Chili Lime Tofu Skillet

A hearty chili lime tofu skillet filled with tender flavorful tofu and black beans sautéed with onions, peppers, smoked paprika, cumin and a fresh splash of lime juice and zest. Smokey with a sweet zing and easy to make all in one pan.

Why You’ll Love this Skillet Meal

• This whole meal cooks up in just one pan and comes together quick. This includes minimal chopping and a short simmer time to steam the sweet potato in the skillet.
• High in plant protein. We’re able to make this a high protein meal by combining both beans and extra-firm tofu in this one meal.
• Lots of spices to help amplify the flavor in this dish. While it might sound like a big list of spices, each one is adding a unique depth of flavor to this dish to make it savory with a bit of tang from the lime zest and juice.

Get the Most Out of Your Plant Protein

I’ve talked a bit about protein in my balancing your vegan plate article already. So let’s put some of that information into practice by highlighting the great protein added to this chili lime tofu skillet. If enjoying this recipe as 4 servings, you can get about 20 grams of protein per serving. You can also choose smaller servings of this skillet meal and serve along side with a serving of quinoa and still get a similar protein total.

Getting in enough protein is not so much a struggle as it is just knowing how much and what to aim for. A big thing to work towards is making sure you are eating a varied and balanced plate of legumes, whole grains, vegetables, nuts and seeds most meals.

Key Ingredients

• Tofu: Use extra firm tofu and make sure to press out some of the water before cubing it. The tofu provides a great chew as well as a good amount of protein.
• Black Beans: Another source of plant protein and additional fiber for this dish.
• Vegetables: Onion, bell pepper, and sweet potato.
• Spices: Smoked paprika, cumin, oregano, coriander, and thyme.
• Lime: We’ll need both the zest and juice from the lime.

How to Make This Chili Lime Tofu Skillet

Start by coating your tofu in tamari/soy sauce and nutritional yeast. Once coated, lightly brown in a large skillet for a few minutes on two sides then set aside in a bowl.

Bring the pan back to the burner and sauté your onions and peppers. Fold in your garlic and continue to cook until fragrant. At this time, add in your sweet potato and remaining spices. Once they are fully combined and fragrant, add in your vegetable broth, black beans sweetener. Allow this mix to simmer covered for a few minutes until the sweet potato is cooked through.

After sweet potato is cooked, add in tofu, lime and a pinch of salt to balance the tang of the lime juice. Remove from heat and allow to rest for a few minutes then serve as desired.

Tips for Making This Tofu Skillet

• Don’t skip pan frying the tofu. It helps to sear the flavor of the marinade into the tofu making it more flavorful and helping to lend more flavor to the overall dish. This step also helps to make the tofu firmer, which will lead to the best tofu texture in this dish.
• You can save time for pressing the tofu by either pressing for 15 minutes using a tofu press or holding the tofu firmly around the edges of the tofu and gently squeezing the liquid out over the sink. For the easiest tofu hack, just use super firm tofu that comes in a vacuum sealed package since no pressing is necessary.
• If ingredients stick while sautéing, add a small splash of water to help loosen up the ingredients and keep things moving.
• To make sure your sweet potato cooks fast, cut it into cm cubes. The smaller the pieces, the faster it should steam while the pan is covered. If you cut them too big, do expect to cook this meal for a little more time, adding additional broth as necessary to prevent your pan from becoming dry.

Storing Leftovers

This is a dish that continues to get more flavorful as it sits in the fridge. Allow your leftovers to fully cool then place in airtight containers to store in the fridge for up to 5 days.

You can freeze this meal, but note that your vegetables will become softer then what they were when freshly cooked. Store in airtight containers and place in the freezer for up to 1 month.

More Tofu Recipes

• Coconut Green Curry Tofu
• Sazon Grilled Tofu Skewers
• Garlic Ginger Tofu Stew
• Garlic “Honey” Tofu

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★ Catherine

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