By Eric Kim
- Total Time
- 45 minutes
- Rating
- 4(1,168)
- Notes
- Read community notes
Inspired by McDonald’s Chicken McNuggets dipped in sweet-and-sour sauce — a classic combination that debuted nationwide in 1983 — this tofu appetizer gets its inexorable crunch from potato starch. Pan-fried until shatteringly crisp, pressed tofu, cut into cute little rectangles, eats a lot like Chicken McNuggets and cooks up gorgeously every time. But the true joy of a nugget lies in the dipping, and this recipe stars a totally chill, no-cook sweet-and-sour sauce. Apricot preserves provide fruity sweetness as well as body, and rice vinegar, soy sauce and onion powder add savoriness.
Featured in: For Those of Us Who Love McDonald’s Sweet-and-Sour Sauce
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Ingredients
Yield:4 appetizer servings
- 1(14-ounce) package firm tofu, drained
- 3medium zucchini (about 1 pound)
- 3teaspoons kosher salt, plus more to taste
- ½cup apricot preserves
- 2tablespoons rice vinegar
- 2tablespoons soy sauce
- ½teaspoon red-pepper flakes
- 1½teaspoons onion powder
- ½cup potato starch
- Neutral oil, such as vegetable or canola oil, or light olive oil
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)
363 calories; 13 grams fat; 2 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 4 grams monounsaturated fat; 6 grams polyunsaturated fat; 48 grams carbohydrates; 4 grams dietary fiber; 20 grams sugars; 20 grams protein; 672 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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Preparation
Step
1
Press the tofu: Wrap the block of tofu in a clean tea towel, and place on a cutting board. Weigh down the tofu with a sheet pan topped with something heavy, such as a large skillet, cans or books, until the tea towel is soaked, about 30 minutes.
Step
2
While the tofu is pressed, prep the zucchini: Halve the zucchini crosswise, then cut each piece lengthwise into ¼-inch-thick planks. Finally, cut each plank lengthwise into ¼-inch-thick “fries.” Place the zucchini fries in a large colander set over a medium bowl. Add 1 teaspoon salt, and toss until evenly coated. Set aside to drain.
Step
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Meanwhile, make the sauce: In a measuring cup, stir together the apricot preserves, rice vinegar, soy sauce, red-pepper flakes, 1 teaspoon onion powder and 2 teaspoons water until smooth. Transfer to a small dish for dipping, and set aside.
Step
4
Slice the pressed tofu in half horizontally, and cut each of those halves into 8 rectangular pieces, creating 16 nuggets total. Directly on the cutting board, season the tofu with 1 teaspoon salt and the remaining ½ teaspoon onion powder, smearing each piece around to catch all the seasonings.
Step
5
In a large bowl, toss to combine the potato starch and the remaining 1 teaspoon salt. Place the tofu in the starch, and gently toss with your hands until each piece is evenly coated.
Step
6
Fry the tofu: Heat a large skillet over medium-high, and add a thin layer of oil, enough to coat the bottom of the pan. Add the tofu in a single layer, and cook, flipping a couple of times, until lightly golden on both sides, about 10 minutes total. Transfer the cooked tofu to a towel-lined plate to drain, and season it with salt to taste.
Step
7
To serve, transfer the tofu and zucchini to a large platter, and serve alongside the dipping sauce.
Ratings
4
out of 5
1,168
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Cooking Notes
ivor
Can you use corn starch instead of potato starch?
Prakash Nadkarni
As long as the tofu's being seasoned, coated and fried, why not do the same for the highly versatile zucchini? Unlike, say cucumber, plain, lightly salted raw zucchini is mediocre at best. For baked zucchini fries, see damndelicious.net/2015/04/18/baked-zucchini-fries/ (vegans can omit the Parmesan or sub a vegan umami source).Costco stocks reasonably priced dried apricots- soaking in water, blending & cooking with sugar to taste seems a reasonable substitute.
Ocotillo
Rice flour if you have it is a great substitute for potato starch when frying tofu.
Cheryl
I am Chinese, we use sweet potato starch to get crispy, crunchy fried food. You can get it from any Asian market. It will not make your food taste like sweet potato.
megan
Made with tart marmalade because I had it. Added grated ginger and garlic and extra red pepper flakes for more of a kicky sauce. Delicious.
Jane
For those who must watch sugar, date syrup (low glycemic value) works well. Japanese aunt by marriage offers easy way to drain tofu. Cut the block into six pieces, wrap in linen towel or paper towels, and microwave two minutes. Tofu is drained and easy to dice. Try it.
fry phobic
Can someone give an equivalent for air frying the tofu?
Elissa
So, nothing else happens to the zucchini? It is a raw side dish?
