Crispy pan-fried tofu is tossed in a sweet chili-lime sauce with fresh basil to make this flavor-packed Thai basil tofu stir-fry. A delicious vegan dinner that can be ready in about 30 minutes!
It's that time of year when home gardeners are finding themselves with an abundance of fresh basil on their hands. This year I'm a lucky member of that group!
Basil is such an amazing summer flavor, and it's easy to grow, so I definitely encourage you to give it a try if you're not already doing it. And don't limit yourself to trusty old Italian basil. Personally, I like to grow basil varieties that I can't normally find at the store, and Thai basil is one of my favorites.
Thai basil has an herby, almost cinnamony flavor that makes it an excellent addition to stir-fries. It's also my herb of choice for dishes like drunken noodles, vegan red curry, and vegan green curry.
This delicious stir-fry highlights the flavor of Thai basil, but don't feel like you need to get your hands on Thai basil in order to make it. Pretty much any variety will do, each giving the dish it's own unique character.
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Ingredients You'll Need
- Dark mushroom soy sauce. This has a much more intense flavor and deeper, darker color than conventional soy sauce. Look for it in the international aisle of your grocery store, in Asian markets, or online. Regular dark soy sauce or vegetarian oyster sauce can be substituted if it's not available.
- Soy sauce. We're also using a touch of regular soy sauce to balance things out.
- Lime juice. Use freshly squeezed lime juice to give your stir-fry the best flavor.
- Brown sugar. Use organic brown sugar to keep the recipe vegan.
- Cornstarch.
- Sesame oil.
- Sambal oelek. This will add a bit of heat to the dish. Leave it out to keep it mild.
- Toasted sesame oil.
- Peanut oil. Feel free to replace this with your favorite high-heat cooking oil, such as coconut oil, corn oil, or avocado oil.
- Tofu. We're using super-firm tofu because it has a great texture for a stir-fry and is easy to work with. Extra-firm tofu can be substituted if needed, but you'll want to press it before cooking with it.
- Garlic.
- Fresh ginger.
- Broccoli.
- Red bell pepper.
- Fresh basil. Thai basil works best for this dish. Holy basil is another great choice. But like I said above, any variety works, so use what you've got!
- Rice. Serve the stir-fry over your choice of rice. Jasmine rice is my variety of choice for this dish, and I especially love it over coconut jasmine rice.
How It's Made
The following 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!
Do all of your prep work before you start cooking. This is a good idea with any stir-fry, as they generally cook up fast! Mix your sauce, dice your tofu, mince your garlic, grate your ginger, and chop your vegetables and basil.
Heat some oil in a wok or skillet and add your diced tofu. Cook the pieces for a few minutes on each side, until they turn golden brown and crispy, then transfer them to a plate.
If your cooking surface seems dry at this point you can add a dash more oil. Now add minced garlic and freshly grated ginger. Sauté the mixture briefly.
Tip: Make sure your tofu is in a nice even layer on your cooking surface. Don't pile it up! You can cook it in batches if it won't all fit.
Turn up the heat and add chopped broccoli and bell pepper to the wok. Stir-fry everything until the vegetables brighten in color and become tender-crisp. This should only take a couple of minutes.
Return the tofu to the wok and carefully pour the sauce over the tofu and veggies. Don't pour the sauce directly on the hot cooking surface or it will sputter like crazy!
Keep stir-frying everything! The sauce should quickly thicken up and coat the tofu and vegetables.
Add the basil and quickly mix it in with everything. It will wilt very quickly. Remove the wok from heat once it does.
Pile your stir-fry over rice and dig in!
Leftovers & Storage
Leftover Thai basil tofu stir-fry will keep in an airtight container in the fridge for about 3 days.
Prep-Ahead Tips
The broccoli and bell pepper can be chopped in advance and stored together in an airtight container in the fridge.
More Vegan Stir-Fry Recipes
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Thai Basil Tofu Stir-Fry
Crispy pan-fried tofu is tossed in a sweet chili-lime sauce with fresh basil to make this flavor-packed Thai basil tofu stir-fry. A delicious vegan dinner that can be ready in about 30 minutes!
