The idea for these tofu tacos was 1) My dad’s, and 2) Of the rather harebrained variety.
When he first suggested it to me–distant memories of dry, cardboard tofu cubes from the barren wasteland that was my college dining hall’s “Vegan Station” suddenly resurfacing–my initial gut reaction was just… “no.”
When he threw out the idea to Kaitlin over Skype one weekend, her initial reaction was similarly contrarian. “What? Why?”
In our family, we eat vegetarian meals often–multiple times a week. But we don’t necessarily “mark” them as vegetarian, or even notice that they’re meatless. It’s just habit at this point. And we definitely don’t need another excuse to eat tofu. I love the stuff, and I’m pretty sure I’ll be turning into a giant soy puff à la Violet Beauregard any day now.
But in the end, my father is nothing if not obstinate in such situations. So we ended up trying it–smothering firm tofu in a mixture of honey and Sriracha, rolling it in crispy coating, pan-frying it (similar to our Duo of Dippables chicken and tofu fingers), and then serving it with tortillas and a bunch of toppings and a truly kick-ass green onion cilantro sauce. And I have to say…it was pretty boss. Like, actually.
(We actually previewed this a few weeks ago on Instagram…click the link in the sidebar and follow us to get sneak peeks of our new recipes!)
We used homemade corn tortillas for these tofu tacos, which are so easy to put together even without a tortilla press, which by the way, truthfully would have been handy.
Just combine corn masa with water (full instructions on that thar package) and cook the resulting tortillas in a pan. Voilà! Somewhat bastardized fusion vegetarian tofu tacos that will surprise and captivate.
Tofu Tacos: Recipe Instructions
Cut the firm tofu into 3/4 inch cubes. In a wide, shallow bowl, combine the Sriracha and honey, and gently toss the tofu in the mixture.
In another wide, shallow bowl, combine the cornmeal, chili powder, cumin, salt, garlic powder, and pepper. Toss the tofu in this dry mixture until well-coated. Emphasis on well-coated. You’re going for crispy.
In a cast iron or non-stick skillet, heat the oil over medium high heat. Add the tofu and allow the pieces to crisp up on all sides.
While that’s happening, whizz up the scallions, cilantro, and yogurt in a food processor or blender (if the sauce is a little thin, just add more cilantro and scallion). Build your tacos with tortillas, your sauce, and whatever toppings you like. Here’s how we went about it:
From one tofu-loving meat-eater to a skeptical audience…you may be a non-believer, but these crispy tofu tacos were pretty awesome.
Loaded Crispy Tofu Tacos
Ingredients
You'll need:
Other toppings:
- shredded cheese
- chopped tomato
- chopped onion
- sweet corn
- avocado
- lime wedges
Instructions
- Cut the tofu into 3/4 inch cubes. In a wide, shallow bowl, combine the Sriracha and honey, and gently toss the tofu in the mixture. In another wide, shallow bowl, combine the cornmeal, chili powder, cumin, salt, garlic powder, and pepper. Toss the tofu in this dry mixture until well-coated.
- In a cast iron or non-stick skillet, heat the oil over medium high heat. Add the tofu and allow the pieces to crisp up on all sides. While that's happening, whizz up the scallions, cilantro, and yogurt in a food processor or blender. Build your tacos with tortillas, your sauce, and whatever toppings you like.
I cook with tofu a lot but have never used a cornmeal coating. It was crispy and delicious!
Hi Judy, excellent – it has been a while since I cooked this dish but it is delicious :)
So happy you liked it, Judy!
The tofu didn’t brown, just had the coating stick to the bottom of the pan :(
Hi Cindy, please have a look at this post. It’ll resolve this problem.
Hi Cindy, what kind of pan did you use? Make sure the pan is heated enough when frying the tofu!
This is literally the MOST delicious tofu I have ever made. You totally 100% knocked it out of the park. I am in love. I am craving it everyday. It’s a staple, THANK YOU!
Hi Alana, this crispy tofu taco recipe is one of our earliest recipes, and it definitely has stood the test of time. Agree that they are still delicious today!
This was so good! I’ve been looking for a tofu taco recipe I like for ages, and this is the one. I substituted agave nectar for the honey, but otherwise made it as written.
So happy you enjoyed it, Nathan!
Could you throw these in a deep fryer instead of a pan or would it fall apart?
Hi Jolene, deep frying the tofu works!
Hi Jolene, I haven’t tried deep frying these, but I think it might work! Let us know how it goes if you try it!
Oh my goodness, these are SO good!!! I wish I doubled the batch! Seriously, they’re delicious, and I couldn’t stop snacking on them as I was finishing prepping the toppings. Thank you for sharing this delicious recipe!! It’s a keeper in our house!
*And I also discovered that you have to be patient and let the tofu brown completely in the skillet or else they would fall apart while trying to flip….
So glad you liked these, Jocelyn! Thanks for the feedback!!