Need a super speedy protein source for your meal? Well, this recipe is certainly quick, easy and delicious! Within 20 minutes, you have such yummy, crispy and flavourful tofu, using only 3 ingredients. Whilst your sweet soy air fryer tofu is cooking, you have time to prep the rest of your meal- I usually pair my tofu with a rice bowl, add it to some noodles or toss it into a salad. This recipe creates a protein that is so versatile and can be used in an abundance of different dishes.
Tofu works amazingly well in this recipe, because it still retains some of its moisture throughout the frying process. This gives us the crispy exterior, but softer interior- meaning that your sweet soy air fryer tofu does not become dry! I have tested this exact recipe with chicken and tempeh, and whilst it still produces a delicious result, I find that because of the density and nature of tempeh means that it can easily become dry. To prevent this (if you choose to substitute tempeh in place of the tofu), I recommend that you marinate it in the soy and maple sauce for an hour before air frying it. This can help introduce moisture to the tempeh, and also helps to let that flavour soak up!
Other sauces ideas for your sweet soy air fryer tofu:
- Peanut soy sauce (check out my recipe here)
- Sesame and maple
- Tahini and lemon (see my recipe here)
- Maple sesame glaze
- Crispy battered tofu (check out my recipe here)
- Homemade sweet chilli sauce (click here to view)
I highly recommend marinating your tofu in your soy and maple sauce. This not only helps to tenderise the interior of your tofu after being fried, but also enhances the flavour. I also find that the maple syrup helps the tofu get that slight glaze-like exterior, giving you that awesome crunchy- yet slightly sticky shell. I love this, because it tastes like takeaway sticky tofu, which is what inspired this recipe. I wanted to create a healthier, cheaper and easy way to replicate the tofu I get in my takeaway dishes. I truly think that this sweet soy air fryer tofu tastes amazing, and it’s just a bonus that it doesn’t contain any high FODMAP ingredients, additives or preservatives!
Like your sweet soy air fryer tofu? Try out these recipes too:
- Quinoa and tofu salad bowl
- Tofu, okra and aubergine curry with turmeric rice
- Smoky, crispy fried tofu
Or, you could substitute tofu into the following recipes:
- Sweet and sour battered chicken
- Fried butterfly chicken
- Turkey and okra soup
- Chicken stir fry
- Pad Thai with prawns
The process of making this sweet soy air fryer tofu makes my kitchen smell amazing! I love making this recipe for my family because it’s simple, quick and just so delicious. When added to fresh steamed veggies or to a stir fry, it just elevates the dish! I can definitely admit that I used to just add plain proteins to a dish, thinking that seasoning the entire dish afterwards was adequate. By putting some time into really making each element of your meal taste delicious individually, you just step your meal up to the next level (even though the flavours in the meal tend to all just get mixed up together anyway!).
Ingredients: (serves 2)
- Block of tofu
- 2 tbsp gluten free soy sauce
- 2 tbsp maple syrup
Method:
Step 1: pat dry and chop your tofu into cubes.
Step 2: mix your soy sauce and maple syrup in a small bowl to get your sauce.
Step 3: to your sauce, add the tofu and stir gently to coat all the tofu. You can leave to marinate here for 10 mins.
Step 4: put your tofu into the air fryer for 20 mins on 190°.
Your tofu will keep for up to 4 days in the fridge. Ensure you store it in an airtight container to keep it tasting fresh!
Make sure to send over your sweet soy air fryer tofu to my Instagram page TheLazyLowFODMAP. Tag me in your images or send them to me via DM so that I see them!
