan felt like it was oily, even though I drained the tofu when I completed frying it. Heating the leftovers to have over glass noodles!
kindbat
Double and save this sauce configuration. It will be your new “master sauce” for stir fry!
Matt
Next time I'm going to replace black pepper with ground Sichuan pepper for added spice. Agree that this would be too salty as written. I also added steamed broccoli, which was a good call.
Name
Used chili crisp, doubled bok choy Double entire recipe next time tol
Skylar
This was a good recipe base and flexible enough to use what I had on hand. I used red onions instead of scallions (because that's what I had) and added carrots with the bell pepper. Completely agree with the comments to double the sauce and reduce the salt (don't salt the tofu and use low sodium soy sauce.)
kindbat
Loved this recipe. Doubled the sauce and used the baked tofu method, but with the air fry function in my oven. Will be making again!
Erin
I used Gochujang instead of doubanjiang and large bok choy (2) instead of baby, cut into chunks. I also substituted shrimp for tofu, as I was making mapo tofu also. When I added the bok choy I covered it on low heat while I was completing the other dish to steam down, this resulted in a broth, almost like a soup, which turned out to be a lovely surprise! Flavors were fantastic and the recipe is quite easy, if you have the more specialized ingredients on hand.
Cleo
Fabulous dish! Sauce is finger-lickin’ good. I would double the sauce next time.
CQ
Tasty! I used low sodium soy sauce, a Sichuan broad bean sauce, oyster sauce and not as much oil. I used 7.5 Oz tofu, 2 baby bok choy, and kept all the other quantities as is. I added water to the sauce when it looked dry -- maybe 1/4 cup total -- and I thought it was perfectly balanced.
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