Better than takeout but easy and quick enough for a weeknight meal, this crispy teriyaki baked tofu is a little bit sweet, a little bit savoury and so delicious!

The best thing about making your own food (other than eating it!) is that you get to make it YOURS.  Don’t like an ingredient?  Don’t use it!  I wish I liked ginger, it’s SO good for you.  I love the smell – even my shampoo is ginger.  But the taste is too strong and too potent for me.  So it’s always put me off of anything teriyaki.  And then I made this teriyaki baked tofu.  Minus the ginger.  And it was gooooood.

The secret to it is twofold.  First is (for me) the absence of ginger – all that sticky teriyaki flavour but without that overpowering fieryness that ginger brings.  If  ginger is your thing PLEASE ignore me and add to your hearts content.  The second is crisp little bits of tofu.  Baked in a simple ‘dressing’ of liquid aminos, cornflour and oil just pop in the oven and forget about them for 30 minutes.  No need to turn or baste for perfectly crispy baked tofu.

The teriyaki sauce couldn’t be simpler either.

Liquid aminos – I find this less salty than soy sauce but just as rich in flavour.  Use soy sauce if that is what you have (or prefer).

Maple syrup – because teriyaki sauce should be sticky and unctuous.  Can be subbed for coconut sugar or agave syrup.  Coconut sugar will give a darker sauce and you may need to use a little less.

Dry sherry – because that’s what I had in the cupboard!  Use any other sherry or brandy, white wine or even rice wine or mirin if you have it!

Garlic – simply there for that wonderful garlic flavour.  Cooking it in the sauce negates that raw (and sometimes overpowering) garlic flavour.

Cornflour – turns the watery liquid into a sauce that doesn’t just coat the tofu but makes it positively cling to it!

Ginger – optional.  Because this is YOUR food.  Make your food your way that you want to eat.  If you love ginger I’d recommend 1-2 tsp of peeled, grated fresh ginger for the quantities in this recipe.

This dish is best served as soon as it’s cooked BUT – the first time I made it I had enough for a couple of meals worth so I put the extra in a tuppaware in the fridge and had the next day.  Let me assure you, it’s still yummy the next day but the tofu becomes more chewy than crispy.  Didn’t for a second stop us devouring it though!  You can make extra sauce ahead of time, then just bake the tofu, reheat the sauce and chuck in the tofu as per the recipe.  Honestly, this meal is on repeat at least once a week at the moment!  I serve ours with some steamed veg and fluffy white rice and peas – we have a great How to Cook Rice guide if you’re still mystified how to get perfect rice every time.

Love tofu?  Try these other flavourful vegan recipes:

Tofu Stir Fry – crispy fried peanut tofu with bright veggies and rice noodles!

Vegan Scrambled Eggs – the perfect final flourish to a vegan cooked breakfast!

Healthy Indian Takeaway – tofu baked in coconut yoghurt and spices served with cauliflower fried rice.

Buddha Bowl – an exercise into how many delicious things can be crammed into one bowl!

Beer Battered Vegan Fish and Chips – crisp fluffy batter and nori for that ‘fishy’ taste. Serve with seasoned potato wedges, peas and a chunky homemade tomato sauce for a vegan version of that quintessentially English dish!

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