One of my best food decisions in recent times has been to start eating tofu again. It’s so fun to have a new super convenient protein option in the mix.
If you’re a peanut butter fan (like me) you are going to LOVE this incredibly simple meal. It comes together in minutes but there’s so much going on with the peanutty goodness and the heat from the sriracha you’ll feel like you’ve gotten an excellent return on your time investment.
The tofu does what tofu does best – provide a comforting canvas for the other ferocious flavours to play out on.
Actually I want to go and make myself some now. Told you it was addictive 🙂
Addictive Peanut Tofu Scramble
Ingredients
- 1 onion or frozen onion
- 200 g firm tofu
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons smooth peanut butter
- sriracha or other hot sauce optional
- 1 cucumber or frozen green beans
Instructions
- Dice tofu into 1cm (1/2in) cubes. And dice onion.
- Heat a frying pan on a medium high heat. Add a splash of oil and then cook the onion, stirring every minute or so until the onion is no longer crunchy.
- Add the diced tofu and keep cooking for a minute or until the tofu is hot. It's not going to brown and that's OK.
- Remove from the heat. Stir in the soy sauce and tip the hot tofu onto a plate or bowl.
- Drizzle over the peanut butter. Slice cucumber and place on the side. If using frozen green beans quickly rinse the pan and, return the pan to the heat on medium high add the beans. Cover and cook for a minute. Stir and cover and cook again, repeating until the beans are hot. Place beans on the plate.
- Serve with hot sauce on top (if using).
Variations & Substitutions
plan-B (pantry) – use the frozen beans and frozen onion.
short on time – use frozen onion – and if using the beans – cook in a separate pan at the same time as the tofu.
Keto / ultra low carb – use eggs instead of tofu and skip the onion.
different protein – ground (minced) chicken or turkey (make sure the meat is cooked through it will take longer than the tofu) or scramble some eggs or try it with lentils or chickpeas.
nut-free – use tahini (sesame seed paste) instead. Or serve with hummus.
soy-free – use fish sauce or coconut aminos to season. Or just salt.
nightshade-free – replace the hot sauce with a squeeze of lime.
more substantial (carb lovers) – warm tortillas or pita.
more substantial (low carb) – extra peanut butter or more veggies.
family-friendly – skip the hot sauce. I was surpised how much my boys liked this (any excuse for peanut butter like their mother).
different vegetables – feel free to serve with any cooked or raw veg you are inspired by.
Waste Avoidance Strategy
onion – will keep in the pantry for months. Best if in a dark corner in a brown paper bag.
frozen onion / frozen green beans – will keep for months in the freezer.
tofu – will keep in an unopened packet for a few months (check use by date on packet). Opened packets can be frozen.
soy sauce / peanut butter / sriracha / hot sauce – keep on the pantry.
cucumber – use for another meal. Will keep in the fridge in a plastic bag for 2 weeks or so.
Problem Solving Guide
bland – more soy sauce or more peanut butter or more hot sauce! Or add in a flavour bomb.
sticking to the pan – next time make sure your pan is hot before adding the oil and make sure the oil is hot before adding the tofu. For now remove from the heat and stirring in a splash of water will help it release.
Prepare Ahead
Yes! Just cook as per the recipe. Leftovers will keep in the fridge for 1-2 weeks or can be frozen.
Add to my Old Favourite Recipes
YUM!! A great way to do tofu. I am trying to get away from using so much red meat, so good tofu recipes are a great help, as are good egg recipes. My husband will continue to always serve red when it’s his turn to cook, but he doesn’t complain when I make tofu. I definitely want to keep making this.
I’ve never been a huge tofu fan, but this is a real winner! Surprisingly delish. I will definitely make it again. Super easy and fast.
I’ve really falled in love with tofu lately Joan – definitely try the tofu not-pizza next 🙂 https://smp.to/2022/04/tofu-not-pizza/
Great recipe!! It is easy, tasty, and my husband really liked it. I used a 340g pack of extra firm tofu, and it made 3 servings for us. My homemade peanut butter is not drizzly, so I stirred it into the tofu before removing it from the heat. I’m really glad I tried this – it’s adefinite keeper.
Glad you enjoyed it Susan! I’ve been thinking about experimenting with marinating the tofu in hot sauce first
I used the last of the bunch of shallots/scallions/green onions that I’d bought for the Ginger Beef Stir Fry last week, and curry powder (I bought some Keens, which was good) rather than hot sauce. The fact that tofu is a bit wet worked well with this, as it deglazed the curry powder from the pan. I also cooked a sliced capsicum with the onion before adding the tofu. Just warming the tofu seems to be the best approach, as I’ve tried to crisp it on previous occasions which just gives it a texture like styrofoam. I forgot about the peanut butter at first, then discovered that a light hand was required with it or the dish becomes gluey. Good.
P.S. I used green beans instead of cucumber (eurgh) and didn’t bother wiping out the pan, instead just microwaving them then stirring them through the rest of the dish.
Glad you liked the Keens Mark!
And you must be from my Irishmans school of thought on cucumbers – they’re definitely not for everyone!
Loved this!!! I had never cooked with tofu before, but I found this recipe intriguing so I decided to try it out. Definitely a flavor explosion. All the ingredients worked amazingly together. I have a made it twice now, and the first time, i tried browning the tofu because brown food is always better right? eeeh, not always. I much more enjoyed the texture with the tofu just warmed. My hubby agreed, but he says he would prefer to eat tofu deep fried haha
So glad I’ve got you into tofu Michelle!
Made this. Yummy good. Let’s see how it defrosts.
Do report back Paul – I’m curious to find out!
I have a stupid question: how do you drizzle nut butter? I’ve never met a drizzle-able nut butter. Do you heat it? I would most likely be using almond butter because I don’t digest peanuts well.
The smooth peanut butter I buy is quite runny Susan – same with almond butter. So it does drizzle.
But if yours is thicker – I’d just dollop it on with a teaspoon to get little bits scattered over.
My nut butters wouldn’t drizzle, either, even if I mixed in the soy sauce first. But they’d melt in a hot pan, so I’ll probably try stirring them in there.
I’m curious how you got on with melting the nut butter Wynne…
The other option would be to mix it with water to make a drizzling sauce.