Skip to main content

Sweet and Sour Mango Tofu

This dish is my new tofu obsession! Pan-fried tofu sticks that are golden crispy on the outside and still tender on the inside, generously coated in a sweet, sour, and sticky mango sauce made of fresh mango juice, stir-fried with lots of juicy, crunchy veggies and of course, more fresh mangoes!

I think at this point we've probably all had orange tofu, lemon tofu, and pineapple tofu, and yet I had never had mango tofu until a road trip I took this past summer! During my month-long cross-country road trip, my sole responsibility was hunting for good vegan restaurants to eat at since I don't drive (like at all lol). And I had this mango tofu dish in Atlanta and that flavor has been living in my head rent-free ever since!

So of course I have to recreate it. And it turned out just as I remembered! I made the sauce using mango juice I made from fresh mango and the coating yielded this golden, sticky, glistening shine that's just mouth-watering.

Do I need to press the tofu?

I kept the process super simple and NO FUSS as well. No breading or pressing the tofu - I know pressing tofu is such a "fashion" these days but trust you really don't have to do it with every single recipe. For this dish particularly, as long as you're using the right type of tofu - it should say extra-firm or hard tofu on the package - then you can simply take it out of the package, pat dry and start cooking. After all, we want that beautiful contrast between the golden crispy crust and the tender inside, so we want to retain some of the moisture in tofu and not get it totally dense and dry.

Whether you are a die-hard tofu fan like me or still suspicious, give this recipe a go and bring some tropical flavors to your holiday party dinners! And please tag me on  Instagram and Tiktok ^^


INGREDIENTS:

1 14 oz block extra-firm tofu

1 large mango

1 sweet bell pepper

1 medium zucchini

2 scallions

3 garlic cloves

Cooking oil

Salt and pepper to taste


For the Mango Sauce -

3/4 cup mango juice, I made mine using fresh mango

1 1/2 tablespoon soy sauce or tamari

2 tablespoon coconut amino

1 tablespoon rice vinegar

2 teaspoon ketchup

1 teaspoon arrowroot powder or cornstarch


TO MAKE:

- Pat dry and slice the tofu into 1/2 inch thick sticks, or your preferred shapes;

- Heat some oil in a good non-stick pan over medium heat, pan fry the tofu sticks until all sides are golden brown, about 3 minutes for the first side then another minute or so after you flip for the other sides;

- Slice the bell pepper and zucchini into your preferred shapes, I kept everything in sticks forms;

- Peel the slice the mango the same way;

- Mix together all the sauce ingredients, give it a good stir to make sure it's mixed evenly and the arrowroot powder or starch is not settled at the bottom;

- In the same nonstick pan, using the leftover oil from when we fried the tofu, saute the scallions and garlic till aromatic, add in the peppers and zucchinis and cook till they just turn soft;

- Add the pan-fried tofu back to the pan, carefully pour in the sauce, stir to coat everything evenly;

- Bring the sauce to a bubble and lower the heat to let it simmer, for about 3 - 4 minutes or until it reaches your preferred thickness;

- Add in the mango, quickly stir to combine them, once everything is once again mixed evenly, remove from heat;

- Serve immediately with steamed rice, I highly recommend drizzling some of the sauce onto the rice! Enjoy!


Popular posts from this blog

Whole Roasted Turmeric Cauliflower with Whipped Tofu Feta, Crispy Chickpeas & Chimichurri

Turn cauliflower into your next holiday centerpiece dish! This whole roasted cauliflower is super easy to make yet packed with layers of different textures and flavors, high in plant protein, and gluten-free! Cauliflower is literally magic, they can be turned into just about anything and have! This is a dish that fully celebrates cauliflower and compliments it with many different elements and flavors. It's very low-fuss and easy to make and it's so festive-looking it can be a wow factor at any holiday gathering. The cauliflower is blanched first then roasted with a turmeric-based seasoning till golden and slightly charred, served with crispy chickpeas, which are cooked at the same time with the cauliflower, on a bed of creamy fluffy whipped tofu feta and finally drizzled with tahini and chimichurri sauce. You can also add roasted baby carrots, or potatoes, or green beans on the side of this dish! Let the festivities begin ^^ INGREDIENTS: 1 head cauliflower 1/4 cup olive oil 2 t...
Get the recipe »

