This Chinese-inspired Takeout-Style Tofu and Broccoli is so flavorful and so easy to make thanks to the Instant Pot! It features sticky tofu and broccoli packed with the sweet, sour and spicy flavors you love from Chinese restaurants!
Watch: How to Make Take-Out Style Tofu and Broccoli
And I made a cute little video showing you exactly how to make this recipe! And if you want more than 90 incredible vegan Instant Pot recipes, be sure to order my cookbook, The Vegan Instant Pot Cookbook!
If you’re new to the Instant Pot, the book contains a comprehensive primer to the machine and all its functions, so you can become an instant pot ninja!
Tips for making this recipe
And just a few notes to help you nail this takeout-style tofu and broccoli recipe.
As with many tofu recipes, it helps to press the tofu. Since we are essentially searing tofu in hot oil, you want to make sure you’ve thoroughly pressed all of the water out of the tofu. I explain how to do this in the instructions. It takes a little time to press the tofu, but you can prep the rest of the ingredients in the mean time.
And please don’t try to skip the oil! The oil is necessary to sauté the tofu. Without oil, the tofu will just stick to the bottom of the inner pot and not only will you ruin the dish, you’ll also have a very difficult time scrubbing your pot.
And finally, if you are sensitive to spicy food, go easy on the amount of Sriracha called for in the recipe! This dish is quite spicy!
More East-Asian Inspired Recipes
- Baked Peanut Tofu
- 15-Minute Vegan Noodles with Chili Garlic Sauce
- Restaurant-Style Tofu Stir Fry
- Marinated Tofu
- Chinese Braised Tofu
Big Vegan Flavor
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Chinese Takeout-Style Tofu and Broccoli (recipe from The Vegan Instant Pot Cookbook)
Ingredients
MARINATED TOFU
- 1 (14-ounce) block extra-firm tofu
- 3 tablespoons reduced-sodium tamari or soy sauce
- 2 teaspoons Sriracha or similar chili-garlic sauce
- 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
- 2 teaspoons rice vinegar (also known as rice wine vinegar)
GINGER-CHILI SAUCE
- 1/4 cup reduced-sodium tamari or soy sauce
- 1⁄4 cup agave nectar or coconut nectar (or maple syrup, but that will have a more robust, less neutral flavor)
- 2 tablespoons water
- 1 1⁄2 tablespoons Sriracha or similar chili-garlic sauce
- 1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
- 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
- 1 1⁄2-inch piece fresh ginger, grated or finely minced
FOR FINISHING
- 1 1⁄2 tablespoons grapeseed oil or other neutral, high-heat cooking oil
- 2 medium heads broccoli, cut into florets (about 4 cups)
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch
- White rice or brown rice (for serving)
Instructions
- Marinate the tofu: Drain the tofu and cut into 4 slabs. Place the tofu on a cutting board lined with paper towels. Place more paper towels on top of the tofu and weight them down with a few heavy cookbooks or a heavy skillet filled with a few cans of beans. Let sit for at least 30 minutes or ideally 1 hour, changing the paper towels in between to drain all of the moisture. Cut the tofu into 3⁄4-inch cubes.
- Place the tofu in a gallon-size zip-top bag and add the tamari, Sriracha, sesame oil, and vinegar. Toss to combine and let the tofu rest in the marinade for 5 minutes, massaging occasionally.
- Meanwhile, make the ginger-chili sauce: In a medium bowl, whisk together the tamari, agave nectar, water, the Sriracha, sesame oil, vinegar, and ginger until well combined.
- Finish the dish: Select the Sauté setting on the Instant Pot and let the pot heat up for a few minutes before adding the grapeseed oil. Once the display reads “HOT,” use a slotted spoon or fork to carefully transfer the marinated tofu to the pot. Cook the tofu for 1 1⁄2 minutes undisturbed. Use a spatula to flip and cook the tofu until it starts to brown on all sides, 3 to 4 minutes total. Add the ginger-chili sauce and stir to combine. Select the Cancel setting.
- Secure the lid and set the Pressure Release to Sealing. Select the Pressure Cook setting at high pressure and set the cook time to 3 minutes.
