Nutrition
Ingredients
- 1 block High Protein Super Firm Tofu
- 4 tbsp vegan mayo
- 2/3 cup Panko Breadcrumbs
- 1/3 cup TVP
- 1/4 cup Nutritional Yeast
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp onion powder
- 1/2 tsp Italian seasoning
- 1/2 tsp salt
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, combine panko breadcrumbs, TVP, nutritional yeast, and seasonings. Mix together well
- Tear tofu into about 1"x1" chunks. Tearing instead of cutting makes the surface of the tofu rougher which allows more surface area for the breadcrumbs
- Put the vegan mayo in a small bowl
- Dunk the tofu in the mayo and make sure each piece is covered with a thin layer
- Cover the tofu in breadcrumbs
- Bake in the Air Fryer at 400 F for 8 – 10 minutes until brown and crispy
Equipment
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Notes
- Instead of TVP, use Textured Pea Protein (or just use panko only). You can buy TPP online – I like the brand AcreMade.
- Instead of super firm tofu, use soy-free tofu – such as Fava Bean Tofu or Lentil Tofu.
If you’re looking for an easy and quick way to get crispy tofu, this is the recipe for you! I think this is a great substitute for chick’n nuggets if you’re trying to go with less processed foods, and these have quite a bit of protein. They would be perfect for an easy dinner if you have picky kids. This would also be a good recipe to make if you’re trying to eat more plant-based meals but are still new to cooking with tofu – perfect for a Meatless Monday! Tofu can be kind of intimidating if you’ve never worked with it or eaten it before, but everything tastes better when you air fry it, so I have no doubts that you’ll enjoy this! Then once I’ve got you hooked on crispy tofu, you’ll have to come back and see all the other awesome things you can do with tofu! It’s one of the most fun and versatile ingredients to use because it’s flavorless and will take on any flavor you give it.
When I was little and first went vegetarian, we tried making tofu nuggets for the first time. We had never bought tofu before (or eaten it) and had no idea how to use it, but thought it couldn’t be that hard. I don’t even think we pressed it. We just breaded it and stuck it in the oven to cook. What we got out of the oven was little hot soggy blobs of gross. And that was the last time I ate tofu until I was probably 25 years old or so, and was brave enough to attempt cooking it again. The lesson to take away here is that you should always press your tofu, REALLY WELL, if you’re not using super firm tofu. And the other lesson is that everyone has probably had a traumatizing tofu experience where they ate tofu that was poorly prepared by someone that didn’t know what they were doing (that someone might even by you, like it was me and my mom lol)! Do not let bad tofu experiences keep you from trying tofu again. Tofu is an amazing ingredient with a ton of nutrients and protein, and if prepared properly, can be delicious!
Ingredients
- High Protein Super Firm Tofu – I typically use the brand Wildwood, but Nasoya has a great option too! For this High Protein Crispy Air Fried Tofu recipe, I used super firm tofu. I like this type of tofu because it comes water packed which means you don’t need to press it before you use it! It can sometimes be difficult to find super firm tofu, so you can also use extra firm tofu. Be sure to press the extra firm tofu beforehand. There are a lot of really good tofu presses you can find online. If you don’t have a press and don’t want to buy one, you can always just wrap your tofu in a kitchen towel or paper towels, and carefully stack some books on top of it to press out the excess liquid. Pressing the tofu is massively important for this recipe if you’re not using super firm tofu. You definitely don’t want to end up with hot wet mushy blobs.
- Vegan Mayo – any brand will work here. If you’re oil-free or trying to cut down on fat, I have a vegan mayo recipe that uses silken tofu as the base, so if you want to bake this recipe soy three-ways, you could use this instead:
- Panko Breadcrumbs – you can use regular breadcrumbs if you prefer those, but I like how crunchy panko breadcrumbs are so they are my go-to breadcrumbs! Also, fun fact – panko is pronounced Pahn-koh, not Pang-ko! My boss speaks some Japanese and taught me this!
- TVP – Textured Vegetable Protein – you don’t necessarily have to use this, if you would rather just use breadcrumbs. Just know that this will result in slightly different calories/macros. TVP is just de-fatted soy flour; you can find it at most grocery stores near the gluten-free flour options and you can also buy it online. Usually you will re-hydrate it with something like water or broth, but in this recipe, we will be using it dry for breadcrumbs!
- Nutritional Yeast – this is also a shelf-stable ingredient that can be found at most stores or online. If you haven’t used it before, it’s a great high protein way to add a cheesy and savory flavor to vegan dishes!
- Garlic Powder, Onion Powder, Italian Seasoning, Salt – these are just the spices I chose to season the breadcrumbs/TVP. You could definitely use different spices if you’re looking for a different flavor. I would encourage to use some seasonings though and probably be a little heavy-handed with them. The tofu, TVP and the breadcrumbs I’m using don’t really have their own flavor, so this is where you add the flavor.
- Dipping Sauces – this is optional but I think really like to dip these in BBQ Sauce. Let me know what other sauces you use for dipping these crispy little guys!
Instructions
- If you are not using super firm tofu (that doesn’t need to be pressed), make sure to press out the excess water before you start this recipe. Either use a tofu press or fashion your own with a heavy stack of books – I like to use the college textbooks I refused to sell back to used bookstores because they rip you off. You can skip this step if you’re using water-packed super firm tofu.
- In a medium bowl, combine the panko breadcrumbs (or your choice of breadcrumbs), TVP, nutritional yeast and the seasonings. Mix them together well!
- Put the vegan mayo in a small bowl; if you’re planning to make your own, do this now.
- Rip the tofu into about 1 inch x 1 inch chunks. I like to tear the tofu (as opposed to cutting it), because it creates a rougher surface and the breadcrumbs seem to stick to it a lot better than the smooth surface you end up with from cutting.
- Dunk the tofu chunks into the mayo. Make sure each piece is evenly covered with a thin layer of mayo. This is what will get the breadcrumbs to stick to your tofu. Try to keep it thinly spread on the tofu, for calories obviously, but also so that it doesn’t end up falling off with your breadcrumbs. A very thin layer of mayo will stick to the tofu and stick to the breadcrumbs without clumping off in your air fryer while you’re cooking!
- Next, cover the tofu in the breadcrumb/TVP mixture. Coat it as well as you can. If you find the breadcrumbs are not sticking well, you may need to use more mayo. Some of the breadcrumbs will inevitably fall off, but you should up with a good amount that stick!
- Bake in the Air Fryer at 400 F for about 8 – 10 minutes until golden brown and crispy! If you don’t have an air fryer, you can also use a copper crisping tray in the oven. I do this sometimes when I don’t feel like messing with my air fryer and it works equally as good.
- Dip these little nuggets in your favorite sauces!
Silly Little Haiku
Pahn-koh, not pang-ko
TVP in the breadcrumbs
All the soy protein!
Author
Protein Deficient Vegan
