These vegan tofu poke bowls are bursting with flavor! Made with pan-fried tofu, juicy mango chunks and macadamia nuts with a gingery dressing, they're both delicious and refreshing. The best part: these babies are super easy to meal prep!

Hands Holding a Vegan Poke Bowls in Front of Body

I had pretty limited understanding of what makes a poke bowl until recently. All I really knew about poke bowl at that point was that it was Hawaiian and usually involved raw fish. So whatever, I thought.

I didn't think poke bowl, even in vegan form, was something I really needed in my life, especially since I already had my sushi bowls.

It turns out I LOVE poke bowls. They're delicious and refreshing and I can't think of a more summery dinner that's perfect for a hot day.

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What's in a Poke Bowl
Ingredients You'll Need
How They're Made
Meal Prep Option
More Vegan Bowl Recipes
📖 Recipe
💬 Comments

What's in a Poke Bowl

Two Vegan Poke Bowls with Napkin and Water Glass

My understanding is that there's no hard and fast rule as to what goes in a poke bowl. There's generally a bed of rice. And while traditional poke bowls involve raw fish, a vegan poke bowl that uses tofu or veggies instead is totally legit.

You'll also find an array of produce, often a mix of fruit and vegetables, and some flavorful dressing.

These particular tofu poke bowls are made with brown rice topped with pan-fried tofu, mango chunks, avocado slices, radishes, edamame, macadamia nuts, and sesame ginger dressing.

Ingredients You'll Need

Brown rice. This is the base for our tofu poke bowl, but don't feel limited — you can absolutely substitute a different variety of rice or a totally different grain like quinoa or farro.
Water.
Soy sauce. You can substitute with gluten-free tamari or liquid aminos if needed.
Rice vinegar.
Maple syrup. Another liquid sweetener like agave or coconut nectar can be substituted if needed.
Toasted sesame oil.
Fresh ginger.
Canola oil. Any high heat oil will work if you don't like canola. Coconut oil, avocado oil and peanut oil are all fine!
Extra-firm tofu. You can also use super-firm tofu, which doesn't require pressing, if you prefer.
Edamame. You can buy shelled edamame in the frozen vegetable aisle of most supermarkets.
Mango.
Pineapple.
Bell pepper.
Radishes.
Avocado.
Macadamia nuts. Okay, so these are a little pricey, but they're delicious! Substitute with your favorite type of nut, or even sesame seeds, if you don't want to spring for macadamias.
Scallions. Also known as green onions.
Cilantro. Not everyone is a fan of fresh cilantro. If this includes you, you have my blessing to skip it.

Tip: Switch things up and make these bowls your own. Prefer tempeh to tofu? Use it instead! Got some pineapple on hand? Substitute it for the mango. Not into edamame? Swap them out with your favorite green veggie — steamed or raw.

How They're 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!

The nice thing about these tofu poke bowls is that there's not a lot of cooking involved. Just the rice and the tofu. Assuming you already know how to cook your rice, let's talk about that tofu.

First, whip up your dressing. You'll be mixing up some soy sauce, rice vinegar, sesame oil, and ginger. This is what'll be drizzled over your bowl before serving, but it's also the sauce we'll use to flavor the tofu.

Press your tofu and cut it into cubes. Heat up a little bit of oil in a skillet and add your tofu. Pan-fry it until it's golden and crispy, and then drizzle about a third of your dressing over the tofu — save the rest. Let the tofu cook for another minute or two until most of the liquid dries up.

Collage Showing Steps for Making Tofu For Vegan Poke Bowls: Mix Sauce, Pan-Fry Tofu, and Pour Sauce Over Tofu

Tip: For some tips on how to pan-fry your tofu perfectly for this recipe, check out this pan-fried tofu tutorial.

From there, it's just a matter of chopping everything up and arranging it in a bowl. Rice on the bottom, everything else on top, with a sprinkling of scallions and a drizzle of that dressing.

Hand Placing a Fork into a Vegan Poke Bowl

Meal Prep Option

These poke bowls are really easy to meal prep, which is one I love them for summer (the season that I least enjoy being in the kitchen). Just whip up the dressing and cook your rice and tofu ahead of time. You can also prep all of your produce in advance, with the one possible exception of the avocado, which might turn brown during storage.

Store everything in separate airtight containers in the fridge, and then heat up your rice and tofu before serving (or don't, if it's a really hot day), and assemble your bowls.

More Vegan Bowl Recipes

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📖 Recipe

Hands Holding a vegan poke bowl with tofu, vegetables and avocado slices.

Print Pin

5 from 3 votes

Vegan Poke Bowls with Sesame Ginger Tofu

Course Entree

Cuisine Hawaiian

Prep Time 20

Cook Time 40

Total Time 1

Servings

Calories 700kcal

Author Alissa Saenz

Ingredients

½ cup brown rice
1 cup water
3 tablespoons soy sauce
1 ½ tablespoons rice vinegar
1 tablespoon maple syrup
1 ½ teaspoons toasted sesame oil
1 teaspoon freshly grated ginger
1 ½ teaspoons canola oil, or high heat oil of choice
7 ounces extra-firm tofu, cut into 1-inch cubes
½ cup frozen shelled edamame, thawed
1 cup diced fresh mango (about 1 medium mango)
1 cup diced red bell pepper (about 1 pepper)
2 small radishes, thinly sliced
½ avocado, sliced
2 tablespoons roughly chopped roasted macadamia nuts
2 tablespoons chopped scallions
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Place the rice and water into a small saucepan and set it over medium heat.
Bring the water to a boil, lower the heat and cover the pan.
Allow the rice to cook until tender and the water is absorbed, about 40 minutes, or according to the package instructions.
While the rice cooks, stir the soy sauce, rice vinegar, maple syrup, sesame oil, and ginger together in a small bowl.
Coat the bottom of a medium skillet with the canola oil and place it over medium heat.
Give the oil a minute to heat up, and then add the tofu. Arrange it in an even layer.
Cook the tofu for about 10 minutes, flipping once or twice, until browned and crispy on multiple sides.
Pour about a third of the soy sauce mixture over the tofu.
Continue cooking the tofu for about 1 minute more, until most of the liquid has cooked off.
When the rice has finished cooking, remove it from the heat and let it sit with the lid on for about 5 minutes.
Uncover the rice and divide it into bowls. Arrange the tofu, edamame, mango, bell pepper, radishes, and avocado over the rice. Sprinkle with macadamia nuts, scallions and cilantro, then drizzle with the remaining soy sauce mixture.
Serve.

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Comments

5 from 3 votes (1 rating without comment)