Celebrate Chinese New Year with a General Tso’s Tofu Vegan Recipe

Celebrate the Chinese New Year with a delicious vegan recipe for General Tso’s Tofu. This dish features crispy and caramelised tofu bites along with tender broccoli in a lemony, savoury, sweet, and sticky sauce. You can learn how to make extra-crispy tofu with the minimal use of oil and time, without the need for deep-frying, thanks to the amazing Maggie Zhu of the Omnivore’s Cookbook. Let’s get cooking!

By Little Chilean

@gaby.o

When I moved to Sydney, Australia, a few years back, I got the chance to see a level of city celebration I’ve never experienced before around Chinese New Year. It was a fascinating experience and culturally eye-opening, as back in my hometown in Chile, there’s nothing like that.

While daydreaming about it, and realising I won’t likely be in China this February 10th, I decided to bring a bit of it to my life in France (my current home). That’s when I bumped into a genius post from Maggie Zhu from the Omnivore’s Cookbook, which got me oh so inspired and hungry. 

Let’s get cooking! Happy Chinese New Year!

Ingredients

Tofu

• 1 block (450 g) extra firm tofu
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon maple syrup (or other syrup or sugar)

Sauce General Tso

• 1/3 cup water
• 2 tablespoons Chinese black vinegar (Chinkiang)
• 2 tablespoons Shaoxing wine or dry sherry
• 2 tablespoon soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon dark soy sauce
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 2 teaspoons cornstarch or Maizena

Stir-fry

• 6 tablespoons cornstarch or maizena (or enough to coat the tofu)
• 3 tablespoons peanut oil (or vegetable oil)
• 1 batch of broccoli 
• 1 tablespoon ginger
• 4 cloves minced garlic 
• 4 green onions chopped
• 2 dried chilli peppers (optional)
• 1 cup of cooked rice (optional)

Instructions

• For the tofu

First, pat the tofu dry using paper towels. Then, cut it into 1 cm pieces and transfer them to a large ziploc bag. Add soy sauce and maple syrup to the bag. Gently flip the bag a few times to ensure the tofu is coated with the liquid. Marinate the tofu for 10 to 15 minutes while you prepare the other ingredients.

• For the sauce

Mix all the ingredients in a medium-sized bowl. If you’re using pre-made General Tso’s Sauce, shake the sauce to make the cornstarch dissolve completely, then pour 1/3 cup of the sauce into a bowl, add 1/3 cup of stock, and mix well.

• To cook the stir-fry

Once the tofu is all good and juicy, open the bag slightly without letting the tofu fall out and discard all the liquid. Add cornstarch to the bag one tablespoon at a time, and then gently shake the bag to coat the tofu. It’s okay if the tofu doesn’t get coated evenly.

Now, we’ll work on the broccoli. Add 1/4 cup water to a large pan and heat it over medium-high heat until it simmers. Add the broccoli and cook covered for 1 minute or until it’s softer. Transfer the broccoli to a plate and wipe the pan clean with paper towels.

Add 2 tablespoons of oil to the pan and add the tofu with your hands. Shake off any extra cornstarch and lay the tofu in the pan without overlapping. Let it cook without moving for 2 minutes or until the bottom turns golden. Flip the tofu to the other side for 2 minutes or so. If the pan gets too hot, turn the heat down to medium or medium-low. You can brown the other sides of the tofu if you prefer. Transfer the cooked tofu to a plate and set it aside.

Add the remaining 1 tablespoon of oil, ginger, garlic, green onion, and dried red chillies (if using) to the pan. Stir a few times to release their fragrance.

If using broccoli, add the cooked broccoli back into the pan. Stir the sauce again to dissolve the cornstarch completely, and then pour it into the pan. Cook and stir until the sauce thickens and coats all the ingredients.

Add the tofu back into the pan and gently toss it to coat it with the sauce. Transfer everything to a large serving plate.

And tada! Enjoy.

But of course, you can take some shortcuts when building your Asian-inspired meal with ling ling dumplings and other easy appetizers. There are plenty of vegetarian and vegan-friendly products you can purchase to support your main dish. Still, the showstopper of your meal should be a dish made fresh. And the General Tso’s Tofu stands out as the perfect choice.

Whether celebrating or hosting a party with friends, this will delight the taste buds. From Chinese New Year to Asian cuisine dinner parties throughout the year, you will soon have a new favourite.

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