Spicy Sesame Zoodles With Crispy Tofu

Spicy Sesame Zoodles? I say yes. And throw in some crispy tofu for good measure. This is SO totally how we roll.

It starts with zoodles (zucchini noodles) tossed with a thick and intensely deep spicy sesame peanut sauce that will then eventually get loaded up with crispy tofu that has been made crispy by just pan-frying it with the same spicy sesame peanut sauce, but waiting until those crispy browned bits appear in the pan / wondering if this is going to be weird / actually loving the texture of the browned bits in contrast with the tofu and sesame zoodles.

spicy sesame zoodles with crispy tofu recipe
Spicy Sesame Zoodles with Crispy Tofu! SUPER easy recipe with familiar ingredients – soy sauce, peanut butter, sesame oil, garlic, zucchini, and tofu. Vegan / Vegetarian

INGREDIENTS

• chili sesame sauce:
• 1/2 cup peanut butter
• 1/3 cup sesame oil
• 1/3 cup light low sodium soy sauce
• 1/4 cup rice vinegar
• 2 tablespoons chili paste (like sambal oelek)
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 knob of fresh ginger, peeled and grated
• zoodles and tofu
• 12 ounces extra firm tofu
• 4-6 zucchini
• sesame seeds and scallions for topping

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Chili Sesame Sauce: Shake all the sauce ingredients in a jar or toss them in the food processor and give them a whirl. If you’re going to have this cold, refrigerate your sauce for a while.
2. Tofu: Press excess moisture out of the tofu. Cut into bite sized pieces. Heat a tiny bit of oil in a nonstick pan. Add the tofu and stir fry until golden brown. Add about 1/2 cup sauce and simmer until the sauce starts to evaporate / absorb into the tofu and becomes browned in the pan. Keep gently flipping and scraping browned bits off the bottom – after a while, you should end up with nicely golden brown tofu with some little yummy browned bits from the sauce.
3. All Together: Spiralize your zucchini and toss with about 1/4 cup sauce per serving. Top with tofu, sesame seeds, and scallions. Serve immediately.

NOTES

• I did not cook the zoodles. I wanted this to be more like a salad, cold and creamy and crunchy. Whether or not you cook the zoodles, when the sauce hits those zoodles they’re going to get a little watery. I found that this was only a problem when I didn’t serve immediately, so to avoid excess moisture, serve it right after you toss it up!

• You may want to use more tofu depending on how many servings you are wanting to get out of this. I was fine with 12 ounces as 6 servings (just doing a small scoop of tofu on each pile of zoodles) but if you were super hungry you might want more.

• Storing this: I would store the sauce separate from the zoodles and tofu, and then toss it all together just before serving.

Recipe Adapted : Spicy Sesame Zoodles With Crispy Tofu @ pinchofyum

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