Julia
This is delicious!!! One warning for first time frying tofu this way (like me) - the pieces will seriously stick together if they touch in the pan. The whole family loved this.
nutritionmuse
Loved these nuggets! I used arrowroot flour instead of potato starch. Then for the sauce I subbed honey (I get a fantastic avocado honey) and added tamari and rice vinegar. About 1/4 cup honey, 1 Tbsp. tamari, 1-2 tsp. rice vinegar.Delish!
Brie G.
I would just pan fry without the breaded coating. Once pressed, tofu will get a nice crispy sear just pan fried. Personally, I slice the tofu first and then press to ensure a nice crispy outside.
Anne
Re potato starch vs corn starch--just cooked this tonight using potato starch (not flour) instead of my usual cornstarch for all cubed tofu containing stir fries. The potato starch coated cubed tofu was a bit more crispy, but did not brown like it does with the cornstarch. A toss-up--either works.The sauce was yummy with the tofu and seedless cucumber spears instead of zucchini. This sauce definitely needs to go in the best NYT sauce collection along with peanut sauce (many variations).
Dan
Dry the Zuccini between two paper towels.Coat the same way with the starch mixture. Fry for 2 mins at 375 or until starting to brown in places. Remove to paper towel lined baking sheet. Sprinkle with salt while hot.
Mimi Harrison
What did I miss? What's with the zucchini?
Phylora
corn starch
E
Just skip the zucchini or give it the same treatment as the tofu or better yet replace it with a potato and make actual fries. The tofu came out great. The sauce was just "ok". The biggest problem is mentioning McD's raises the reader's expectations beyond what it's going to actually taste like. Either reverse engineer McD's sauce or just open a bottle of your favorite dipping sauce (satay?). Then use this tofu. The zucchini comes out too salty and it's kind of bland and insipid.
D
I've made this recipe several times now and really love it! I've made a few adjustments though: 1. I use corn starch because I don't have potato starch. 2. The sweet and sour sauce has way too much soy sauce and vinegar in it. I would cut it down to 1T of each. 3. I always make sweet potato fries to go with this! Great accompaniment.
Pam from NJ
Really good! Would be a great appetizer also. I halved sauce recipe and it was quite enough. Used 1.5 tsp salt total in the tofu, and that was enough. Baked the zucchini sticks with panko and some cumin. Tofu came out perfectly crispy. Would make again.
Laurie
I made this in the air fryer at 375 degrees for 20 minutes, and it was awful! The tofu barely crisped, was flavorless and not at all pleasing. I also coated and tried to air fry the zucchini which ended up a soggy mess. I love tofu and was excited to try this, but I think it needs to be marinated in something to give it some flavor before frying. And I agree with everyone else who questioned the bland, soggy zucchini; it also needs help in order to be tasty.
Jim
Would this work with Buffalo sauce?
Gerda
I love this idea! I used 1/4 teaspoon salt instead of 1 teaspoon each time, and it was plenty. And although I love the crunch, it was difficult to get a nice even browning with the potato starch-coated tofu. It's so much easier to brown tofu chunks evenly without any coating. Does anyone have any suggestions for type of oil or pan? I served this with a salad of chopped romaine, fresh orange chunks, chopped salted + roasted cashews, roasted walnut oil, and seasoned rice vinegar.
Carol M
Next time I'd only coat the large rectangular faces of the tofu and not the sides, if I'm not frying the sides. They turn kind of gelatinous. But the crunch on the fried faces is amazing.
Ed
Do you eat the zucchini raw?
Z
This is delicious!! That sweet-and-sour sauce is soooo easy and just scrumptious. I added a few drops of honey, which I think only helped the flavor and texture, and once the vegetables were crisp-tender (had no zucchini and wanted a variety of vegetables anyway so I used onion, garlic, carrot, and kale) I added the sauce so it coated the vegs. And YES you can use cornstarch instead of potato starch for the tofu -- I always use that, and oven-fried it.
eg
Used corn starch instead of potato starch and the tofu was crispy and fluffy. The dipping sauce was so good! Can't wait to make it again.
meinmunich
Yes, the tofu fried nicely. The tofu was not really dried, as I was in hurry but the corn starch tamed the moisture and still fried nicely.
Jen
Delicious! Made the dipping sauce into a thickened sauce with some cornstarch and added it to the finished tofu in the pan.
S
Tofu turned out nice and crispy but a tad too salty for me.
Joey
I think if I made this again I'd halve the amount of dipping sauce, because there was a lot left over.
Gale S
I used this crispy tofu recipe as a template for frying tofu. I didn’t make the whole dish. The crispy tofu came out great. I used cornstarch instead of potato starch and fried in two batches in a 10” nonstick pan. Tofu fries like eggplant, it absorbs a lot of oil.
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