These Crispy Fried Tofu Steaks are easy to make and a great main dish for your vegan holiday table this year! They’re full of protein and go so well with gravy!
While I will always love a good vegan meatloaf recipe, the past few years I’ve been enjoying making special tofu dishes as my holiday main course. Everything on Thanksgiving is usually pretty carb heavy, so It’s nice to have a vegan main dish that’s not full of beans. At least in my opinion!
Last year I shared my Maple Chili Glazed Tofu recipe and this year I decided to create these Crispy Fried Tofu Steaks. They’re crispy, flavorful and make the perfect addition to your holiday plate!
Crispy Tofu Steak Recipe Ingredients & Substitutions
- Tofu – You will want to use extra firm or super firm tofu for this recipe. I’ve been loving the super firm, extra protein tofu from Trader Joe’s lately. You don’t need to press it and like the name states, it’s super firm and has the perfect texture for these tofu steaks! If you can’t find that, you will want to get an extra firm tofu and make sure to press as much water out of it as you can. I use this tofu press and I love it!
- Panko – I like to use panko, rather than just regular bread crumbs because it is extra crispy. It’s like and flaky and gives these tofu steaks a really nice crunch. If you can’t find panko, regular bread crumbs will work.
- Batter – I used my easy batter recipe that I use in all my crispy cauliflower recipes. You just use equal parts of flour and plant based milk. Then, for extra flavor I add some soy sauce, Worcestershire sauce and a few other spices.
- Spices – I use a few spices to flavor my batter and my panko mixture: salt, granulated garlic, onion powder, paprika and smoked paprika. These just help to add some flavor to the tofu so you can add in whatever flavors you like or omit what you don’t have.
- Oil – I used about 1 tablespoon of olive oil to pan fry my crispy tofu steaks but you can use any kind of oil you like. You could also bake them instead of frying them if you want to cut down on the oil.
How To Make Crispy Tofu Steaks
- Press your tofu if needed and then slice it into equal sized pieces. I usually get 6-8 slices, just depending on how thick you make them.
- Add your panko to a shallow dish and evenly mix in the seasonings.
- Add your flour, milk, soy sauce, Worcestershire sauce and seasonings to a bowl and whisk until combined.
- Coat the tofu with the batter: you don’t want a ton of batter on the tofu, just enough for the panko to stick, so I like to use my fingers to take the batter in my hands and just kind of rub a thin layer on the tofu.
- Then, place your tofu in the panko mixture and make sure that all sides are equally coated. I like to use my hand to press it on there well.
- Heat a large skillet over medium heat and add your oil and then place the tofu steaks in. Let them cook until browned and crispy, about 5-7 minutes on each side. Remove them from the pan and place them on a platter to serve.
Tofu Steak Frequently Asked Questions
- What kind of tofu should I use? Extra firm or super firm. If you can’t find those, firm will work too, just make sure to press it really well.
- Can I use breadcrumbs instead of panko? Yes, but panko will make them extra crispy so I would recommend it if you can find it.
- Do I need to use all the seasonings listed in the recipe? They really help flavor the tofu but you can definitely omit any that you want.
- Can I make these ahead of time? Yes, I wouldn’t recommend making them more than a day in advance though, or you could make them in the morning. To re-heat, I would suggest re-heating in a hot pan with some oil or in the oven.
- Can I freeze these tofu steaks? Yes, I would recommend freezing in a freezer bag and making sure you get as much air out as you can. Freeze for up to 3 months. Best if re-heated from frozen in the oven.
- Should I eat these with a sauce or plain? You can enjoy them anyway you want! I like to eat mine with either gravy or BBQ sauce. Ketchup would be good too or even cranberry sauce.
Have a question that I didn’t answer? Ask me in the comment section below and I will get back to you ASAP!
Looking For More Vegan Holiday Recipes?
Best Vegan Stuffing With Green Apple and Sage
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Crispy Fried Tofu Steaks
- Total Time: 45 minutes
- Yield: 6-8 1x
- Diet: Vegan
Description
These Crispy Tofu Steaks are flavorful, crispy and the perfect vegan main dish for your holiday meal!
Ingredients
Scale
- 1 package extra firm or super firm tofu, press as much water out of it as you can
- Olive oil
Panko Breading
- 1 cup panko breading
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon granulated garlic
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon poultry seasoning (optional)
Batter:
- 1/3 cup all purpose flour
- 1/3 cup plant based milk
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce, or tamari
- 3 teaspoons vegan worcestershire sauce
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon granulated garlic
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/2 teaspoon paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
Instructions
- Press your tofu if needed and then slice it into equal sized pieces. I usually get 6-8 slices, just depending on how thick you make them.
- Add your panko to a shallow dish and evenly mix in the seasonings.
- Add your flour, milk, soy sauce, vegan worcestershire sauce and seasonings to a bowl and whisk until combined.
- Coat the tofu with the batter: you don’t want a ton of batter on the tofu, just enough for the panko to stick, so I like to use my fingers to take the batter in my hands and just kind of rub a thin layer on the tofu.
- Then, place your tofu in the panko mixture and make sure that all sides are equally coated. I like to use my hand to press it on there well.
- Heat a large skillet over medium heat and coat the bottom with oil and then place the tofu steaks in. Let them cook until browned and crispy, about 5-7 minutes on each side. Remove them from the pan and place them on a platter to serve.
- Prep Time: 25 mins
- Cook Time: 20 mins
- Category: Vegan, Dinner
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: American
My mom always made these with actual steak growing up (a favorite in our house) and I am so thankful to have this alternative now that I’ve gone vegan! This recipe is such a blessing and I think they’re actually just as good when they’re cold leftovers from the fridge.
My question, can you specify which milk, Worchester sauce and soy sauce you used? The ones I chose upped the sodium intake excessively compared to the original nutrition label and I’m trying to keep these on the healthier side.
Hi Luka, Thank you so much for the kind words!! I usually use an unsweetened, plain almond milk or soy milk, low sodium soy sauce and vegan worcestershire sauce. You can always cut down the amount of soy sauce you use to help lower the sodium even more. I hope that helps!
While seasoned vegans probably know that regular Worcestershire sauce isn’t vegan (anchovies are traditionally added), it’s not something everyone knows or thinks about. There are vegan versions, but you have to look for them. It might be worth adding a note about that.
So true! Not sure what I was thinking, haha!
I have gone through the recipe for Crispy Tofu Steaks and love to try it in my kitchen. However, I wish to use ghee instead of olive oil as boiling points of oils are consistently lower than ghee, and ghee is a safer oil for cooking deep fry recipes. What do you say, friends?
https://milkio.co.nz/boiling-points-of-oil/
Yes, I think Ghee would work great in place of the oil