This vegan orange tofu stir fry is made with fresh orange juice and orange zest. It's a great homemade alternative to takeout Chinese orange chicken.
One of my favorite Chinese takeout dishes is orange tofu or vegan orange chicken, but the dishes at restaurants rarely hit the spot. They either lack fresh orange flavor, don't come with enough veggies, or the vegan chicken is breaded rather than lightly crispy.
There is one restaurant here in Chicago that does it right: Veggie House in Chinatown. It's a relatively new restaurant and the only vegetarian restaurant (and one of vegan options) in Chinatown. So new I haven't even added it my Vegan Chicago Guide yet! The tofu in their orange tofu is chewy, crispy, and coated in a sweet orange sauce sprinkled with orange zest. There are also bits of fresh orange and carrots mixed into the tofu. There are no other veggies, but since the dish is on the appetizer menu, it's less than $10 so you could always add a side of broccoli to your order for a full meal.
Unfortunately, we're out of delivery range so we have to drive 35 minutes to go pick it up. To make the drive worthwhile, we always order a big Veggie House feast with orange tofu, pumpkin coconut soup, Kung Pao tofu, and more! In between visits, I miss that orange tofu, so I had to come up with a recipe I could make at home.
My take on vegan orange tofu is also made with fresh orange juice and zest, but I like to add more veggies to the mix with onions and broccoli, as well as some chili sauce for spice. The tofu is prepared nice and crispy with a cornstarch coating using a technique called "velvet tofu" and coated in a sweet, savory, and tangy vegan orange chicken sauce. It's fantastic over rice with a drizzle of soy sauce and a sprinkle of chili sauce.
🍊 Ingredients
- Firm or extra firm tofu
- Soy sauce
- Rice wine vinegar
- Fresh oranges
- Sesame oil
- Peanut or vegetable oil
- Garlic
- Cornstarch
- Onion
- Ginger
- Broccoli
- Chili sauce
- Agave nectar
- Vegetable broth
- Rice for serving
🍽 Equipment
These three kitchen tools are my holy grail tofu trio. If you cook tofu often, I recommend them to get the best crispy, perfectly cooked tofu.
Tofu Press
I recommend getting a tofu press if you cook tofu often. I know it seems like an "extra" kitchen tool to store, but trust me, if you cook tofu at least a couple times per month, it's faster and less messy than using a dish towel or paper towels and pressing the tofu with heavy objects.
I've tried (and broke) a few tofu presses over the years, and the EZ Tofu Press is my favorite. My purchase history shows that I bought it in 2017, so it's been going strong for years! It's made with thick, durable plates and screws to keep the tofu in place. I don't recommend the tofu presses that are made with springs and flimsy plastic. I've broken 2 of them by cracking the plastic from the pressure.
Cast Iron Pan
The best way to get crispy tofu is a cast iron pan. I use mine for most of my cooking, not just tofu. It's a great way to get a perfect sear with your cooking.
Metal Spatula
Not just any metal spatula—a thin, flexible metal spatula like this one will be your cast iron pan's BFF. It will allow you to get under your tofu to flip it without any wardrobe malfunctions (the crispy exterior slipping right off the tofu).
🌽 Technique
The cooking technique to make the tofu nice and crispy is called "velvet tofu". Which is weird, but whatever, it's tasty.
To make the tofu crispy, you'll drain the tofu and sprinkle it in cornstarch so it's coated on all sides. When added to the pan with oil, the cornstarch mix will crisp up and give the tofu a perfect crispy coating that gets nice and chewy when you add the sauce. You can use this technique for all kinds of tofu dishes.
🔪 Instructions
For the tofu:
Press the tofu for at least 30 minutes using a tofu press or by wrapping the tofu in a kitchen towel and placing between two plates with a heavy object on top. Slice the tofu into cubes.
Mix together the water, soy sauce, rice wine vinegar, orange juice, sesame oil, orange zest, and garlic in a shallow bowl, and marinate the tofu in the mixture for at least 30 minutes.
Meanwhile, mix together all stir fry sauce ingredients.
Drain the tofu marinade and place the tofu in a bowl. Sprinkle the cornstarch on top and toss the tofu to coat, adding more cornstarch if necessary.
Heat the peanut oil in a large wok or skillet over medium high heat. Place the tofu in the pan and fry until crispy on all sides, about 8 minutes on each side, then transfer to a plate.
To assemble:
Add the peanut oil to the wok or skillet over medium high heat. Add the garlic, onions, and ginger and cook for 30 seconds.
Add the tofu back to the pan, along with the sauce, and continue cooking until the sauce thickens and the tofu is fully coated.
Serve portions of stir fry on a bed of rice with steamed broccoli on the side.
