Do you love a good Chinese Take Out? We do, but we love being able to cook a delicious Chinese Stir Fry at home too. Homemade food is always healthier, and cheaper and our Tofu Stir Fry with Cashews and Chinese flavors is definitely a winner.
A good Tofu Stir Fry is always welcome at home. Whether we make a quick and simple stir fry for those busy weekdays or a more elaborated one during weekend nights, tasty stir fry with tofu is a favorite at home.
If you have been following us for a while now, you may have noticed we love tofu and we include this plant-based protein in many of our recipes. We have a strong passion for Asian flavors and we find tofu to be a perfect protein to include in Asian-style meals.
For this recipe, we chose to use cashews, fresh veggies, and a delicious and umami-packed dark sauce. The perfect combination for a mouth-watering lunch or dinner that will please your Chinese take-out cravings.
Serve our Tofu and Cashews Stir Fry with jasmine rice or noodles and you will have a complete and satisfying meal for the family.
Our Tofu Stir Fry with Cashews is:
- Vegan
- Gluten-free if you use tamari instead of soy sauce
- Spicy
- Chinese-style dish
- Easy and quick to make
Best way to cook Tofu for Stir Fries
Tofu is by far our favorite protein. So versatile, we create many dishes using this plant-based ingredient. If you have a look at our blog, you will find a lot of recipes using tofu, mainly Asian-style.
People keep asking us how can tofu taste so nice at home and so bland when they cook it themselves. One simple and quick answer: tofu needs a deep-in-flavor marinade or a sauce and some love when cooking it.
We have tried cooking this protein in different ways and our favorite way is still frying the tofu in a pan with a little bit of coconut or sesame oil. Pan-frying the tofu at a medium-low temperature while you keep turning the tofu pieces is the perfect way to cook it. For a healthier option, you can also bake the Tofu
For this recipe, we coat the tofu with cornflour before stir-frying it to make it crispier and yummier.
It gets golden and crispy on the outside and moist and fluffy on the inside. It may take a bit longer than baking or deep frying it, but it's definitely worth it.
WHAT TYPE OF TOFU SHOULD YOU CHOOSE?
For this recipe, where the tofu is the centerpiece and gets cooked and coated with a rich sauce, you will need firm or extra firm tofu.
If you are getting tofu fresh from an Asian supermarket, you may need to get the extra firm type. They tend to be softer than the tofu you can buy at your regular supermarket.
When making this dish, we choose to cut our tofu into square pieces, it makes it easier to handle when cooking it.
Last tip: Get good quality tofu, you will notice the difference.
How to make Tofu Stir Fry with Cashews
Ingredients
Firm tofu. Choose extra-firm or firm tofu for this recipe as it's easier to cook without it breaking or crumbling into smaller pieces. If you want to make this recipe soy-free, you can check out our Red Lentil Tofu Recipe.
Toasted Cashews. We love cashews and use them in many of our dishes. Normally, to make vegan cream or milk. This time, we kept them whole and toasted them to give our dish a crunchy element.
Fresh veggies. For our Tofu and Cashews Stir Fry, we use mushrooms, red bell pepper, carrot, pak choi, spring onions, and red chilis. You can add other veggies such as zucchinis, baby sweet corn, or green peppers too.
Stir Fry Sauce. Our stir fry sauce for this recipe is simple but still delicious. It's a combination of soy sauce, five-spice powder, sugar, Shaoxing Wine or mirin, and cornflour to thicken up. You can try as well, adding some classic Chinese Garlic Sauce to this dish, we've done it before and it was yummy!
Stey by Step Recipe
To cook this meal, we recommend toasting the cashews before you start preparing the rest of the ingredients. Toast your cashews at 160Cº / 320Fº for 6 to 8 minutes. They need to be golden and crunchy but not too brown. Make sure to flip them halfway so they cook evenly.
The best pan to use for this recipe is a nice and big Wok pan.
- Prepare the stir fry sauce. First, combine cornflour with water until it's completely incorporated. Then add the rest of the sauce ingredients.
- Coat the tofu with cornflour and fry the tofu using a frying pan with a little bit of vegetable oil. Set aside.
- Chop the veggies and add a little bit of oil in a wok pan, stir fry the vegetables on medium to high heat. Sauté for 5-6 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Add the tofu and previously toasted cashews and combine with the rest of the ingredients. Add the sauce and mix with all the ingredients. Leave cooking for 2-3 minutes and turn off the heat.
Serving Suggestions
Our Tofu Stir Fry with Cashews is the perfect main dish for a busy weekday night when you are craving something tasty, Asian-flavoured, and packed full of veggies and protein.
Served with jasmine rice, noodles or even quinoa makes for a full meal to enjoy with all the family. You can serve some Rice Paper Dumplings on the side or as a starter to this stir fry.
If you are cooking this dish for kids or toddlers, make sure to leave the fresh chili out to make this recipe nonspicy.
Keep any leftovers in the fridge. The cashews will get soft from absorbing the sauce so you can leave them out or add some more when you reheat the meal.
Tofu Stir Fry with Cashews
Ingredients
- 1 cup toasted cashews
- 400 g tofu
- 1.5 tablespoon corn flour
- 100 g mushrooms
- 1 red bell pepper
- 1 large carrot
- 2 piece pak choi
- 3 spring onions
- 1 red chilli
Stir Fry Sauce
- 1 tablespoon five-spice powder
- 2 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 1 tablespoon Shaoxing wine or Mirin
- 1 cup water
- 1 tablespoon cornflour mixed with 2 tablespoon water
Instructions
- Toast your cashews at 160Cº / 320Fº for 6 to 8 minutes. They need to be golden and crunchy but not too brown. Make sure to flip them halfway so they cook evenly.
- Prepare the stir fry sauce. First, combine cornflour with water until it's completely incorporated. Then add the rest of the sauce ingredients.
- Coat the tofu with cornflour and fry the tofu using a frying pan with a little bit of vegetable oil. Set aside.
- Chop the veggies and add a little bit of oil in a wok pan, stir fry the vegetables on medium to high heat. Sauté for 5-6 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Add the tofu and previously toasted cashews and combine with the rest of the ingredients.
- Add the sauce and mix with all the ingredients. Leave cooking for 2-3 minutes and turn off the heat.
Nutrition
| If you tried our recipe, please leave a comment or tag us on Instagram @Sixhungryfeet. We are always happy to see your creations! |
Andrew says
Just made this for lunch: it was easy, tasty, and customizable- I had all the ingredients but bok choy (cabbage stood in) and cashews (used peanuts). Good stuff!
Laura says
Thank you Andrew 🙂 Glad you liked it!