This Orange Sesame Tofu Stir-Fry is a simple and tasty vegetarian meal. A flavorful, easy-to-make orange-sesame sauce comes together in just minutes.
My idea of the perfect weeknight meal? Something easy, with minimal prep or pans needed. Something hearty and filling. And something with plenty of fresh vegetables.
This Orange Sesame Tofu Stir-Fry fits the bill.
I hated tofu (or thought I did) until a co-worker of mine made me the crispiest, most flavorful, and most perfectly cooked tofu on the planet. Now, he was a much better chef than I and an expert on Asian cuisine, so this stir-fry is not going to come close to anything he would make. However, I think it’s pretty good.
Over the years, and with much trial-and-error, I’ve become much better at cooking tofu. Everyone has advice and their preferences when it comes to the subject, whether it’s to pan-fry, oven-bake, press it, marinate it, dry it, coat it, or what-have-you.
Here, I keep things simple. Extra firm tofu gets crispy and happy by being simply pan-fried in avocado oil. First, it gets drained and pressed—a must when it comes to tofu, no matter what you’re doing with it. I don’t marinate or coat the tofu. The sauce to this stir-fry is very flavorful and I like to keep the tofu as-is.
With that being said, if you’d like you can absolutely marinate the tofu or you can coat it in a thin layer of cornstarch for extra crisp.
I love the combination of fresh orange, nutty sesame oil, and Tamari here. The fresh citrus juice and zest cuts the saltiness and adds a bright, clean flavor. Freshly grated ginger also offers a lovely punch, and raw honey adds just a touch of sweetness.
Add some bell pepper, broccoli, and shiitake mushrooms, and you’ve got yourself a meal!
Serve the stir-fry over brown rice, quinoa, or riced cauliflower.
Here are some things you may need or want for this recipe:
Classic Series Carbon Steel Wok Set // Liquid Aminos // San-J Tamari Gluten Free Soy Sauce // La Tourangelle Toasted Sesame Oil
This post contains affiliate links but are always products I highly recommend.

Orange Sesame Tofu Stir-Fry
- Prep Time: 15 mins
- Cook Time: 15 mins
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 2-3 1x
- Category: supper, vegetarian
Description
This Orange Sesame Tofu Stir-Fry is a simple and tasty vegetarian meal. A flavorful, easy-to-make orange-sesame sauce comes together in just minutes.
Ingredients
- 8 oz extra-firm tofu
- 2 tablespoons avocado oil (or cooking oil of choice)
- 1/2 cup fresh orange juice
- Zest of one orange
- 1 tablespoon wild honey
- 4 tablespoons Tamari
- 1 tablespoon freshly grated ginger
- 1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- 1 bell pepper, sliced
- 1 bunch broccoli, chopped
- 3 ounces shiitake mushrooms, sliced
- 1 tablespoon toasted sesame seeds (plus more for serving)
- Brown rice, quinoa, or riced cauliflower, for serving
Instructions
- Drain and press the tofu. Cut the tofu block into slices and spread out on several paper towels. Add more towels on top and set a cutting board or plate on top. Let sit 15 minutes to extract excess water.
- In the meantime, make the sauce. Combine the Tamari, sesame oil, orange juice and zest, honey, ginger, minced garlic, and cornstarch. Whisk well and set aside.
- Heat one tablespoon of oil in a skillet until hot. Cut the tofu slices into small cubes and saute until golden and crispy. Remove the tofu from the pan and set on paper towels to drain.
- Add the other tablespoon of oil to the pan. Add the bell pepper, broccoli, and shiitake mushrooms to the pan. Season with salt and pepper and cook until the vegetables are softened but still have a slight crunch.
- Whisk the sauce once more to incorporate and add the sauce and the tofu back to the pan. Cook until the sauce bubbles and thickens. Add in toasted sesame seeds.
- Serve the stir-fry over your choice of rice and top with additional toasted sesame seeds and a drizzle of toasted sesame oil.
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I made this tonight and it was great! I thought I had tofu, but didn’t, so used chicken and shrimp instead. So much for our meatless Monday…
The stir fry sauce was fantastic, although I did double up on the fresh ginger and orange zest since I wanted it a tiny bit zippier.
Thanks for the recipe – will be coming back to this one often.
★★★★★
Thank you Olivia! So glad you enjoyed it. 🙂
This recipe looks AWESOME. I can’t wait to try it when I’m home for the Holidays!
Let me know what you think, Taylor! 🙂
YUM! I love a good stir fry recipe, I’ll have to give this a try. Thanks for sharing, babe!
xo Anna Elizabeth
http://www.annaelizabethevents.com
★★★★★
You’re welcome, love! Excited to hear what you think!
MMM and now I have a dinner idea for tonight 🙂
xoxo,
Sandi
http://sandimoynihanmultimedia.blogspot.com
yay, Sandi! hope you love it!
I’m making my weekly grocery list right now and cannot wait to add this!!
I hope you love it Colleen! <3
Love this meatless stir fry! I often undeservedly forget about tofu. It’s awesome!
★★★★★
Thanks, Jovita!
MMm this sounds lovely! A great meat free alternative for the holiday rush!
★★★★★
Yes absolutely! So much meat and carbs this time of the year, haha! 😉
I adore this recipe. First of all, I like all the veggies but the tofu replacing the meat is a terrific idea and you have so many great flavors swirling around. I am up for this!!! Thanks.
★★★★★
Thanks so much! 🙂
My son loves brocooli though I’m not a fan. He will enjoy this dish a lot.
★★★★★
hehe – usually it’s the other way around, where it’s hard to get your kids to eat their veggies! So great that your son loves broccoli 🙂
I have really been trying to reduce the amount of dishes caused by midweek meals, also! This dish is so colorful and vibrant– perfect!
★★★★★
Thanks so much, Michelle! 🙂
Stir fries are my go-to meal when I can’t even think straight when I come in from work, I love the addition of orange.
Thank you Mariana 🙂 I feel the orange adds such a nice brightness to the dish and cuts through the salt. I love stir fries, too!