These Crispy Orange Tofu Buddha Bowls use oven baked tofu and a homemade Chinese Orange sauce to make an easy, healthy, and satisfying dinner!
In my opinion, the only thing better than Crispy Orange Tofu….is healthy AND crispy Orange Tofu that you can make in your kitchen in just around 30 minutes.
Shall we?
It all starts with a block of Tofu, some Nutritional Yeast, and Tamari. Then you’re going to pop those lil’ soy cubes in the oven until they are perfectly golden and crispy. Finally, smother them in some Healthy Orange Sauce, and you’re good to go!
I decided to serve my Orange Tofu with some Steamed Broccoli and Brown Rice, but you can really do whatever the heck you want with it. Even just eat it straight from the pan – I’m not judging 😉
If you do have a little extra time, I would actually recommend freezing your Tofu, then thawing, before you press and bake it. I know that sounds weird, but this actually makes the Tofu even more crispy! The freezer magic trick (that’s probably related to water expanding when it becomes ice or something like that) helps to get the excess liquid out of the tofu even more efficiently. And when the extra liquid comes out, extra seasonings can go in.
(Also, I’d like to add that my mother taught me this trick. So thanks, mom!)
These crispy Orange Tofu bowls are perfect for meal prep or an easy weeknight dinner, but I also think they’re tasty enough for a weekend dinner in! Not to mention that you’ll probably save money if you make these instead of going for take-out…
All in all, this is definitely a recipe I’ll be making again. I don’t even think a meat-loving carnivore could turn this one down!
A Few Final Thoughts:
- For a faster meal, make the Healthy Orange Sauce ahead of time – it’ll stay good in the fridge for up to 10 days.
- Leftovers of this will store well, but I would suggest mixing them with some extra Orange Sauce before re-heating, as the tofu will dry out a bit in the fridge.
- You can really serve this Orange Tofu with anything you like – the Brown Rice and Broccoli are merely serving suggestions!
If you’re looking for more easy Dinner recipes, you’ll also love these Vegan Sheet Pan Fajitas and this One Pot Spinach & Artichoke Pasta!
Finally, if you make this recipe and decide to share it on Facebook or Instagram, don’t forget to tag me @FromMyBowl + #FromMyBowl! I love seeing your delicious recreations 🙂
Crispy Orange Tofu Buddha Bowls (Vegan)
Prep Time: 10 Minutes- Cook Time: 25 Minutes
- Total Time: 35 minutes
- Yield: 2-3 Servings 1x
Prep Time:
Yield:
Print Recipe
Pin RecipeDescription
These Crispy Orange Tofu Buddha Bowls use oven baked tofu and a homemade Chinese Orange sauce to make an easy, healthy, and satisfying dinner!
Ingredients
For the Orange Tofu:
- 1 14 oz. block Extra Firm Tofu, pressed
- 1 tbsp Nutritional Yeast
- 1 tbsp Tamari
- ¼ cup Healthy Orange Sauce
For the Buddha Bowls:
- Orange Tofu, above
- Steamed Broccoli
- Cooked Brown Rice
- Extra Healthy Orange Sauce, to drizzle on top
- Any other veggies you’d like!
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 450F Cut your pressed Tofu into ½” cubes, then add to a bowl.
- Sprinkle with the Nutritional Yeast and Tamari and mix well, until all pieces are evenly coated. Transfer the Tofu to a greased or lined baking tray (see notes) and spread it out so none of the pieces are touching.
- Bake the Tofu for 15 minutes, then remove from the oven and carefully flip all of the pieces. Return to the oven and bake for an additional 10 minutes, or until crispy.
- While the Tofu is baking for the final few minutes, heat up the Healthy Orange Sauce in a small saucepan.
- Add the Tofu to the saucepan once it has finished baking, and stir well until it is evenly coated. Serve with Steamed Broccoli and Brown Rice, or as desired.
Notes
- The Healthy Orange Sauce can be made ahead of time and stored in the fridge for a quick and easy meal!
- I would recommend baking the Tofu on a reusable silicone mat, as it caramelizes better than parchment paper.
- If you’re not sure how to press your Tofu, here is a helpful tutorial.
Want to save these Crispy Orange Tofu Buddha Bowls for later? Pin the recipe to your Pinterest boards:
23 comments
Delicious! Thank you!!
Do you think the orange sauce would freeze well?
★★★★★
You’re so welcome, Karen! Yes, it should freeze well.
Okay, this is outstanding! It tasted just like take out and it completely made my day! I added a dash of sriracha to spice it up a bit, but perfect! Adding this to my recipe book to be a regular for me! Caitlin, your food is so approachable for those of us that are starting to transition to a plant based diet. Keep up the wonderful work!
★★★★★
Always up for spicing things up a bit, haha! So glad you’ve added it to your rotation, hope the plant based path is going well!
This was sooooo good. Could you try recreating a healthier vegan sweet and sour sauce sauce sometime!??
★★★★★
That’s a great idea!
Finally found a great way to make baked tofu! Thanks for sharing the recipe. I shared my experience here: https://www.trylearngrow.com/2019/03/19/vegan-orange-tofu-buddha-bowl/
★★★★★
So yummy, the only problem here is that it is so good I ate way too much!! Broccoli was
The perfect side. Happy Tummy!!!
★★★★★
I loved the flavor of the sauce – just like orange chicken! I used orange juice and ground ginger and it was still very flavorful. The tip to freeze the tofu worked really well and made it way more dense and less soggy.
★★★★★
Thanks, Cadence! I’m glad you enjoyed it 🙂
I made this tonight and the flavor was so great! BUT i have a question PLEASE! 🙂 when my tofu thawed and I pressed it, I went to cut it, but then the tofu kinda fell apart in some areas. I got just firm tofu, is this why or did i do something wrong?
Hi Julie – unfortunately that happens sometimes to me as well, when I press my tofu too firmly. I just try to handle it very gently.
I made this tonight for dinner. It was amazing. Everything came out perfect, though I didn’t have the forethought to freeze my tofu, but it was still really crispy and delicious. The orange glaze is perfection. Such a great taste and way more wholesome than you’d get at any restaurant. I tossed the tofu in a store-bought asparagus stir fry mix and served over white rice, garnished with sesame seeds and scallions. This is definitely going in the favorites pile.
★★★★★
Glad to hear it was a hit, Kellyn!
I’m eating it right now and it’s so so good! I don’t buy tofu often because I never know what to do with it but it’s delicious!
Do you think the tofu would work well in the air fryer instead of baking it in the oven?
Yes, I usually bake mine at 350F for 10-20 minutes, depending on how much I put in there. I would shake the basket every 5 minutes or so as well!
Growing up, I used to eat orange chicken from Panda Express all the time! The sauce was just so perfect, juicy, and flavorful. I have tried this orange chicken replica from Gardein, and it tastes great, but I think it more resembles McNuggets without the sauce. But, given that tofu is so wonderful, I would have orange tofu any day! These Buddha bowls look wonderful! So customizeable and easy to prepare as well!
Thank you, Cassie 🙂
Does this tofu reheat well? I’d love to make this for meal prep but haven’t found the best way to keep already cooked tofu taste as good. Thanks for the awesome recipes!
Hi Ashleigh! It should reheat well, but won’t be as crispy as when it first comes out of the oven. I would also suggest coating it in more sauce as you reheat it.
So yummy, I love the addition of the orange sauce to the tofu instead of simply tamari sauce. Lovely photos as usual! =)
Thank you, Gemma!