General Tso’s Tofu will have you forgetting about the meat and devouring dinner! This is the BEST vegetarian version of the famous General Tso’s dish.
General Tso’s Tofu is one of my favorite dishes, mostly because I love Chinese take out, but sometimes it’s hard to find a great place (especially since we moved from NYC to Atlanta), and after eating all that MSG I get a massive headache. However, I can never seem to get my favorite recipes replicated just right….until now. After seeing a recipe for some General Tso’s Chicken, I thought, ‘Why can’t I make this with tofu?’ The meat is really just he vehicle for the sauce, right?
I knew that I wanted to get nice crispy tofu though, and wanted to mix it up instead of baking or dry frying the tofu like how I usually make it. I looked up some different ways to fry tofu, because I’ve never actually straight up fried it before. Turns out it’s easy. I usually have an aversion to frying, and since I don’t have any special frying appliance it seems intimidating. In this case, it’s not. I used a method called ‘shallow’ frying, which means the whole object isn’t submerged in oil; basically just the bottom and you turn flip it around on each side to get the crispiness you are looking for. It was easy and it worked great. This tofu was SO good, even without the sauce. Making the sauce I was kind of skeptical because of the ingredients (um, ketchup?), but I thought it would turn out fine because usually these sauces seem a little funky in the beginning, and then they turn out fabulous. The Hoisin Sauce
I love putting this General Tso’s Tofu over rice, but it would also be great with added veggies or even quinoa in place of the rice! This recipe turns out to be really cheap too. I bet you have most if not all of the sauce ingredients in your pantry, and tofu is like $2 a box! Next time, I am doubling this and using 2 blocks of tofu! So delicious!
General Tso's Tofu will have you forgetting about the meat and devouring dinner! This is the BEST vegetarian version of the famous General Tso's dish.
- 1 brick extra firm tofu
- 3-4 TBS cornstarch
- 1-2 TBS canola or vegetable oil
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 3 TBS hoisin sauce
- 3 TBS rice vinegar
- 3 TBS ketchup
- 2 TBS soy sauce
- 1/2 cup water
- 2 shakes red pepper flakes (optional, 2 shakes turns out pretty mild..add more for more spice or you can leave out for less)
- 1 TBS sesame oil
- 4 green onions , chopped
- 3 TBS fresh ginger , finely chopped
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Drain tofu of excess water pressing between the counter and heavy object. **I use 2 clean kitchen towels, one folded up the size of the tofu brick on the bottom (place under tofu), and then one on top. Then I place my cast iron pan on top of the top towel, and sometimes place something else in the pan to hold it down. You do not want the tofu to collapse, if it's breaking take some weight off. Let sit 20 minutes. to drain**
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While waiting for tofu, mix together the first 7 ingredients and set aside.
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Heat a skillet on medium with about a 1/2 inch of vegetable oil inside. While heating, slice tofu into 1/2" slices, then cut each slice into thirds. Coat each cube lightly with cornstarch and then place into pan until browned and crispy. You may have to turn up the heat under the pan a bit. Remove from frying pan and set aside on paper towels.
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Wipe pan clean with paper towel and add sesame oil, onions, and chopped ginger. Cook about 1 minute, until fragrant. Add sauce mixture to pan, bring to a boil, and simmer about 2 minutes. Add tofu back to mixture, toss to coat. Top with green onions if desired.
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– Allyson
Liz says
I love this recipe. Thank you and have a Wonderful Day
Sheri says
That looks really good, and I don’t even like tofu! Always looking for meatless meals. I’ll tell you how it turns out 🙂
Allyson says
I think you will like this tofu! let me know how you like it!
Erlene says
I love tofu, but sometimes it gets boring with just soy sauce. Pinning this. Would love for you to come and linkup tomorrow for the Let’s Get Real Blog Hop at 5PM EST. mypinterventures.com
Allyson says
I totally agree that you need creative recipes to make tofu work and not get bored with it! This one totally revived my love for tofu! Thanks for the invite, I will check it out 🙂
Sheri says
Hey, everybody! I ended up making this exactly as written and it turned out PERFECTLY! Husband ate 3 helpings, even my picky toddler boy loved it. Will be making again.
Allyson says
Whoa! What a great endorsement! I am so happy y’all loved it!
juliaklimek says
Looks great ! Pinning ! Great for meatless monday! Julia
Karen says
Thank you so much for the wonderful recipe. I made this tonight for dinner and served it with rice noodles and a few drops of saracha on top. It wil surely become a staple!
Allyson says
You are most welcome, Karen! We love it over here too, and it is a staple too! The sauce is delicious over other things as well, and we often add veggies in with out tofu and rice now! yum!
DR says
Where in Atlanta? There is an amazing place in Alpharetta called Lin’s that does AMAZING things with Tofu!
Allyson says
I actually live in Alpharetta 🙂 I have been to Lins!