- Once the 3-minute timer has completed and beeps, perform a quick pressure release by carefully switching the Pressure Release knob from Sealing to Venting.
- Open the pot. Add the broccoli florets to the tofu and stir with the sauce to combine. Secure the lid and set the Pressure Release to Sealing. Select the Pressure Cook setting to LOW PRESSURE and set the cook time to 1 minute. Once the 1-minute timer has completed and beeps, carefully perform another quick pressure release.
- In a small bowl, stir together the cornstarch with 1⁄4 cup water, whisking until combined without any lumps. Select the Sauté setting and press the Sauté button again until you reach Less heat. Add the cornstarch slurry to the Instant Pot and gently stir to combine. Cook, stirring gently, until the sauce thickens, 2 to 3 minutes. Serve the tofu and broccoli over rice.
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I love the sauce–it is super flavorful, but 2 tablespoons of cornstrach seems like a lot! I only used 1 tablespoon and it turned into a very thick jelly once cooled! I’m wondering if it is meant to be 2 teaspoons? I will also mention that I don’t have an insta pot, so I cooked the marinated tofu in an air fryer and used a bag of frozen stirfry veggies sauteed in a skillet. I kept the sauce on the side so people could add a much or little as they wanted. The flavor is awesome, so I think this will be my go to stir fry sauce recipe, but I think will experiment with using less cornstarch next time and see how it goes! :) Appreciate all you do, as always!
I had such high hopes for this, but even though I followed the instructions, the broccoli was soggy.
We still enjoyed it, but I’ve been making your recipes for years and this one is the first one ever which is not amazing, it’s go though, but bit meh
Hi Tania, sorry to hear this recipe didn’t live up to your expectations. We appreciate your support of RPL nonetheless!
Fabulous flavor. Used maple syrup and a different hot sauce, frozen/defrosted tofu, doubled the sauce (and added the second batch of sauce just before the cornstarch slurry). So easy. So quick. Love that since I cooked the rice in the Instant Pot first – it’s a one pot wonder! The family adored it.
Hi Nisha!
This recipe is so good! I am enjoying learning from you and really appreciate all the work you do to make vegan eating so delicious and accessible. I am giving this one 4 stars only because the broccoli got a little too mushy for my taste, even though I followed your instructions exactly. I think I will try just adding it to the pot and cooking on the sauté setting rather than the pressure cooker option and see how it goes. I prefer a more vibrant green broccoli. Best to you!
We appreciate your feedback and support, Linda! Thanks for the review!
Would it be possible to make this without an InstaPot?
Hi Julie, we haven’t tried making this outside of the Instant pot, so we aren’t exactly sure how it would go. That being said, this is what we would try if we did:
Follow steps 1-3 as written.
Step 4: complete this in a deep saute pan instead of the instant pot. Take the tofu out of the pan.
Skip steps 5-6
Step 7: In the saute pan, add 2-3 tablespoons of water and the broccoli.
Cover with a lid and steam for 2-3 minutes until just tender but still bright green.
Remove the lid and let any excess water evaporate.
Lower heat to medium-low and pour in the ginger-chili sauce
Cook, remembering to stir, for a few minutes over medium heat.
Follow step 8 as written, but obviously by adding the slurry into the saute pan not the IP.
Another option would be to make this tofu stir fry! It’s quite delicious and doesn’t require an Instant Pot!
Thanks so much. I love the new cookbook, btw. I preordered it months ago and it has not disappointed! It was so nice of you to reply.
You are very welcome, Julie! And yay, those words are music to our ears :) We hope you continue loving all of the new recipes you try!
Excellent recipe. Make it all the time.
Hi David, thank you so much for your kind review!
Great Recipe! This recipe will definitely be in my regular rotation for main dish recipes!
That’s amazing to hear, Adriana! Thanks for sharing :)
Holy moly, this is amazing.
I just got my Instant Pot, and I made five dishes to try it all out. This was one of them, and I cannot believe that I made a dish this good. The recipe is very easy to follow (thank you), and the sauce is so delicious.
I made my sauce using Steeves sugar free maple syrup, and it gave the dish that sweet/spicy combo, but not altering the taste of the sesame seed oil.