Rice Paper Sushi Rolls with Teriyaki Tofu and Veggies

When crispy rice paper rolls and sushi rolls have a baby - then we have something that has the best of both worlds. These rice paper sushi rolls are a perfect combination of earth and ocean, crispy chewy rice paper brings the aroma of the earth, seaweed brings the taste of the ocean, then filled with umami teriyaki tofu, homemade vegan mayo, and fresh veggies. If you ever feel "bored" with your food or cooking, try combining a few things you love and creating something new! These rolls are the kind of magic where 1 plus 1 is greater than 2! They are naturally gluten-free, very well balanced in nutrition with loads protein, carbs, vitamins, and fiber... packed full of flavors and layers of texture. When it comes to rice paper, a very common complaint is "why is my rice paper roll soggy/not crispy/leaking". Well rice paper is a wonderfully versatile ingredient to work with and once you get the hang of it it's super easy to get that golden crispy crust every single...
Get the recipe »

Vegan Napa Cabbage Rolls with Tofu Stuffings

These napa cabbage rolls are almost like vegan dumplings but without having to make any dough. The stuffings are hearty, savory, and "meaty", wrapped in sweet and juicy napa cabbage leaves that are pan-seared to give them a little golden color and charred flavor, and finally dressed in a shiny, umami, garlicky sauce. Cabbage rolls are widely loved in many parts of the world - Central, Northern, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe and much of Asia, as well as parts of North Africa. But of course, they're made differently from region to region. In China, in particular, cabbage rolls are usually made with napa cabbage, as opposed to cannonball cabbage, commonly known as green cabbage. They're then stuffed with minced pork and vegetables and finished by steaming or pan-fring. To make a vegan version, I used tofu, brown rice, shiitake mushrooms, carrot, and scallions but the combination is highly adaptable. This is a perfect chance to use up any scraps of veggies in your fri...
Get the recipe »

Vegan Okonomiyaki (Japanese Savory Pancake with Veggies)

My absolute favorite Japanese street food, EVER!  Okonomiyaki is like a big savory pancake that is thick, a bit chewy, fluffy and soft on the inside and golden crispy on the outside, topped off with a generous amount of umami and sweet sauce and mayo. Okonomiyaki is a Japanese savory pancake made of vegetables, sometimes meat and seafood, in a wheat flour batter. It's as adaptable as an omelet, if not more, as the word  okonomi  literally means "how you like" or "what you like".You can pretty much stuff it with whatever ingredients you prefer but for this vegan version, I used a variety of vegetables. This is also a great fridge clearing recipe to use up all the scraps of veggies you have on your hand. For the batter, the traditional okonomiyaki recipe calls for grated nagaimo to add fluffiness to the texture. Nagaimo, or mountain yam, is a type of root vegetable that's long and hairy, it's creamy and slimy when grated. However, it's not easy to find...
Get the recipe »

Vegan Jumeokbap Korean Rice Balls 3 Ways

Make your next lunch box or picnic extra special with these Jumeokbap three ways! These Korean rice balls are the perfect grab & go meal and I made three flavors - filled with chickpea "chuna" mash, coated in teriyaki nori, and my personal fave, kimchi vegan cheese! One common confusion would be, what's the difference between Jumeokbap and Onigiri? Jumeokbap and onigiri are both rice ball dishes, but they come from different culinary traditions and have some differences in their preparation and ingredients. Jumeokbap is a Korean rice ball dish, you can usually find the various ingredients such as vegetables, meat, or seafood mixed IN the rice, and then shaped into balls, sometimes with fillings, sometimes without.  Onigiri, on the other hand, is a Japanese dish that consists of cooked short-grain rice that is shaped into a triangle or oval shape and often has a filling such as salmon, pickled plum, or tuna. The rice is usually seasoned with salt and wrapped with a she...
Get the recipe »

Chinese Cucumber Salad - Suo Yi Cucumber

The most fabulous way to cut and present cucumber, ever! This cucumber salad is made of ONE SINGLE cucumber, sliced into a spring shape and dressed in a sweet, sour, and umami sauce, and finally topped with some aromatic and spicy chili oil. Let's please call this dish by its proper name - Suo Yi cucumber, or Suo Yi Huang Gua 蓑衣黄瓜. Suo Yi, refers to the traditional Chinese raincoat made of overlapping layers of straw and sometimes leaves, think a Hawaiian grass skirt but for the whole body. And the "scales" of the cucumber created by a special slicing technique and stretching resemble the layers of straws in Suo Yi, hence the name. And this special way of slicing is not just for presentation's sake! Because of all the incredibly thin, translucent, and flexible slices that this method creates, the seemingly ordinary cucumber is transformed into a form of magic and art! The texture is crunchy yet tender, every single thin "scale" of the cucumber picks up the s...
Get the recipe »