DR says
So Good! We always have them make sesame chicken into sesame tofu! And the tofu spinach soup! Makes me hungry thinking about it
Allyson says
I’ve made sesame tofu at home, too! The good news about this recipe is it’s extremely cheap and easy to make at home! Total win!
DR says
Every once and a while though it is nice to have someone else do the cooking. =)
Allyson says
Very true!
Alicia says
This recipe is amazing! Followed the recipe exactly and served over wild rice. I’ll definitely be making this one again. Thank you.
Allyson says
Alicia, I am so happy you tried it out and liked it! It has definitely become a staple in our house, we totally love it, too! Thanks for coming by to let me know!
Chessie says
You are MY hero, that’s for sure! I must try this very soon.
Could I interest you in sharing your recipe and photo in return for a link back to your blog? Please email me if so. Thank you.
Allyson says
Hi Chessie- my photos and recipes are both copyright. If you want to mention the recipe that is fine, but you cannot post the recipe and photo. You can mention it and then post a link back to my blog for the complete recipe.
Maryann says
This looks amazing! I was wondering about the corn starch – would you also dredge chicken in it as well? Does the corn starch make for the bubbly crispy coating? Thank you SO much for sharing the recipe!!
Allyson says
It does! It should have the same effect on chicken and i’ve read that is actually makes the crispiest, most delicious chicken because it seals in all the juices! Just try to get an even coating (no big clumps) and fry that baby up! The sauce is the serious star here, so no matter how it turns out, as long as you cook up the sauce, you can’t go wrong! It’s also great served over veggies and rice!
Maryann says
Thank you for the response regarding the cornstarch! I cannot wait to try this out!
Allyson says
Hey Mary! Did you ever end up trying it? I am wondering how it turned out with the chicken?
Zara says
Thanks for the amazing recipe! If there’s tofu, ginger and soy sauce in there I’m sold. Will most definitely be trying it out :D.
Allyson says
Let me know how you like it!
heather goforth says
Just made it today! OMG, easily one of my favorite dishes now!
Allyson says
I am so happy you liked it! It is definitely a staple over here!
Norman says
Great recipe! Thanks! To be sure though, as I’m simmering the sauce, do I need 4 onions or 4 TBSP of chopped onions?
Allyson says
You need 4 green onions (like individual stalks) as stated in the directions. Enjoy!
Norman says
Ok, great! Now I’m waiting for my wife to get home to taste it. It looks and smells delicious! Thanks!
Allyson says
Let me know how y’all like it! Enjoy!
Norman says
She really enjoyed it! And since I doubled the recipe we have some for the week (or at least through tomorrow :-)) Thanks again, God bless!
Allyson says
Great!!!
Meag says
I thought Tofu was disgusting before eating this dish. If it wasn’t fried I would eat this everyday… OMG amazing and it tastes just like it’s from the Chinese restaurant. I used to love General Tso Chicken before I became a vegetarian. I was actually sad when my plate was finished. Thank you!
Kelli Ann says
I just made this for dinner and it was delicious! I did find it a bit sweet, so next time I think I’ll reduce the sugar and increase the spice a bit. Thank you for the great recipe!
Allyson says
I am so happy y’all liked it! It’s definitely a staple over here! I have lots of yummy tofu recipes coming up in the next few weeks so check back for those!
Kristin (@_Kristin315_) says
Thanks for the recipe. The tofu turned out great. It was crunchy on the outside with a gooey center. The sauce had great flavor as well. We will be making this again.
Kristin @ Holy Cannoli Recipes
Julia Moser says
BEST TOFU RECIPE EVER EVER EVER!!!
Allyson says
I am so happy you LOVED it!! We love it over here too! Stay tuned because I have several more tofu recipes coming soon!
irishgal629 says
I pinned this awhile back to try. I finally prepared it last night and WOW! Even my confirmed-carnivore fiancé went back for seconds! Loved, loved, LOVED it! The sauce is fantastic. The trick really was to get the tofu well dried and use hot oil to get it crisped up. He said, “You outdid yourself on this one, girl,” so I’m passing that compliment on to you, too! Thanks for the recipe!
Allyson says
Wow!! I am so happy y’all loved it! I am telling you, people always say they don’t like tofu, but I swear it’s because they don’t know how to cook it! This recipe is SO good, I think any non tofu-liker like it, it’s so awesome! Have you tried my other Tofu recipes? The Bang Bang Tofu (https://domesticsuperhero.com/2015/01/19/copycat-bang-bang-tofu/)
I just posted on Monday is equally delicious (and I have a lot of other asian inspired tofu recipes coming soon, so check back or sign up for emails!). Thanks so much for stopping by to tell me how it turned out!
irishgal629 says
Thanks! I’ll be checking those other recipes out! I’m really excited to find some good recipes for tofu. My fiancé’s been very open minded about trying it, but he’s a big eater. Thankfully, he likes veggies, as well, so we always feature a lot of those, too. In addition to the health benefits, tofu is also cost effective for the grocery bill. So we’ve been working in a (filling) vegetarian meal once a week. I think it’s been good for our digestion – and our wallets!