I am in Ontario, Canada, so I do not know if the syrup is widely available in other places, but there are probably other brands.
Hi Mark, we’re thrilled to hear you enjoyed this recipe! Next time, would you mind leaving a rating alongside your review? Star ratings are big help to readers who are thinking of making the recipe. Thanks!
Hello! Could I make this using frozen broccoli? All I have in the kitchen at the moment.
Hi Holly, yes but it won’t be as vibrant/the broccoli won’t have as much crunch. We hope you enjoy the recipe!
I used frozen broccoli, and it is my first time making the dish, but it was so good. The broccoli does not have the same crunch as fresh, but then again, I sometimes like softer cooked broccoli.
Thanks for sharing, Mark!
great flavor, easy, and pantry friendly! . I agree that the IP method gets the flavor deeper into the tofu than just marinating alone. Also agree with another commenter that my firm tofu (was pressed for hours, stored uncovered in the fridge and felt really dry/firm before cooking) did not crisp up at all. But I don’t mind.. that isn’t that important to me. Not sure I would use the IP for cook the broccoli in the IP b/c it ended up too soft for me.
Hi there, we are glad you enjoyed the recipe! And we appreciate the feedback.
The tofu is so flavourful – the sauce soaks all the way through. Will be using this instant pot method for other recipes!
Hello! I love this recipe but was wondering if it would work similarly with plant based chicken or steak strips (I have the refrigerated kind). Thanks!
Hi Jennifer, depending on the texture and ingredients of the plant based chicken / steak strips, they may not absorb the marinade in the same way tofu does but it would probably still be tasty!
Are all the above recipes in the cookbook?
Hi Lisa, only the chinese-style tofu and broccoli recipe can be found in Nisha’s IP cookbook.
I have made this six times since buying your cookbook. It is my favorite! So glad you made this recipe!
We’re delighted to hear you truly love the recipe, Jennifer! Next time, would you mind leaving a rating alongside your review? Star ratings are big help to readers who are thinking of making the recipe. Thanks!
How much regular tamari soy sauce would you suggest I use, since I don’t have the reduced sodium one?
The flavors were really good. I’m not sure if I did something wrong but the tofu really wasn’t browning. It finally started browning after a little while but it took more like 12 minutes to even get close to being browned. I lost patience after a little while and just went on with making the dish so it was kind of just browned on one side and a bit mushy and extremely difficult to flip without breaking. It was also kind of uneven in terms of the browning. Any advice?
Hi Jennifer, we’re sorry to hear the tofu didn’t brown as evenly as you’d hoped for! The longer you press tofu, the more water it will draw out, making it less water-logged (also changing the towels in between helps). Another alternative is to use super firm tofu, which has very little water left and is easier to saute and flip (though it doesn’t seem to absorb as much flavor as extra firm tofu).
Allow the IP to preheat entirely dry by itself. Once it’s preheated, you can add the oil and allow it to heat by itself for a minute. Then, ensure the oil is evenly distributed or it can cause the tofu to stick and/or brown unevenly. If it’s still difficult to flip without breaking, that means it needs more time. Once tofu is browned on the bottom, you should be able to stick a small metal spatula underneath the edge of the tofu and lift it with little to no resistance. We hope you try this again with better results!
That ginger chili sauce is out of this world delicious!
Hi Elizabeth, so jazzed to hear you loved the recipe 🎷 This is a favorite in my house too!
I just made this. I didn’t have agave so used honey. So tasty!
Thanks for sharing, Kim! :)
When doing this on the stove, how long should I cook the tofu?
Hi Mar, just a couple minutes on 2-3 sides of the tofu should work well!
Nisha, definitely liked this recipe. I think the sauteeing first and then pressure cooking really helped to pull in the flavors in the tofu, because otherwise I’ve always felt the flavors JUST DON’T get into the tofu. I also found it a bit too sweet for us, so perhaps next time we’ll go easy on that agave.
Good to hear you enjoyed it! Sorry you found it too sweet, hopefully next time you prepare the tofu and broccoli you can make it to fit your preferences :)