My salt and pepper tofu is easy to make and dangerously addictive! It’s made with crispy tofu chunks coated in a bold, peppery breading, pan-fried to golden perfection, and tossed with sizzling aromatics, so every bite is bursting with flavor. Better than takeout and ready in about 30 minutes!
I talk a lot about how to turn tofu — an otherwise pretty plain ingredient — into something seriously delicious. There are so many ways to do it! You can soak it in seasonings for killer marinated tofu, toss it into a savory tofu stir-fry, or make golden, chewy baked tofu. But this salt and pepper tofu uses a super simple technique with just a handful of basic ingredients. I borrowed the method from my fried tofu recipe, then added plenty of salt and pepper (as you might have guessed from the name), a little Chinese five-spice, and a mix of spicy aromatics.
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You’ve probably seen salt and pepper tofu on the menu at Chinese restaurants. It’s technically served as an appetizer… but I’ve definitely been known to make a meal of it. (No shame!) With its crispy, salty, peppery coating, it’s crazy addictive, and surprisingly easy to whip up in your own kitchen.
Ingredients You'll Need
Below you'll find a list of ingredients in this recipe, with notes and substitutions. Scroll all the way to the bottom of the post to see the full recipe, including the amount of each ingredient.
- Vegetable oil. You can use plain old vegetable oil, or another high-heat neutral oil, such as peanut, corn, or canola oil.
- Cornstarch.
- Black pepper. This is the pepper you probably have in your pepper shaker.
- White pepper. White pepper is a tad milder and more earthy than black pepper. It's a popular seasoning in Chinese cuisine, and you can find it in the spice aisle of most grocery stores.
- Salt.
- Chinese five-spice. This is a blend of warming spices including cinnamon, cloves, star anise, fennel, and Szechuan peppercorns. Look for it in the spice aisle of the grocery store. And once you realize how much you love it, give my five-spice tofu a try.
- Tofu. I like using super-firm tofu, which has a great texture and is easy to work with. You can substitute extra-firm tofu, but will need to press it first.
- Onion.
- Fresh chile peppers. We're using a jalapeño and a Fresno pepper, but feel free to substitute another type of fresh hot pepper for either variety. Just keep in mind that this could make the heat level vary wildly!
- Garlic.
- Scallions.
How It's Made
Below is a detailed photo tutorial on how to make this dish. Scroll all the way down if you'd like to skip right to the recipe!
Step 1: Heat your oil. Pour it into your skillet, getting a nice, generous coating. You'll want enough to submerge the bottom halves of your tofu cubes when you add them. Place it over medium heat to warm up while you make the breading.
Step 2: Bread the tofu. Combine your cornstarch, black pepper, white pepper, Chinese five-spice, and salt in a small bowl. Add a few tofu cubes at a time, stirring and rolling them around to get them evenly coated.
Step 3: Fry the tofu. Your oil should be nice and hot by now. Add the tofu cubes, making sure to place them in an even layer and not touching (they'll stick!). Fry them for a few minutes on each side, until golden brown, then remove them from the pan.
Step 4: Stir-fry peppers and onions. You'll want a thin coating of oil for this step — so if there's too much, carefully remove some. If there's not enough, add some. Turn up the heat and add sliced chile peppers and chopped onions. Stir-fry them until they're a bit softened and charred.
Step 5: Cook garlic and scallions. Push your peppers and onions to the side, then add sliced garlic and chopped scallions (just the white and pale green parts). Sauté the garlic and scallions for a minute or two.
Step 6: Add tofu. Add your fried tofu back to the skillet, then stir-fry everything together briefly to heat the tofu back up.
Step 7: Add scallions. Take the skillet off of heat and add the green parts of your scallions. Stir them in.
Step 8: Serve. Your salt and pepper tofu is ready to enjoy. Dig in while it's hot and crispy!
Frequently Asked Questions
Yep! The recipe includes no gluten-containing ingredients.
It is! The chile peppers, as well as the black and white pepper both add heat. For a milder version, try replacing the chiles with a bell pepper, and reducing the amount of black and white pepper to about ½ teaspoon each. This will give you a gentle heat and flavor that's more smoky than spicy.
