Cold Tofu with Tangy & Garlicky Sauce

5 from 4 votes

Servings: 2

Cold tofu is served with a tangy, garlicky sauce and topped with scallions, crispy fried onions, and sesame seeds. It’s an addictive 15-minute dish that can be served as an appetizer or a side!

Prep Time15

Ingredients

1 (14 to 16 ounce) block of soft or silken tofu, (see note 1)
2 cloves garlic
2 teaspoons rice vinegar, (see note 2)
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 1/2 tablespoons teriyaki sauce, (see note 3)
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1/4 teaspoon sugar, optional

Toppings

1/4 cup (18g) fried onions
2 tablespoons thinly sliced scallions
1 1/2 teaspoons toasted sesame seeds

Instructions

Drain and remove the block of tofu from the plastic tray. (See note 4) Place the tofu on a chopping block and let that sit so that the tofu can release some of its moisture.
Using a microplane zester, grate 2 cloves of garlic. Transfer the garlic to a small bowl and mix it with the rice vinegar. Let that sit for 5 to 10 minutes. Then, mix in the soy sauce, teriyaki sauce, and sesame oil. Give the sauce a taste. Add the sugar (or any sweetener) if you find the sauce to be too tangy (I usually do).
Use a mortar and pestle or your hands to gently crush the fried onions.
Carefully place the tofu in a shallow bowl. Use a spoon to drizzle about 2/3 of the soy sauce mixture over the tofu. I like to save some sauce to spoon over the tofu pieces as I eat them.
Top the tofu with crushed fried onions, sliced scallions, and sesame seeds. Again, I usually save some of the scallions and fried onions on the side to top the pieces of tofu as I eat. Use a large spoon to serve the cold tofu. Enjoy with jasmine rice, brown rice, basmati rice, or my egg fried rice!

Notes

Soft/Silken Tofu: Cold tofu dishes are best served with a variety of tofu that has a silky mouthfeel. That’s why I recommend using soft or silken tofu, preferably ones that are refrigerated inside a plastic tray.
Vinegar Substitute: If you don’t have rice vinegar, you can use apple cider vinegar instead.
Using Teriyaki Sauce: I like using my teriyaki sauce in this recipe because it gives savory, sweet, and umami flavor all at once. If you prefer not to make teriyaki sauce for this recipe, you can increase the amount of soy sauce to 2 tablespoons and add 1 teaspoon of sugar, honey, maple syrup, or any sweetener of choice.
Removing Tofu From Tray: Some tofu brands pack their soft tofu so that it’s tightly molded to the plastic tray, which makes the tofu difficult to remove in one piece. If this happens to you, flip over the container so that the plastic tray is facing up. Use scissors to cut off the corners of the tray, Then, cut along the top edges of the tray and remove the top. Finally, slide off the sides of the tray in one piece.

Nutrition

Did you make this recipe?Tag @hellolisalin or leave a star rating and comment on the blog!