Multi Cooker

Easy Tofu Stir Fry

Main Dish

Our vegetable and tofu stir fry smacks with authentic takeout flavor at a fraction of the cost. Indulge in a protein packed, easy weeknight meal you can make from start to finish in your multicooker.

Servings 3
Preparation
Cooking

Ingredients

1 tbsp vegetable oil or grapeseed oil
8 ounces firm tofu, drained and cut into bite size cubes
1 garlic clove, minced
1 tsp grated ginger
½ small onion, sliced into half moon pieces
1 celery stalk, chopped
½ red or yellow bell pepper, sliced into strips
2 tbsp soy sauce
1 tsp oyster sauce
3 tbsp mixed with 1 teaspoon cornstarch
1 tsp toasted sesame oil
Handful cilantro or basil, chopped
Salt and pepper, to taste
White or brown rice, to serve with

Directions

Turn the multi cooker on and select the saute option.
Set the heat to high and press start.
Set the cooking time to 20 minutes and press start. The multi cooker will take a few minutes to preheat and will beep when it’s ready.
When the multi cooker cooks, add the tofu and saute for 5 minutes.
Add the garlic, ginger, onion, celery, and bell peppers. Saute the vegetables and tofu by tossing them around periodically for about 8 minutes.
When there is 2 minutes left to the cooking process, add the soy sauce, oyster sauce, and cornstarch slurry (water mixed with cornstarch).
Gently mix the sauce with the vegetables and tofu until the cooking process is done.
Drizzle with sesame oil, season with salt and pepper, and serve the stir fry with brown or white rice.

A HOMEMADE TOFU STIR FRY WITH AUTHENTIC ASIAN FLAVOR

We made our tofu and pepper stir fry with potent aromatics like garlic, ginger and onion – then infused it with a bold combination of soy sauce, oyster sauce and sesame oil. The result is a savory, umami and colorful stir fry that gives your favorite takeout spot a run for its money.

HOW TO STIR FRY TOFU AND VEGGIES FOR THE BEST TEXTURE

The key to most stir fries is cooking on high heat for a relatively short period of time. That way vegetables cook while retaining a juicy, snappy crunch. Restaurant chefs use this high-heat technique to add char to proteins and smoky wok hei (breath of the wok) to things like fried rice and orange chicken. But you don’t need a massive wok with a jet engine for a stove-top burner to stir fry at home. The Tiger Multi Cooker has a sauté function you can use for open-lid cooking over high-heat when making stir fries.

THE SECRET TO THICK STIR FRY SAUCE

Those thick brown sauces in takeout classics like chicken and broccoli are thickened with a simple slurry of cornstarch mixed with water. And that’s exactly what we’re using for this easy tofu stir fry. Stir it in at the end, and the savory sauce will thicken right up!

TIPS AND VARIATIONS

Cook the tofu first, then remove it before cooking the vegetables. This keeps the cooking surface from becoming too crowded. A crowded cooking surface means food steams rather than sears, resulting in mushy textures. Cooking in batches means the tofu will be perfectly cooked – and the peppers, celery and onions will be snappy. Just before adding the sauce, reintroduce the tofu to the veggies and mix gently but thoroughly.
Make it vegan. Just substitute the oyster sauce for a vegan Chinese mushroom-based oyster sauce instead.
Choose a different starch. White or brown rice is the obvious move here. But this stir fry is delicious served over mixed grain rice, noodles or even quinoa.