Crispy Korean-Style Tofu with Kimchi Fried Rice — a plant-based Other recipe by BOSH!
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Crispy Korean-Style Tofu with Kimchi Fried Rice

This one is a proper weeknight winner and honestly one of the most satisfying things to come out of our kitchen in ages. You get these incredibly crispy tofu fingers with a golden, crunchy coating sitting on top of smoky, tangy kimchi fried rice that's full of flavour. The contrast between the crunch of the tofu and the soft, punchy rice is just chef's kiss. We keep coming back to this one because it feels like a proper takeaway treat but you've made it yourself in 25 minutes. Make it tonight, seriously.

Cook: 25 min
Serves 4

Before You Start

  • Medium heat frying pan with 1cm vegetable oil
  • Small frying pan for sauce
  • Saucepan for rice
  • Mixing bowl
  • Tongs
  • Whisk

Ingredients

  • 6 tbsp cornflour
  • vegetable oil for frying
  • Salt & pepper to taste
  • 1 ½ tbsp gochujang paste
  • 2 tbsp soy sauce
  • 5 tbsp agave syrup - maple syrup is fine
  • 2 tbsp toasted sesame oil
  • 2 tbsp tomato paste
  • 2 tbsp sesame seeds
  • 1 tbsp brown sugar heaped
  • 30ml water
  • 1 lime
  • 1 tsp plant-based butter
  • 180g Jasmine rice
  • 100ml water
  • 60g kimchi
  • 4 spring onions

Method

1

Prepare the tofu

  • Slice the tofu in half lengthways then cut each half into 4 fingers and place into a mixing bowl
  • Add the cornflour and a good pinch of salt and pepper
  • Toss (or stir) to completely coat the tofu pieces
2

Cook the tofu

  • Warm 1cm of vegetable oil in a pan over a medium heat until the end of a wooden spoon bubbles gently
  • Once warm enough, add the coated tofu chunks to the pan and fry, turning constantly with tongs until golden and really crispy (approx 10 mins)
  • Once cooked, transfer the tofu pieces to the plate and leave to drain
3

Make the sauce

  • Place a small frying pan over a medium heat and pour in your sesame oil
  • Once it's warm, stir in the gochujang paste followed by the soy sauce, agave, tomato paste, sesame seeds, water, brown sugar and juice of a lime
  • Whisk the mixture all together, turn the heat down and allow to reduce for 10 minutes until it's sticky
4

Cook the rice

  • Melt the plant-based butter in a saucepan then add the jasmine rice and toast in the butter for a minute
  • Before it starts to brown, add the water and stir the rice bringing it to the boil
  • Once boiling, turn down the heat to a simmer and cook until all the water is absorbed
  • If the rice is still hard, add a little more water until cooked
  • Finally chop the spring onions and stir through your rice along with the kimchi - keeping some for the top
5

Time to serve

  • Grab your crispy tofu pieces and pop them into a large bowl
  • Tip your sauce into the bowl and toss until the tofu is completely coated
  • Bowl up the rice and top with your tofu fingers, and serve with a sprinkle of sesame seeds and spring onions

Tips & Variations

  • Press your tofu well: The drier your tofu before you start, the crispier it'll get. Even 10 minutes under a heavy pan makes a real difference to that crunch.
  • Dial up the heat: We find the kimchi fried rice tastes way better with a good drizzle of gochujang or extra chilli if you want that proper Korean kick. Henry always adds a bit more than the recipe says.
  • Use day-old rice: If you can, cook your rice the night before and keep it in the fridge. It fries up so much better than freshly cooked rice and you'll get those lovely slightly chewy bits throughout.

Why This Works

The trick is getting the cornflour coating really well distributed over the tofu so every bit of surface area gets that proper crispy shell when it hits the oil. With kimchi fried rice the key is using kimchi that's been fermenting for a while because the deeper, tangier flavour makes the whole dish sing. Trust us on this one, don't rush either step.