Vegan Yaki Onigiri aka Japanese Grilled Rice Balls with Chickpea "Chuna" Filling

Your next lunchbox, picnic, snack, appetizer, for just for anything! These yaki onigiris, aka grilled rice balls, are simply the best thing you can do with rice - you get a golden crunchy crust that's glazed with a umami and sweet sauce, yet the rice inside remains fluffy and steamy, the savory aroma from the grilled nori, plus whatever fillings you heart desires. How do you make a seemingly ordinary ingredient exciting? Look no further. With a few simple steps and some culinary magic, voila, you can turn good old white rice into these irresistible flavor bombs. My favorite part is that golden brown crispy crust, I honestly can't stop crunching them away! Yaki onigiri is one of those things that if you know the tricks and hacks then they are a breeze to make; but if you don't know where you can potentially fail, chances are something is gonna go wrong. So here are some very important points to keep in mind: 1. Use freshly made rice while they're still hot. This is the ...
Get the recipe »

Easy Vegan Kewpie Mayonnaise with Silken Tofu

This super easy vegan mayonnaise is silky, creamy, velvety, and tastes super similar to Kewpie mayo! It's made of 100% whole food plant ingredients, high in protein, without any oil or raw eggs and takes mere minutes to make! To be honest, I never liked the idea of raw eggs in traditional mayonnaise, I mean raw eggs whipped with an insane amount of oil... ugh... However, I did like its rich, creamy texture, especially the Japanese Kewpie mayo, which could add a nice flair in many dishes. The good news is this easy vegan version comes with all the familiar yumminess with no sanitary problems. The most important ingredient in this is extra-firm silken tofu. Yes, silken tofu can come in many different firmness too! For this specific recipe, I recommend the type of silken tofu that comes in paper cartons, not in a plastic tray with water. However, if you can't find extra-firm silken tofu you can try the regular type, different brands would have different water content in it. If it ...
Get the recipe »

Pan Fried Crispy Rice Paper Dumplings with Vegan Fillings

Happy year of the tiger! Dumplings are a must for me on the Chinese New Year, or Lunar New Year and these rice dumplings are the ultimate lazy and easy version. They're stuffed with a savory and "meaty" tofu veggie filling and then pan-fried till golden crispy. And to make the experience even more satisfying, serve them with some sizzling scallion chili oil! Rice papers are such a perfect "cheat" to make easy dumplings. No need to mix flour, knead the dough, then roll out the wrappers, simply dip rice papers in some warm water, cut them into shapes, and start wrapping. The texture is more like the "crystal dumplings" you would get at a dim sum restaurant - the skins would be translucent and chewy and if pan-fried, super crispy! For the fillings, I used a mixture of tofu and vegetables but this is highly adaptable! You can use up any scraps of veggies in your fridge and use any protein base you like - tofu, mashed lentils, or even crumbled tempeh. And i...
Get the recipe »

Matcha Strawberry Tofu Mousse Cake | 7 Ingredients and NO BAKE!

Mousse without the fuss! The easiest healthy mousse cake that's creamy, silky, velvety, and everything you'd expect from mousse but it's vegan, dairy free, no bake, high-protein, and only made of 7 ingredients! This one is what you'd call a low-effort, high-reward recipe. With one secret ingredient, you can achieve this velvety smooth mousse and pack in a big punch of plant protein simultaneously and that is - silken tofu! Don't write it off until you try it, you cannot taste the tofu in this cake at all! For setting, instead of using gelatin, which is made from the skins and bones of cows, pigs, and/or fish, we will use agar agar, which is made from algae. There are several perks in using agar agar even if you're not vegan - first of all, it sets super fast! This cake took barely 2 hours in the fridge to completely set while regular mouse cakes require 6+ hours; secondly, agar agar will not melt under room temperature, so your cake will be able to hold its shap...
Get the recipe »