Crispy Salt and Pepper tofu recipe that is so easy to make in under 15 minutes. This is a vegan Chinese dish that you can make as spicy as you would like. Your whole family will love this one!
If you enjoy tofu dishes, you might like Crispy Marinated Tofu, Sofritas Tofu, The Best Tofu Scramble, Coconut Crusted Tofu and Garlic Sesame Tofu Stir Fry.

Salt and pepper tofu is such a nice surprise. It is crispy on the outside, silky on the inside and topped with chopped red peppers and scallions, This dish makes a perfect dinner that everyone will love.
I love that this dinner only has 5 ingredients and is super quick to whip up and put on the table.
The use of plenty of cornstarch makes this the crispiest tofu recipe I've tried so far. When I started making tofu recipe a few months ago, I was not aware of how crispy tofu can get, I always thought it would be a bit smooshy. Boy, was I wrong. You can turn up the crispy factor quite a bit with tofu - so good.
5 Ingredients you will need
- 16 oz block of extra firm tofu
- ½ cup cornstarch
- 1 teaspoon white pepper
- ½ teaspoon table salt
- About 2 tablespoons canola oil
How to make Salt and Pepper Tofu?
- Prepare the tofu - Press a 16 oz block of tofu for 20 minutes in the refrigerator. Cut the block into 1 inch cubes.
- Mix dry ingredients - Mix cornstarch, white pepper, and table salt together in a small bowl. Add mixture to a large ziploc bag.
- Add Tofu to Bag - Add tofu to the ziploc and shake. Shake until tofu is evenly covered in dry ingredients.
- Fry Tofu - Add canola oil to hot skillet or wok. Once bubbling and hot, add tofu to and cook one side for 5 minutes without moving. With large spatula, flip the tofu over and cook the other side for 4-5 minutes, until crispy.
- Serve - Serve with chopped scallions, red peppers and freshly ground black pepper. Serve with a dipping sauce of your choice such as oyster, teriyaki, or soy sauce. Enjoy!
Tips for this delicious tofu dish:
- You can add chopped hot chili peppers instead of red bell peppers to spice the dish up a bit.
- We really loved dipping our crispy tofu pieces into oyster sauce on the side.
- The crispy tofu pieces would be really yummy on top of fresh salad greens or rice.
Hope you enjoy this very easy tofu dinner as much as we did!
Recipe

Salt and Pepper Tofu
Crispy Salt and Pepper tofu recipe that is so easy to make in under 15 minutes. This is a vegan Chinese dish that you can make as spicy as you would like. Your whole family will love this one!
Ingredients
- 16 oz extra firm tofu
- ½ cup cornstarch
- 1 tsp white pepper
- ½ tsp table salt
- 2 tbsp canola oil
Instructions
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Press tofu in tofu press for 20 minutes in refrigerator. Cut tofu block into cubes.
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In small bowl, mix cornstarch, white pepper and salt together. Add the mix to a large ziploc bag. Add the tofu to the bag and shake until tofu is evenly coated.
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Add canola oil to large hot skillet or wok. Heat should be turned to medium high.
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Cook tofu without flipping over for 5 minutes. With large spatula, carefully turn the tofu cubes over to cook for another 4-5 minutes on the other side.
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Remove tofu from skillet and serve with chopped scallions and peppers. Serve with a dipping sauce such as oyster, teriyaki or soy sauce. Enjoy!
Recipe Notes
Adapted from Kirbie's Cravings
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