Ingredients
For the Sauce
- 2 tablespoons dark mushroom soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons lime juice
- 2 tablespoons organic brown sugar
- 2 teaspoons cornstarch
- 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
- ½ teaspoon sambal oelek
For the Stir-Fry
- 1 tablespoon peanut oil, plus a dash if needed
- 1 (16 ounce or 454 gram) package super firm tofu, diced (½ to 1 inch)
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 tablespoon freshly grated ginger
- 1 small broccoli crown, broken into florets
- 1 red bell pepper, roughly chopped
- 1 cup fresh basil leaves (Note 1), packed (about 1 large bunch), roughly chopped
- Cooked rice, for serving (Note 2)
Instructions
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Stir all of the sauce ingredients together in a small bowl.
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Coat the bottom of a large wok or skillet with the oil and place it over medium heat.
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Once the oil is hot, add the tofu cubes in an even layer (Note 3). Cook the tofu for about 10 minutes, flipping the pieces once or twice until they're browned and crispy on multiple sides. Transfer the tofu to a plate when done.
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Add a dash of oil to the skillet or wok if it seems dry, then add the garlic and ginger. Sauté the aromatics for about 1 minute, until they become very fragrant.
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Raise the heat to medium-high, then add the broccoli and bell pepper. Stir-fry the vegetables for 2 to 3 minutes, until they deepen in color and become tender-crisp.
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Return the tofu to the wok or skillet, then carefully pour the sauce directly over the tofu and/or vegetables, being careful to avoid pouring it on the hot cooking surface, which will cause sputtering.
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Stir-fry everything for about 1 minute, until the sauce thickens slightly and coats the tofu and vegetables.
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Stir in the basil. As soon as it wilts (which will happen quickly), remove the wok or skillet from heat.
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Serve the stir-fry over rice.
Recipe Notes
- Any variety of basil will work for this recipe, but I recommend using Thai basil or holy basil if available.
- Coconut rice goes really well with this dish.
- You can cook the tofu in batches if it doesn't easily fit in a single layer.
- Nutrition information does not include rice.
Congratulations on the milestone, super impressive!
Thanks so much! The time flew right by and I never looked back :)
Yum! Congrats on 20 years! Gorgeous photos, too.
Thank you, thank you, and thank you, Rachael!!!
Made this recipe today :) so yummy!!! Thanks for sharing .
Yay!! This was a favorite of mine and I need to make it again soon. Thanks for reminding me, and glad to hear you enjoyed it as well! :)
Bang on recipe! Had a lot of fun preparing it. The sauce was very flavorful.
Glad you liked it! Thanks so much for letting me know!!
By 'child paste' do you mean sambal olek?
Sorry autocorrect typo in previous comment:
By ‘chili paste’ do you mean sambal olek?
Yup!
Amazing recipe! Packed with flavor. I used the veggies that were already in my refrigerator...squash, zucchini, carrots, onion, bell pepper and purple cabbage. It’s so adaptable and delicious!
I'm so glad you enjoyed it! And those sound like delicious additions. :)
I plan to try this tomorrow. I don’t have enough Thai basil to make two cups so I’ll add regular basil (sigh), but one does what one can.
I also wanted to agree about the use of law books. As a former attorney editor for Thomson Reuters, I also wanted to mention that I appreciated the fact that different publishers are represented.🤪😜.
Lol! It's nice that somebody noticed - haha! You can definitely sub regular basil - I often can't find Thai basil so I end up doing that. :)
my compliments to the chef!
I just made this. It was great. Very close to our favorite Thai restaurant’s basil sauce. Thanks for posting (all those years ago!)
This was really good! And not too hard to make for a novice like me. The biggest issue was the cornstarch...maybe I was trying to do too much at once, but it congealed almost instantly when it hit the pan and got kind of gummy. I think I'll try it without next time, even if watery. May try double sauce too as it's a bit dry.