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This tofu bowl with rice stars crispy tofu, fresh veggies, spicy mayo and crunchy bits of fried onion! A deliciously healthy vegan dinner to fill your day with plant-based goodness.
Looking for a rock-star vegan recipe or plant based dinner idea? Try this crispy tofu bowl! Imagine, chunks of perfectly-seasoned, savory crispy tofu that are golden on the outside and tender on the inside. Combine that with fluffy rice and fresh veggies, then cover it with a spicy mayo. The best part? Sprinkle everything with crunchy fried onions! It makes a bowl that’s an explosion of textures and flavors—which happens to be totally plant-based.
Ingredients in this tofu bowl recipe
This tofu bowl is so delicious, we’d gladly add it to our dinner rotation every night of the week. (Plus, our kids are obsessed with tofu, which helps!) It’s a spin on our popular Salmon Rice Crunch Bowl, which itself is a riff on our pal Pinch of Yum’s recipe for Crunchy Roll Bowls. Inspired by a sushi crunch roll, it uses crispy fried onions to mimic the crunchy tempura flakes. Here’s what you’ll need for this tofu rice bowl:
- 1 recipe Crispy Tofu or Baked Tofu
- Long grain white rice
- Avocados
- English cucumber
- Carrots
- Radishes
- Mayonnaise (vegan mayonnaise, for vegan)
- Sriracha hot sauce
- Crunchy fried onions
- Chunky sea salt or soy sauce
Baked tofu vs crispy tofu
There are two great methods for the protein in this tofu bowl: baked tofu or crispy tofu. They both come out equally delicious, but there are pros and cons to each method.
salad we made especially for our favorite
- Baked Tofu takes 45 minutes to make, but it’s very easy, no-fail, and a hands off method. If you have the time, this method is the perfect fit! Get it in the oven, then make the other components for the bowl. You can also easily make it up to 3 days in advance and then warm it up in a 350F oven or skillet.
- Crispy Tofu takes about 20 minutes to make, but it’s a little more labor-intensive than the baked tofu. You’ll need to have a non-stick skillet, and the method is mostly hands-on for the cook time. It can be a little tricky to flip the tofu as well. But it comes out beautifully crispy and delicious!
The key: crispy fried onions
Other than the tofu, the crispy fried onions are the key to this tofu bowl! After trying this flavor secret, we’ve started sprinkling crispy fried onions on all our bowl meals and salads. Here are a few tips:
- Grab a can of purchased crispy fried onions. That’s right, the kind that go on green bean casserole.
- Sprinkle over the whole bowl as a garnish. This mimics the texture of a sushi crunch roll, and adds a savory onion flavor throughout.
- Use leftovers for sprinkling on any bowl meal or salad. They’re especially fun on on a Caesar salad or kale Caesar.
No tofu pressing required!
If you’ve made tofu before, you’ll know that often recipes indicate to press the tofu by wrapping it in a towel and placing a heavy object on top for 30 minutes. However, both our crispy tofu and baked tofu recipes don’t require pressing at all! This makes them perfect for weeknight dinners because you don’t have to waste the time waiting for it to press. Simply dry it off with a towel and you’re good to go.
Storage and leftovers
This tofu bowl saves very well! Though the tofu tastes best the day of making, both the baked and crispy tofu hold up well in the refrigerator for 3 to 4 days. You can also make the rice in advance and reheat on the stovetop with a splash of water. This recipe is great for making ahead for lunches and dinners throughout the week.
More tofu recipes
This tofu rice bowl recipe is one of our top recipes with tofu! Here are a few more tofu recipes to try if you love this plant-based protein:
- Go for Tofu Fried Rice or Tofu Broccoli Stir Fry
- Make Baked Tofu, Breaded Tofu, or Crispy Tofu
- Go for a Tofu Sandwich, Easy Tofu Tacos or Coconut Tofu Curry
- Mix up Tofu Salad, Tofu Soup with Spinach or Easy BBQ Tofu
This tofu bowl recipe is…
Vegetarian, vegan, plant-based, dairy-free, and gluten-free.
Tofu Bowl
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: 40 minutes
- Yield: 4 1x
Description
This tofu bowl with rice stars crispy tofu, crisp veggies, spicy mayo and crunchy bits of fried onion! Fuel your day with plant-powered goodness.
Ingredients
For the tofu
- 14 or 15 ounces extra firm tofu
- Kosher salt
- 3 tablespoons cornstarch (or arrowroot starch)
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
- 2 tablespoons smoked soy sauce or soy sauce (or tamari for gluten-free)
For the tofu bowl
- 1 cup long grain white rice
- 2 ripe avocados, sliced or diced
- 1/2 English cucumber, diced
- 2 large carrots, julienne peeled or shredded
- 4 radishes, sliced
- ½ cup mayonnaise or vegan mayo
- 1 ½ tablespoons Sriracha
- Crunchy fried onions, to garnish (required!)
- Chunky sea salt, to garnish (or soy sauce)
Instructions
- Rinse the rice. Bring 1 ½ cups of water to boil in a medium saucepan. Add the rice and ¼ teaspoon kosher salt. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low, and cover. Simmer 12 to 15 minutes or until the water is fully absorbed (check by pulling back with a fork). Remove the heat, cover and allow to steam for 5 to 10 minutes. Then fluff with a fork.
- Follow the instructions to cook the Baked Tofu or Crispy Tofu*.
- Chop the avocados. Dice the cucumber. Julienne or shred the carrots. Slice the radishes.
- Make the spicy mayo: mix together the mayonnaise and the Sriracha.
- To serve, place the rice in a bowl and top with the tofu and veggies. Sprinkle salt on the veggies or a tiny bit of soy sauce around the whole bowl. Top with the spicy mayo and a generous sprinkle of crunchy fried onions.
Notes
*Open the recipes in another tab for easy navigating. The Baked Tofu method is easier and hands off, but takes longer (it includes a few optional additional spices and more cornstarch). The Crispy Tofu is quicker, but requires more effort at the skillet.
- Category: Main dish
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Tofu
- Diet: Vegan
This recipe was absolutely amazing. The crunchy onions are the best part, I never would’ve thought to add them to a bowl like this! We will be making this for years to come. Thank you for creating and sharing this meal idea!
Made this for meal prep this week with the baked tofu, and it is DELICIOUS. I’ve not had french fried onions in over a decade, but WOW, were they so tasty on top!
So glad you enjoyed it!
This bowl is amazing! The crispy tofu is incredible on it. It tastes like a flavorful specialty sushi roll in a bowl. Just made this for the first time today and it will be on my weekly rotation from here on out.
So glad you enjoyed! Thank you for making it.