💭 Tips
- You can press and marinate the tofu ahead of time. Just pick up at the cornstarch step when you're ready to cook.
- Don't skip the fresh orange juice and zest! Fresh oranges give the sauce its flavor. To get enough juice and zest for the marinade and sauce, you'll need about 2-3 oranges, depending on size.
📋 Variation
This dish can be made with tofu, vegan chicken, or seitan (try my Chicken Style Seitan recipe). To make vegan orange chicken or seitan, skip the tofu marinade steps and pick up the recipe at the cornstarch step. The cornstarch coating will work on the vegan chicken in the same way as tofu to make it crispy.
Have you tried the frozen vegan orange chicken from Trader Joe's? I love it, and it makes a quick meal! The sauce leaves something to be desired though—it's sugary sweet and the orange flavor tastes artificial. You could toss the sauce packet and dress it up using the recipe. The vegan chicken is already breaded so skip the marinade and cornstarch steps. Simply cook the vegan chicken in a skillet according to the package and add the veggies and homemade vegan orange chicken sauce.
🥗 More Tofu Recipes
You can find all kinds of tofu and other meat alternative recipes here. Here are a few of my favorites.
KPT is my favorite dish to order from Chinese restaurants. This homemade version is just like takeout and you can control the ratio of tofu to veggies.
General Tso's is made with crispy tofu and broccoli in a sweet and spicy ginger garlic sauce.
Vegan Fried Rice with Tofu "Egg"
If you're doing a "takeout at home" night, fried rice is an absolute must! Unless you're ordering from a vegan restaurant, most vegan fried rice options only have veggies. This recipe calls for seitan "chicken" and tofu to make scrambled "eggs".
📖 Recipe
Vegan Orange Tofu Recipe with Fresh Oranges
This vegan orange tofu stir fry is made with fresh orange juice and orange zest. It's a great homemade alternative to takeout Chinese orange chicken.
Ingredients
Tofu
- 1 pound block firm tofu, drained and pressed
- ½ cup water
- 3 tablespoons soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
- 2 tablespoons fresh squeezed orange juice
- 2 teaspoon sesame oil
- ½ teaspoon orange zest
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 3-4 tablespoons cornstarch
- 2 tablespoons peanut oil, or vegetable oil
Vegetables
- 1 tablespoon peanut oil, or vegetable oil
- 3 cloves garlic, sliced
- 1 medium onion, sliced
- 2 teaspoons fresh grated ginger
- 1 head broccoli, cut into florets and steamed
Sauce
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- 2 teaspoons sesame oil
- 2 teaspoons freshly grated ginger
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 1-2 teaspoons chili sauce, or to taste
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 2 teaspoons orange zest
- ¼ cup agave nectar
- ½ cup fresh squeezed orange juice
- ¼ cup vegetable broth
For serving
- 2 cups cooked rice
- Orange slices
Instructions
For the tofu:
- Press the tofu for at least 30 minutes using a tofu press or by wrapping the tofu in a kitchen towel and placing between two plates with a heavy object on top.
- Slice the tofu into cubes.
- Mix together the water, soy sauce, rice wine vinegar, orange juice, sesame oil, orange zest, and garlic in a shallow bowl, and marinate the tofu in the mixture for at least 30 minutes.
- Drain the tofu marinade and place the tofu in a bowl.
- Meanwhile, mix together all stir fry sauce ingredients.
- Sprinkle the cornstarch on top and toss the tofu to coat, adding more cornstarch if necessary.
- Heat the peanut oil in a large wok or skillet over medium high heat.
- Place the tofu in the pan and fry until crispy on all sides, about 8 minutes on each side, then transfer to a plate.
To assemble:
- Add the peanut oil to the wok or skillet over medium high heat.
- Add the garlic, onions, and ginger and cook for 30 seconds.
- Add the tofu back to the pan, along with the sauce, and continue cooking until the sauce thickens and the tofu is fully coated.
- Serve portions of stir fry on a bed of rice with steamed broccoli on the side.
Notes
- You can press and marinate the tofu ahead of time. Just pick up at the cornstarch step when you're ready to cook.
- Don't skip the fresh orange juice and zest! Fresh oranges give the sauce its flavor. To get enough juice and zest for the marinade and sauce, you'll need about 2-3 oranges, depending on size.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield: 4 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 552Total Fat: 28gSaturated Fat: 4gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 23gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 1004mgCarbohydrates: 61gFiber: 6gSugar: 17gProtein: 18g
All nutritional information presented within this site are intended for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and any nutritional information on seitanbeatsyourmeat.com should only be used as a general guideline. This information is provided as a courtesy and there is no guarantee that the information will be completely accurate. Even though I try to provide accurate nutritional information to the best of my ability, these figures should still be considered estimates.
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