Breaded Tofu – Baked or Pan Fried

You are going to love this crispy breaded tofu!  If you’re sick of the same old baked or stir-fried tofu and want more texture and flavor in your tofu, you have to give this a try!  The tofu coating is super versatile and can be made with panko bread crumbs, crackers, stuffing, corn chips or even cornmeal, plus your choice of herbs and spices to give it a flavorful crunch.

You will love this breaded tofu because it’s…

• easily made gluten-free.
• bursting with flavor.
• crunchy comfort food.
• kid-friendly.
• a protein-packed meal that the whole family will love.

What you will need to make breaded tofu:

Tofu:

• Tofu – extra firm or the super firm high protein type work the best.
• Soy Sauce – or Tamari or Bragg’s Liquid Aminos for flavor and to moisten the tofu and help the coating stick.

Breading:

• Bread Crumbs –
  • You can also crumble and use any of the following:
    • crackers (any vegan cracker will work)
    • a vegan stuffing (like Pepperidge Farm’s cornbread stuffing mix).
    • corn flakes (GF)
    • corn chips (GF)
    • Spicy Sweet Chili or Blaze flavored Doritos
    • cornmeal. (GF)
    • *I have used all of these choices many times and I can’t say which is best.  They all make a great coating for the tofu, so I just use what I have. 
• Flour – you can use white, whole wheat or gluten-free flour mix.  This helps creates a coating that sticks to the tofu and crisps up when cooked.
• Corn Starch – to help the breading be extra crispy.  (optional)
• Nutritional Yeast – for flavor.  Optional, but recommended.
• Spices – this can vary depending on the flavor that you want to achieve.  I like to use poultry seasoning for a chicken nugget flavored tofu or Italian seasoning if I’m serving it with pasta or something Italian flavored.  I also like to use Tony Chachere’s for a spicy creole flavored tofu too.  
• Salt – for flavor.  (You may want to reduce or omit if your spices already have salt in them).

How to make breaded tofu:

1. Drain and press a block of tofu getting out as much liquid as possible.
2. Mix together breading ingredients on a plate or shallow dish.
3. Sprinkle tofu with some soy sauce or equivalent.
4. Place the tofu in the breading and press down a little to make the coating stick to the tofu.
5. Flip over and coat the other side.

Cooking the tofu:  (You have 2 choices baking or Pan Frying).

Baking the breaded tofu:

1. Preheat the oven to 400°F.
2. Spread about 2 tbsp of oil on the bottom of a cookie sheet.
3. Place the breaded tofu on the cookie sheet and bake at 400°F for about 20 minutes.
4. After 20 minutes, take out of the oven and flip with a spatula. 
5. Bake for an additional 20 minutes on the other side.

Pan-frying the breaded tofu:

1. Place 2 tbsp of oil in the bottom of a skillet. (I highly recommend using an iron skillet for tofu.  It always cooks perfectly and never sticks to my iron skillet).
2. Place the coated tofu in the frying pan and turn heat to medium-high.
3. Cook for about 3-5 minutes on each side until golden brown and crunchy.

How to make Gluten Free crusted tofu:

If you need this to be gluten-free, simply use gluten-free panko, cracker, corn chips or cornmeal instead of the bread crumbs made from wheat.  Also, make sure to use a gluten-free flour mix.

Serve this tofu hot along with pasta, rice, potatoes or any other side dish you like.

Need other ideas for cooking tofu?  Make sure to check out my posts on How to Make Baked Tofu, How to Make Perfect Crispy Fried Tofu and Grilled Tofu!

Make sure to follow me on Instagram for daily vegan inspiration and clickable links to all my recipes!

4.7 from 10 votes

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Breaded Tofu - Baked or Pan-Fried

Prep Time

10 mins

Cook Time

10 mins

Bakingn Time:

40 mins

Total Time

20 mins

 

A delicious, easy way to make flavorful breaded tofu.

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: American

Keyword: baked tofu, breaded tofu, fried tofu

Servings: 4

Calories: 181 kcal

Author: Monica Davis | The Hidden Veggies

Ingredients

• 1 block extra firm tofu
• 2 tbsp Bragg's Liquid Aminos

For the Breading:

• 1/2 cup panko bread crumbs or crumbled cracker, vegan stuffing, corn chips, cornmeal, or corn flakes cereal to give the breading texture.
• 1/4 cup flour wheat, whole wheat, or gluten-free flour mix works well.
• 1 tbsp corn starch (optional)
• 1 tbsp nutritional yeast (optional)
• 2 tsp poultry seasoning or Italian seasoning or any other dried herb mix of choice.
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 2 tbsp canola oil or light olive oil

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Preparing the Tofu:

1. Drain and press a block of tofu, getting out as much liquid as possible.

2. Mix together breading ingredients on a plate or shallow dish.
3. Sprinkle tofu with some soy sauce or equivalent.
4. Place the tofu in the breading and press down a little to make the coating stick to the tofu.
5. Flip over and coat the other side.

Cooking the tofu:  (You have 2 choices, baking or Pan Frying).

Baking the breaded tofu:

1. Preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C).

2. Spread about 2 tbsp of oil on the bottom of a cookie sheet.

3. Place the breaded tofu on the cookie sheet and bake at 400°F (200°C) for about 20 minutes.

4. After 20 minutes, take out of the oven and flip with a spatula.

5. Bake for an addtional 20 minutes on the other side.

Pan-frying the breaded tofu:

1. Place 2 tbsp of oil in the bottom of a skillet. (I highly recommend using an iron skillet for tofu.  It always cooks perfectly and never sticks to my iron skillet).
2. Place the coated tofu in the frying pan and turn heat to medium-high.
3. Cook for about 3-5 minutes on each side until golden brown and crunchy.

Nutrition Facts

Breaded Tofu - Baked or Pan-Fried

Amount Per Serving (3.5 oz)

Calories 181 Calories from Fat 90

% Daily Value*

Fat 10g15%

Saturated Fat 1g6%

Sodium 918mg40%

Potassium 205mg6%

Carbohydrates 13g4%

Fiber 1g4%

Sugar 2g2%

Protein 11g22%

Vitamin A 20IU0%

Calcium 57mg6%

Iron 2.1mg12%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.