Tofu With Peanut-Ginger Sauce

By Martha Rose Shulman

Updated June 11, 2024

Tofu With Peanut-Ginger Sauce
Andrew Scrivani for The New York Times
Total Time
10 minutes
Rating
5(1,635)
Comments
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If you don’t feel like cooking on a hot summer day, you can enjoy plain cold tofu with a dipping sauce. Or you can sear it quickly in a pan or grill it. This recipe and the others that follow it this week make enough sauce or marinade for a pound of tofu.

Spread this sweet and pungent peanut sauce on seared, grilled or uncooked tofu. It also makes a nice dipping sauce for crudités or spring rolls.

Featured in: FOOD’s Amazing Cilantro Tofu Sandwich

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Ingredients

Yield:½ to ⅔ cup
  • 3tablespoons creamy unsalted, unsweetened peanut butter
  • 1tablespoon rice vinegar
  • 2teaspoons soy sauce
  • 1 to 2teaspoons light brown sugar, to taste
  • 1½teaspoon ginger juice (grate 1 tablespoon ginger, wrap in cheesecloth and squeeze)
  • Cayenne to taste
  • 2 to 4tablespoons warm water
Ingredient Substitution Guide

Preparation

  1. Step 1

    In a small bowl, whisk together all the above ingredients. Thin out as desired with water. Brush or spoon onto sliced tofu (cooked or uncooked).

Tip
  • Advance preparation: This keeps well for a week in the refrigerator. You may want to thin it with more water after a few days.

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Ratings

5 out of 5
1,635 user ratings
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Comments

Laura K

Recipe is easily tripled or quadrupled. I then freeze in meal size containers. Also great on noodles. I have used ginger juice and just finely grated ginger. Both taste equally good.

drdeasnter

No rice vinegar, used apple cider vinegar instead. Date sugar in place of brown. No cheesecloth, minced ginger. Came out so thick in the beginning, I'd thought the recipe called for 2-4 cups of warm water. After adding half a cup I realized my error, then simply doubled the recipe. Used a food processor. At the end wanted a bit more bite so added a few cloves of minced garlic and a thai chile pepper. Splendid taste and consistency, thanks this will be part of my arsenal going forward.

Peggy

I had some left over and it was terrific hot on rice with tofu and broccoli.

susie

Omg so good. I opted to brown my cubes a bit in chili sesame oil before combining together. I'd intended to leave it in fridge to pack as work lunch but can't stop eating this hot as my breakfast! Couldn't be easier. Would be amazing with side of gomae (so?) using same sauce (I've never made that tho!)

~S~

I make this all the time. It's my absolute favorite recipe on this entire website! So easy! This is literally my midnight meal.

Audrey

What is the recommended process for pan searing the tofu? Do you cut it into chunks first? Oil? Other seasonings?

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