Missa Lynn says
Hubby says this was better than take out! Thanks!
Allyson says
YES! Those are the reviews I LOVE to hear! Thanks for sharing!
kaycem says
i’m in atlanta, too, and canton cooks II (just outside the perimeter) is literally the best i’ve ever had. may or may not compare with nyc, but it’s worth a shot nonetheless.
Allyson says
I will have to check it out – thanks!
janet @ the taste space says
nOT SURE WHY BUT I CAN’T SEE THE RECIPE. AND ALSO THIS IS FORCING ALL CAPS – I AM NOT SCREAMING, I SWEAR. A FEW OF YOUR OTHER TOFU RECIPES ARE ALSO MISSING 🙁
Allyson says
Hmmm, your first letter is on lowercase, are you sure it’s forcing caps?! Anyway, I see the recipe, at the bottom of the page under everything. Can you see it? If not, send me your email and I can email it to you!
janet @ the taste space says
Thanks. I think I toggled the all caps while trying to figure things out but even now my comment appears to be in all caps. anyways, i see the recipe now. it must have been a temporary glitch because the others are back now, too. thanks for the quickie reply!
Monica Hubbard says
I made this tonight and it was good. I didn’t use 1/2 inch of oil, just enough coconut oil to fill the bottom of the pan. The coconut oil worked well. One note, when saying “brick” of tofu, can you add the ounces? I ended up pulling out another container of my Trader Joes tofu at the last minute because my one brick seemed like a small amount compared to the sauce. I ended up only using half the sauce on the tofu and then the rest on the chicken for the kiddos. Thanks for sharing your love of food with me!
Allyson says
You are so welcome! Thank you for the tips, I will go ahead and add the ounces. There is a lot of sauce in this recipe, because we love having lots to put on the rice, veggies, or whatever else – it’s SO good!
Susan says
That was simply amazing! My husband asked if there was any left so he could have seconds. The flavor was perfect and not too spicy. Thank you.
Allyson says
I am SO happy you loved it! This is by far my favorite tofu recipe, but be sure to check out my other’s too! I shared your comment on my Facebook Page as well!
Jeremiah and Emily says
Unfortunately, this did not taste like any General Tso’s that we’ve ever tasted. We used half of the ginger and we both thought this had a LOT of ginger in it still. The sauce never thickened up like it should have. As soon as the tofu hit the sauce, it became soggy. I would just use a traditional General Tso sauce and skip the tofu. If you can not make General Tso sauce yourself, most Chinese restraunts will sell you some sauce for a few dollars (maximum).
This recipe is just very odd. Decent-ish recipe if you do not go into it thinking it will actually taste like General Tso. It just tastes like a gingery soy sauce.
Jeremiah and Emily says
Also, we used twice as much red pepper flakes as recommended as well as several dried Thai bird eye chili peppers and it was still not very spicy.
Allyson says
Yikes! I’m not sure what could have happened, but it sounds like you made a lot of changes in the originally written recipe, so maybe something went awry along the way. This recipe comes out perfect for us every time and all the other commenters have said the same. I am sorry it didn’t come out for you!
Anjali says
I tired this recipe a few days ago and it was SO good! I tried it again tonight and I tripled it and used soy “chicken” and it tastes exactly like Chinese takeout! Thank you for sharing!
Allyson says
That sounds awesome! I am going to share your comment on my Facebook Page! I love when people write in their great reviews!
Sioux says
I made this for dinner tonight and loved it. First time I’ve ever gotten tofu to be crispy. Served it over rice with broccoli. Amazing.
Allyson says
I am so happy you loved it! I always recommend this recipe to people who say they don’t like tofu, or don’t know how to cook it! We loooove it too!
Germ says
I plan to make this next week! At Chinese restaurants I ask for a lighter amount of sauce with my dishes. Do you think the ingredients are enough for 2 packages of tofu for someone like me? If not maybe I could just times it by 1.5 instead of doubling the amounts.
Allyson says
I don’t think it’s SUPER saucy, and i often recommend to double the sauce. I think 1.5 times the normal would probably be good for you!
Celia says
I have this made many times. Whenever I make this I always make another batch and substitute with chicken for non eating tofu hubby and pals. This is the easiest low maintenance recipe. Thanks for sharing.
Allyson says
Yay! So happy you love it as much as we do!
Angie says
I made this tonight and my boyfriend and our son loved it. Said it by far his favorite tofu recipe that I’ve made. Thank you for sharing this fabulous recipe.
Allyson says
Angie, that makes me SO happy!! Make sure you checkout my other Tofu recipes and vegetarian recipes too!