It's typically served as an appetizer, but it also makes a great main dish with the right accompaniments. Try pairing it up with my vegan fried rice or vegetable chow mein to make a meal of it!
Leftover salt and pepper tofu will keep in an airtight container in the fridge for about 4 days. My favorite way to reheat it is to warm it up slightly in the microwave, then transfer it to a baking sheet and pop it under a broiler until it starts to sizzle and crisp back up.
More Chinese Tofu Recipes
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📖 Recipe
Crispy Salt and Pepper Tofu
Ingredients
- â…“ cup vegetable oil, or as needed
- ½ cup cornstarch
- 1 teaspoon black pepper (or up to 1 ½ teaspoons if you like lots of heat)
- 1 teaspoon white pepper (or up to 1 ½ teaspoons if you like lots of heat)
- 1 ½ teaspoons salt
- â…› teaspoon Chinese five-spice
- 1 (16 ounce/454 gram) package super-firm tofu, cut into cubes (½ to 1-inch)
- 1 small onion, roughly chopped
- 1 jalapeño pepper, sliced
- 1 Fresno pepper, sliced
- 2 garlic cloves, sliced
- 3 scallions, white and green parts separated and chopped
Instructions
- Generously coat the bottom of a medium nonstick skillet with vegetable oil and place it over medium heat. Get the oil to at least â…›-inch deep. You want the tofu pieces to be about halfway submerged when you add them.
- While the oil heats up, stir the cornstarch, black pepper, white pepper, salt, and five-spice together in a small bowl. Add a few pieces of tofu to the bowl and dredge them in the mixture.
- Once the oil begins to shimmer, remove the tofu cubes from the bowl, shake off any excess breading, then add them to the skillet. Repeat this process, placing the tofu cubes in a single layer so they are not touching (Note 1). Fry the tofu pieces for 4 to 5 minutes on each side, until golden and crispy. Transfer them to a plate when done.
- If you still have a lot of oil in the skillet, very carefully pour some out (Note 2), so you have just a thin coating. If the skillet is dry, you can add about a tablespoon. Raise the heat to medium-high, then add the onion, jalapeño, and Fresno peppers. Stir-fry the onion and peppers for about 4 minutes, stirring constantly, until they begin to soften and char (Note 3).
- Push the onions and peppers to the side, then add the sliced garlic and white parts of your scallions to the skillet. Cook the garlic and scallions for 1 to 2 minutes, until they begin to brown and the garlic becomes very fragrant.
- Return the tofu to the skillet. Stir everything up and cook the mixture for another 1 to 2 minutes, just to warm the tofu back up a bit.
- Remove the skillet from heat, then stir in the green parts of your scallions. Serve.
Notes
- Avoid crowding the skillet. You can cook the tofu in batches if needed.
- Don't pour it down the drain, as it can cause a clog. A safe way to dispose of used oil is to pour it into a used can from the recycling bin, let it cool, then compost it or seal it up and throw it in the trash.
- Make sure you're running your ventilation fan during this step. Hot peppers cooked over high-heat can be quite irritating.
- Recipe serves about 4 as a main dish (with rice or another side) or about 8 as an appetizer. Nutrition information is based on 4 servings.
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Well, I was just thinking about what to make for lunch and this recipe showed up.
It is really good! I did make some pretty big changes to the preparation, due to dietary needs.*
The spice mixture (we went with the "like it spice" options) was perfect.
We enjoyed this quite a bit.
Thank you for sharing!
*
Used 1 TBS of oil to coat the tofu.
1/4 cup of corn starch with the max level of spices when then added to the oiled tofu and gently mixed.
Air Fried at 400 F for 25 minuted resulted in crispy and crunchy exterior and nice and soft interior.
I will try this week. Looking forward to it. Will omit salt and to compensate add more pepper and 5 spice. Will make as Main dish when my nephew visits this week.
Can these be air fried?
I haven't tried air frying them, but I think so. I would try using just one or two tablespoons of cornstarch and equal parts oil, then air fry them at 425°F for about 15 minutes. That's what has worked for me in similar recipes.
Hi SA,
Please see my review where I shared successfully air frying this wonderful dish.
Happy cooking!