These crispy tofu tacos are bursting with flavors, with a creamy texture in each bite. Packed with lean protein, healthy fat and veggies, they only take 20 minutes to prepare and cook, hold well for hours, and taste great even when getting cold! {vegetarian, vegan}
Living in Austin, it’s difficult not to be affected by its food culture—the long-lasting comfort food with a twist of hipster style with a super creative flavor palette. That is why you should never be surprised to see cool dishes like fried octopus tacos with spicy mayo and 72-hour braised pork belly sandwiches with kimchi on the menu.
Despite the fact that traditional Chinese food is what I’ve been eating growing up, my daily meals are more like a mumbo jumbo melting pot influenced by my constantly involving cooking habits, and the fresh local produce that is available at the time.
Such as these crispy hoisin tofu tacos.
It all started with these freshly made butter tacos we came across at Central market. Produce like avocado, tomato, peppers, and citrus go into my shopping cart without any second thought and without planning, because they are fresh and cheap. Plus you can always come up with something delicious with them.
What appeared on our dinner table at the end of the day were these tacos—made with crispy hoisin tofu, a Tex-Mmex style topping, and a healthy no-fat creamy Sriracha dressing.
These types of average-day-dinner photos usually end up on my Instagram stories, which will disappear in 24 hours. But these tofu tacos are truly tasty, so I had to share them with you in a more formal way 🙂
Why you should cook these hoisin tofu tacos today
- It only takes 20 minutes to prepare everything.
The tofu takes 15 minutes to bake. You can heat up your tortillas on the bottom rack of the oven at the same time. Chop everything else while baking, then your meal is ready! The cooking is so easy that sometimes I serve these tacos during lunch.
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- Your meal will be healthy and well balanced.
Each taco is only 300 calories, packed with protein, healthy fat, and fresh veggies. I really like my buttered flour tortillas, but you can reduce the calories even more if using corn tortillas.
- They are delicious!
Yes, we are using tofu instead of brisket in our tacos. But you’d be surprised by how creamy and flavorful each bite is! We are using a yogurt based creamy dressing, so there is no guilt for putting extra dressing on your tacos. These hoisin tofu bites are crispy on the surface and tender inside, and taste even better than your usual chicken-topped tacos 🙂
- These tacos taste great when served cold.
Need to pack lunch for your kids or your better half? Make these tacos ahead and pack them in the lunchbox. They hold well at room temperature and taste great served cold. Make sure you drizzle some lime juice on the avocado before packing, so they keep the bright color for hours.
Cooking video
I’ve created this short video for you, so you can easily get an idea of the workflow. For more Chinese cooking videos and easy dinner ideas, follow my YouTube channel!
That’s it for today.
Happy Tacos’ Day and hope you enjoy the dish!
More delicious tofu recipes
- General Tso Tofu (Crispy Tofu without Deep Frying)
- Crispy Tofu with Garlic Sauce
- Authentic Mapo Tofu (麻婆豆腐)
- Braised Tofu with Shrimp
- Bok Choy stir-fry with Crispy Tofu
If you give this recipe a try, let us know! Leave a comment, rate it (once you’ve tried it), and take a picture and tag it @omnivorescookbook on Instagram! I’d love to see what you come up with.
Crispy Hoisin Tofu Tacos with Creamy Sriracha Sauce
Ingredients
- Tofu
- 1 12-oz. / 340-g block extra firm tofu
- 2 tablespoons hoisin sauce
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 2 teaspoons vegetable oil
- 1 teaspoon cumin powder
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- No-fat creamy Sriracha sauce
- 1 cup no-fat Greek yogurt
- 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
- 2 tablespoons Sriracha sauce
- 1 tablespoon agave syrup or maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon cumin powder
- 2 teaspoon light soy sauce or soy sauce
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 3 garlic cloves coarsely chopped (or 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder)
- Tacos
- 8 flour tortillas or corn tortillas
- 2 avocados cubed
- 1 cup cherry tomatoes halved
- 1 to 2 jalapeno peppers or anaheim pepper for less spiciness, sliced
- Lime wedges
- 1/4 cup chopped cilantro
Instructions
- Tofu
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F (200 C). Line a baking tray with parchment.
- Press the water out of the tofu while heating up the oven. Carefully press the tofu with your hands. Slice the tofu into two even-thickness pieces. Wrap a few layers of cheesecloth (or kitchen paper towel) outside the tofu, and place a small tray with a heavy weight on top. The weight can be a jar of pickles or canned tomatoes.
- When the oven is heated, cut the tofu into 1/2-inch (1-cm) pieces and transfer into a big bowl.
- Add the hoisin sauce, soy sauce, vegetable oil, cumin powder, and the garlic powder. Gently mix with a spatula until the tofu cubes are evenly coated.
- When the oven is heated, transfer and spread the tofu onto the parchment-lined baking tray, and reserve the marinade for later.
- Bake the tofu for 10 minutes. Remove the baking tray from the oven and discard the parchment paper. Add the reserved marinade, and gently mix again to coat the tofu. Bake for another 5 to 7 minutes, until the surface turns brown and crispy.
- Creamy Sriracha sauce
- Add everything into a mixer and mix until it forms a smooth sauce. You can also add everything into a deep cup and use a hand blender to mix the sauce.
- The sauce is ready to use now.
- You can store the leftover sauce in an airtight jar in the fridge for up to 5 days. The leftover sauce will taste even better.
- Assemble
- While baking the tofu, preheat the tortillas. Place tortillas in two stacks (4 pieces per stack) and wrap with aluminum foil. Bake on the bottom rack of the oven for 10 to 15 minutes, until heated through.
- Assemble the tacos by adding the baked tofu, avocado, and cherry tomatoes into the tortillas. Add peppers according to your spiciness tolerance. Add 2 tablespoons of no-fat creamy Sriracha sauce and drizzle with lime juice. Garnish with cilantro.
- Serve immediately and enjoy!
This tofu marinade/sauce is SO GOOD! and will definitely be made again. Took a bit longer in the oven to crisp up for me, but still pretty quick and worth the extra few minutes.