Air fryer tofu katsu
Panko-crusted tofu cutlets air-fried until shatteringly crisp, drizzled with a quick sweet and tangy katsu sauce and served with rice and crunchy shredded cabbage.
- 50 min total
- 30 min hands-on
- A little more hands-on
- Serves 2
- About $2.17 a serving
- 790 calories
- Vegan
- Dairy-free
Dolly says: Read the steps once before you start. Everything goes smoother after that.
Ingredients
For 2 servings.
- 1 package extra-firm tofu, drained
- 1 cup long-grain white rice
- ¾ cup panko breadcrumbs
- 3 tbsp ketchup
- 2 cups coleslaw mix
- 1 tsp sesame seeds (optional)
From your pantry
- 1¾ cups water, divided
- ½ tsp salt, divided
- 3 tbsp all-purpose flour
- ½ tsp garlic powder
- 1 tbsp vegetable oil
- 1 tbsp soy sauce
- 1 tsp brown sugar
- 1 tsp rice vinegar
Each serving has about 790 calories, 35 g protein, 116 g carbs and 20 g fat, and costs about $2.17 at typical US grocery prices. Both are estimates from what the recipe uses.
Missing something?
- No extra-firm tofu? Firm tofu works.
- No long-grain white rice? Jasmine rice or basmati rice works.
- No coleslaw mix? Green cabbage or red cabbage works.
Steps
Tap an underlined word for a quick explanation.
Wrap the tofu in a clean towel and press it under something heavy for 15 minutes.
Timer: 15 min
Dolly’s tip: Pressed tofu holds its crust. Wet tofu makes the panko slide off.Meanwhile, the rice and bring it in a small with 1½ cups water and ¼ teaspoon salt over high heat.
Rinse. Rinsing means running cold water over rice or canned beans in a strainer while you swish them around. It washes off loose starch and can liquid, so rice cooks up fluffy and beans taste clean.
How you’ll know: The water running out goes from cloudy to mostly clear; it doesn’t have to be perfect.
Bring to a boil. It means heating a liquid on high until it’s fully boiling before you move on. A lid on the pot gets it there faster, which makes it a good moment to chop something.
How you’ll know: Big bubbles break all over the surface, and they keep coming when you lift the lid.
Saucepan. A saucepan is a pot with tall, straight sides and one long handle. It’s for things that need depth, like rice, sauces or a few boiled eggs.
How you’ll know: The food fills it about halfway, leaving room to bubble without spilling over.
High heat
Stir once, cover, and cook on low for 15 minutes. Take it off the heat and leave the lid on.
Low heatTimer: 15 min
Cut the tofu into 4 slabs about ½ inch thick and them dry.
Lengthwise. Lengthwise means cutting along the long side, from stem to tip, which gives long pieces. Crosswise is the other way, straight across the middle, which gives short, round ones.
How you’ll know: Lengthwise halves of a zucchini look like two little canoes; crosswise pieces look like coins.
Pat dry. Patting dry means pressing paper towels onto food to soak up the moisture on its surface. Wet food steams instead of browning, so this is how you get a good sear and crisp skin.
How you’ll know: The surface feels tacky, not wet, and the last paper towel comes away barely damp.
the flour, garlic powder, ¼ teaspoon salt and ¼ cup water into a thin batter in a shallow bowl. Put the panko in a second shallow bowl and rub in the oil with your fingers.
Whisk. Whisking means beating quickly with a whisk or a fork to blend things together. It smooths out lumps and mixes eggs, oil or sauces evenly.
How you’ll know: It all looks one even color and texture, with no streaks or lumps.
Dip each slab in the batter, let the extra drip off, then press it firmly into the panko on both sides.
Dolly’s tip: Press hard. Panko only sticks where you push it on.Air fry the cutlets in one layer at 400°F for 10 to 12 minutes, flipping halfway, until deep and crunchy.
Golden brown. Golden brown is the color of good toast, somewhere between yellow and light brown. It means the outside is cooked and crisp but not burnt.
How you’ll know: It looks like toast and smells toasty; dark brown with a bitter smell means it went too far.
Timer: 11 min
Food safety: Tofu is safe to eat straight from the package; cooking is only for texture and flavor.
While they cook, stir the ketchup, soy sauce, brown sugar and vinegar in a small bowl. This is your katsu sauce.
each cutlet into strips and serve over the rice with a pile of the coleslaw mix, the katsu sauce over and sesame seeds on top.
Slice. Slicing means cutting food into flat pieces of about the same thickness. Even slices cook evenly, so none are raw while others burn.
How you’ll know: Lay a few side by side: they’re close to the same thickness from one end to the other.
Drizzle. Drizzling means pouring a thin, slow stream over the top of something. A thin stream spreads a little flavor a long way.
How you’ll know: You see thin lines across the food, not a puddle collecting underneath.
Plan this in Dollop, and get the grocery list
Dollop puts this dinner on a night that suits your week, lists only what you still need to buy, and walks you through each step while you cook.
More dinners like this
Air fryer sesame tofu
45 min
Teriyaki tofu
45 min
Air fryer salt and pepper tofu
45 min
Air fryer tofu
45 min
High-protein dinners ›Vegetarian dinners ›What to make with rice and tofu ›