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Simple, speedy, and healthy, vegan peanut tofu lettuce wraps. Crispy pan-fried tofu coated in a spicy peanut sauce, served in crisp lettuce leaves with thinly sliced red bell peppers, carrots and fresh coriander. A light dinner, packed with tons of flavor, to enjoy on warmer summer days.
You’ll love this vegan tofu lettuce wrap recipe because it’s…
- ready to eat within 15 minutes.
- a great recipe that’s also a high-protein lunch/dinner.
- made in one pan!
Ingredients for these peanut vegan lettuce wraps:
- Lettuce: My personal preference is butter lettuce for this recipe! I like to layer two leaves, just so i get a nice crunch. There’s a variety of lettuce types, and you could use any! Eg. romaine lettuce or even iceberg lettuce.
- Tofu: Firm tofu, or extra firm tofu. Soft tofu won’t hold up well in this recipe!
- Peanut butter: Natural peanut butter, that’s smooth! If you only have crunchy peanut butter, just pop it into a food processor and blend until smooth.
- Peanuts: I used peanuts with red skins on them but any type of unsalted/unseasoned peanuts.
- Ginger: Fresh ginger, freshly grated.
- Oil: Just a tablespoon or two for shallow frying the tofu.
- Soy sauce: You can also coconut aminos.
- Cornstarch: Coating the tofu cubes with cornstarch before frying will help achieve a crispy exterior.
- Maple syrup: I prefer to use pure maple syrup, but brown sugar is also an option. If you use brown sugar, use the same amount.
- Lime juice: Just a squeeze or two!
- Hot sauce: I used sriracha because I love the garlicky flavour it gives but any chili garlic sauce should work.
- Extras to serve with: Ribbon carrots, green onions, red bell peppers, brown/white rice, sesame seeds, rice noodles…the options are endless! Coriander or any preferred fresh herbs.
Making the ultimate peanut tofu lettuce wraps…
Start by removing the excess liquid from the block of tofu. You want to do this by wrapping the tofu with paper towels or a clean kitchen towel and then placing something heavy on top, like a heavy saucepan. The weight from the saucepan will press out all the excess water. Set aside for 20-30 minutes. You can also use a tofu press! Once pressed, cut the tofu into cubes. Toss the tofu cubes with cornstarch flour, this is the secret to crispy tofu!
Heat oil in a pan over medium-high heat, add the tofu cubes in a single layer, and shallow fry until crispy and lightly golden brown. I like to shallow fry for at least 20-30 minutes.
While the tofu gets crispy make the simple, yet delicious sauce. In a bowl, add the smooth peanut butter, grated ginger, maple syrup, soy sauce, hot sauce and water. Whisk together until everything is well combined. If you only have crunchy peanut butter you can place all these ingredients into a food processor and blend until smooth.
Into the pan, add in the whole peanuts, and stir fry together for 2-4 minutes over low heat. Pour half of the sauce over the crispy tofu cubes and stir together until every tofu cube is coated in the peanut sauce. Cook for a further 4-5 minutes. Keep the remaining sauce aside to dip/drizzle the lettuce wraps with. Once the peanut sauce has crisped up a little, remove from the heat, squeeze over with some lime juice, mix, and set aside.
Don’t want to eat these straight away? Simply, store tofu in an airtight container, and pop into the microwave for a minute or two before eating! You could also eat it cold, but I think the tofu will taste better warm, it’s a nice contrast with the cold lettuce.
Assembling the healthy vegan lettuce wraps…
I like to layer two lettuce leaves together, this way the wraps become sturdier AND you get to sneak in a little more greens. Place thinly sliced red bell peppers, carrots, crispy peanut tofu chunks and freshly chopped coriander. Drizzle with the peanut sauce. Enjoy warm!
More tofu recipes:
- Tandoori Tofu Skewers
- Tofu Firecracker Lettuce Wraps With Brown Rice
- Mushroom Lasagna With White Pesto
- Palak Paneer With Tofu
Ingredients
- 1–3 tbsp oil
- 394g tofu block
- 1/4 cup peanuts
- 1/4 cup cornstarch
Peanut Sauce
- 1/4 cup Low-Sodium Soy Sauce
- 1/2 cup Peanut Butter
- 2 tablespoon Sriracha
- 1 tablespoon maple syrup
- 1 Teaspoon fresh Ginger
- 1/4 cup Water to thin the sauce, as needed
Other
- 14–16 Butterhead Lettuce
- Carrot, thinly sliced
- Red bell pepper, thinly sliced
- Fresh coriander leaves
Instructions
- Tofu: Grab your block of tofu, drain the water and press for at least 30 minutes. Cut tofu into small cubes and toss with the cornstarch. Heat pan with oil, then add in the tofu cubes and shallow fry for 15-20 minutes or until crispy. Add in the peanuts, and cook for 2-3 minutes while constantly stirring.
- Peanut sauce: Combine all the sauce ingredients. Pour half of the mixture into the pan, and cook for 2-3 minutes on high or until it clings onto the tofu.
- Assembly: Layer two lettuce leaves, then add carrot slices, red pepper slices, peanut tofu, and fresh coriander. Drizzle with a little more of that sauce and enjoy!
