Baked General Tso's Tofu Recipe

If you're looking for a healthier and meatless version of your favorite Chinese takeout dish, we've got you covered. This baked General Tso's tofu is crispy on the outside, tender on the inside and coated in a sweet and spicy sauce that is mouthwatering. The dish is named in honor of General Tso, a Chinese military leader who lived during the Qing Dynasty.

Wellness coach and recipe developer Miriam Hahn brings us this recipe and says, "I love the sweet and spicy flavors going on in this recipe. You can serve this with ramen or rice, you can add it to a stir fry, or you can throw it into a Buddha bowl. I love that it's baked instead of fried because it's so much healthier that way." Get ready to tantalize your taste buds with this dish!

To make this recipe, we'll start by grabbing some super firm tofu. "If you aren't familiar with buying tofu, there are many different types. Many of them are packed in water and need to be pressed but super firm tofu has already been pressed and is usually shrink wrapped with just a little bit of water. While you are in the produce aisle pick up some garlic and Fresno chilis. Then for some of the saucy goodness we'll need some sesame oil, arrowroot powder, salt, ginger paste, hoisin sauce, soy sauce, rice vinegar, coconut sugar, Shaoxing wine, and water. "You can always use fresh ginger in place of the ginger paste if you have trouble finding it. I love having ginger paste on hand because it's a condiment I use often in my cooking. You can also substitute mirin for the Shaoxing wine if needed and corn starch for the arrowroot powder," Hahn explains.

Start out by preheating the oven to 350 F. Then open the tofu package and dry it off with a tea towel. Cut it into bite-size cubes and put it into a medium bowl. Add 1 tablespoon of sesame oil and toss to coat the tofu. Once coated, add the arrowroot powder and salt. Toss again and then lay it out on a parchment lined baking sheet and bake for 20 minutes. The tofu should be a light golden brown.

To get the tangy sauce going, dice up the garlic and Fresno chilis. The chilis have some heat so go easy if you want this dish a little tamer. You'll want to remove and discard the seeds. Add the remaining sesame oil to a large frying pan and add the garlic, chilis, and ginger paste. Saute on medium for about 5 minutes. Things will be starting to smell good! Now add the hoisin sauce, soy sauce, rice vinegar, brown sugar, and Shaoxing wine. Simmer for 5 minutes until the sugar dissolves. Combine the remaining 1 tablespoon of arrowroot powder with the water and stir to remove any lumps. Add this to the frying pan and simmer for 5 minutes so the sauce can thicken.

Your sauce should be thick and bubbly now that all of the ingredients have blended. Now we'll just add the cooked tofu to the pan and stir well to coat all of the pieces. Top with scallions and sesame seeds if desired. This dish pairs well with rice, ramen, rice noodles, steamed broccoli, or stir fry veggies. "I love meals I can throw together in less than 30 minutes and this one sure scores high on the flavor scale. By changing up what I'm serving it with, it's delicious enough to serve weekly," Hahn remarks.