Wholesome Peanut Tofu Stir Fry
This colorful and nourishing stir fry will make you feel amazing! The tofu is best marinated for a full day, but will still be great marinated for less time. This is a quick and nutrient dense weeknight meal that makes wonderful leftovers.
This highly successful recipe largely happened on accident.
After 3 failed attempts to execute a blackberry flatbread that would not spike my blood sugar, and a taco night that left me with 75% of a head of cabbage, I had some leftover ingredients to use up. What better solution than throwing the veggies together into a stir fry? I mixed some ingredients I had on hand to make a tasty peanut sauce, tossed it with some leftover tofu, and placed it in the fridge overnight to marinate. The next day, I broke out my wok and got to work.
I worked so hard on the flatbread, which was supposed to be my first recipe for the blog, only to have it undeniably fail. By the third attempt, I could not ignore its negative physical effects. If a recipe does not make me feel good, I will not share it with you, no matter how good it tastes or how much effort I invested.
Not only was this stir fry spontaneous, easy, and delicious, but it made me feel better than the majority of meals I had eaten recently from more experienced recipe developers. This recipe instilled faith in me — wow, I don’t suck at this.
So, without further ado, please enjoy my peanut tofu stir fry!
Wholesome Peanut Tofu Stir Fry
Equipment
- Medium sized tupperware or bowl
- Stock pot or large saucepan
- Wok or large skillet
- Baking sheet
Ingredients
For the marinade
- 7 oz extra firm tofu
- 3 tbsp smooth peanut butter
- 1 tbsp coconut aminos
- 1 tbsp black bean sauce
- 1 tbsp chili garlic sauce
For the stir fry
- 1 tbsp sesame oil
- 1 small zucchini diced
- 1 large carrot diced
- 1/2 white onion diced
- 2 cups red cabbage chopped
- Salt and black pepper, to taste
- 6 oz rice noodles
- 1/2 lime
- 1/2 cup chopped peanuts
For the sauce
- 3 tbsp smooth peanut butter
- 1 tbsp coconut aminos
- 1 tbsp black bean sauce
- 1 tbsp chili garlic sauce
- 1 tsp maple syrup
Instructions
- Cut tofu into 1/2 inch cubes. Mix in a tupperware or bowl with the marinade ingredients until well coated, and marinate in the fridge for 24 hours.
- Preheat oven to 400°F. Fill stock pot or large saucepan with water and bring to a boil.
- Meanwhile, dice the carrot, zucchini, and onion. Chop the cabbage into bite sized pieces.
- Bake the tofu for 20-25 minutes, until the marinade coating looks slightly crispy and is well adhered to the tofu pieces.
- Preheat a wok or large skillet on high heat. Once hot, coat the wok or skillet with sesame oil. Once the oil is hot (it should appear to be the same consistency as water), add the veggies. Add salt and pepper to taste.
- Cook until the veggies become vibrant in color and both carrots and zucchini are tender but still a bit crunchy, 5-8 minutes depending on the power of your range. Stir regularly, but not constantly.
- As the veggies are stir frying, cook the rice noodles according to the package instructions.
- Mix the sauce ingredients together, and roughly chop a handful of peanuts.
- Once desired tenderness of the veggies is achieved, turn the heat down to low and coat the veggies with the sauce. Add in the noodles and toss to combine.
- Turn heat off. Squeeze the juice of 1/2 of a lime over the dish, top with tofu and peanuts* and serve!