Crispy Tofu and Egg Fried Rice
Egg fried rice with crispy air fried tofu in a soy sauce, sesame and peanut sauce.
Looking for a Chinese fakeaway that’ll save you money and taste absolutely delicious? Look no further.
This here egg fried rice is made into a meal with the addition of my signature crispy tofu fried in my Ninja foodi air fryer and health grill.
Not only is this really tasty, but it’s also super quick, which is surely one of the main reason you would usually get a takeaway, right?
Quick dinner recipe
That quickness of this recipe is due to the fact that everything is fried on high heat and only takes a matter of minutes.
The most time consuming part of this is the tofu. But as it only takes 10 minutes and you only need to attend to them once throughout that whole time to flip. It means you can be frying your egg fried rice whilst the tofu is crisping up. Perfect.
The actual prep takes longer then cooking the dish does. But boy does that prep really make a difference.
Why is the crispy tofu so delicious?
Tofu can be fiddly to work with, there’s no denying that.
It crumbles easily and pretty much every recipe I’ve tried that promises you crispy tofu never quite fulfil on that promise.
But that’s not going to happen here. There are 3 reasons our tofu is going to work great, firstly, the air fryer over pan option really helps in the fight against soggy, oily tofu.
Secondly, that sauce really helps give the tofu a nice big crunch.
And the final thing is actually really simple, it’s just about getting the water out of your tofu.
Air-fried crispy tofu
The above photos is the tofu after 10 minutes air frying at 180c. Which is what we’re going to do.
As a matter of fact I believe I took them out 2 minutes early so it might actually be 8 minutes. But let’s stick with 10, it has a nice ring to it.
Anyway, here is the secret to achieving that crispy fried tofu.
1) When you take your tofu out it’s pack it’s full of water, like a big sponge. The trick is to place the tofu onto something absorbent, such as kitchen roll, then place something really heavy on top to squeeze out all the water. I use my cast iron casserole pan.
Leave your tofu to be squished whilst you chop and prep all your other ingredients. You might need to swap the kitchen roll and flip the tofu if it still has water inside, but this trick will usually do the job first time around.
2) Then it’s the sauce, the sauce recipe below is not just a taste combination of Chinese cuisine styled flavours, it’s also the perfect coat for your tofu which will crisp up beautifully.
3) Then the most important tip is all about the frying. You can fry these on a pan, just make sure your pan is really hot. The difficulty I’ve found is that even with a non-stick pan the tofu still manages to stick.
You also have to make sure you’re constantly turning your tofu so all 6 sides get some connection with the bottom of the pan. Which can be incredibly inconsistent and quite time consuming when you have about 10 blocks of tofu.
As for which air fryer to buy, I don’t see how they will change to much from brand to brand as long as it’s a good one. I have a full comparison for the best air fryers you can buy which you can read here. Any of those will be fine.
Personally I use the Ninja foodi air fryer and health grill because it works great with just about everything. If you’re looking to buy your first air fryer or upgrade the one you have I highly recommend it.
You can pick one up from amazon USA here which is currently on offer for $119.99 or amazon UK here for £249.
Or on the official Ninja website here.
How to make perfect egg fried rice
As for my tips of the perfect egg fried rice, I have a few.
Firstly it’s the rice. The rice for this recipe is best when its made in advance.
Freshly cooked rice has a tendency to stick, I'd recommend making your rice the night before, covering it with cling film and leaving it in your fridge till your ready.
The easiest thing to do is for you to make another rice meal tonight, such as these stuffed peppers, make extra rice then leave it in the fridge so by tomorrow, your rice is already cooked. Which is why I didn't include the cooking of the rice into this method.
Secondly is the egg part. A mistake I see people making often is over cooking the egg. The egg should be the last thing you add. Once you’re ready to add it, make a ditch to crack your eggs in and wait a few seconds for the whites to start turning white.
Once they do, quickly stir it into the rest of the dish for a further minute or so then stop. The egg will continue cooking in the hot rice whilst your dishing up.
Crispy Tofu and Egg Fried Rice
Ingredients
Instructions
- Prep your tofu by placing the block on some kitchen paper, then placing something heavy such as a casserole pan on top of the tofu. This will squeeze out all the water.
- Prep your sauce by mixing all other ingredients in a bowl.
- Remove your now mostly waterless tofu from under whatever you're using to squish it. Cut into 1 inch blocks and place in the sauce, tossing to cover.
- Pre heat an air fryer to 180c for 10 minutes. You can do this in a hot non-stick pan if you don't have an air fryer, just make sure you turn the tofu regularly and use plenty of oil so it doesn't stick.
- Place the tofu in your air fryer turning once half way through.
- Add a small amount of sesame oil to a wok. Once hot add your onion and carrot. Fry high for 3 minutes or until the onion is translucent.
- Add the garlic and fry for a further minute.
- Add the cooked rice and garlic, toss until the rice is heated through. This helps if your rice is a few hours to a day old and has been kept in the fridge. It stops the rice from sticking.
- Push your rice mixture to one side and break 2 eggs into the pan. Wait till the whites turn white then rapidly stir it into the rice until its cooked fully then stir in the now air fried tofu.
- Season generously with salt, pepper, and whatever else you like. Split between 4 bowls and squeeze other sriracha, toss the spring onions over and enjoy.
Notes
Top tip
The rice for this recipe is best when its made in advance. Freshly cooked rice has a tendency to stick, I'd recommend making your rice the night before, covering it with cling film and leaving it in your fridge till your ready.
The easiest thing to do is for you to make another rice meal tonight, such as these stuffed peppers, make extra rice then leave it in the fridge so by tomorrow, your rice is already cooked. Which is why I didn't include the cooking of the rice into this method.
Nutrition Facts
Calories
315.53Fat
15.77Sat. Fat
2.65Carbs
27.31Fiber
3.08Net carbs
24.21Sugar
5.82Protein
16.98Sodium
1123.38Cholesterol
81.84The nutritional information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice. See our full nutrition disclosure here.
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Hi, I’m Cameron, guv’nor of Smartblend. If you liked this then you’re in luck, I have a bunch more recipes like it. I share only vegetarian and pescatarian food recipes, cocktails, and drink guides with a sprinkling of wellness and mindful drinking. If that sounds like you, then stick around!
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