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Bigger close up of the skillet meal along with tofu, avocado, rice and lime wedges.

Chili Lime Tofu Skillet

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star 5 from 3 reviews
  • Author: Catherine Perez
  • Prep Time: 15 minutes
  • Cook Time: 30 minutes
  • Total Time: 45 minutes
  • Yield: 4-6 servings 1x
  • Category: Main Dish
  • Method: One Pot
  • Cuisine: American
  • Diet: Vegan

Description

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.


Ingredients

Scale
  • 1 block extra firm tofu, pressed and cubed
  • 3 tbsp soy sauce, divided
  • 2 tsp nutritional yeast or 1 tsp of cornstarch
  • 2 tbsp olive oil, divided
  • ½ red onion, diced
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 1 bell pepper, diced
  • 45 cloves garlic, finely minced
  • 1 sweet potato, peeled and diced into cm cubes
  • 2 tsp ground cumin
  • 2 tsp smoked paprika
  • 1 tsp ground coriander
  • 1 tsp oregano
  • ½ tsp thyme or a few sprigs fresh thyme
  • 1 cup vegetable broth
  • 1, 15 oz can of black beans
  • Juice and zest of 1 lime
  • 1 tbsp maple syrup, optional
  • Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

  1. Prepare your tofu. Take your tofu and place in an airtight container with 2 tablespoons of soy sauce and nutritional yeast. Seal the lid and give a good shake to coat. Add 1 tablespoon of oil to a large sauté pan and bring to medium heat. Add your tofu in making sure your pieces are not touching and allow to pan fry and lightly brown on one side for about 2-3 minutes then flip to the opposite side and lightly brown again. Once tofu is cooked, remove from heat in place in a bowl to rest.
  2. To the same pan, add in the remaining oil and your onion, red bell pepper, bay leaf and a pinch of salt, sautéing until onion is softened.
  3. Add in your garlic and sauté again until fragrant, about 1 minute.
  4. Stir in your sweet potato and all remaining herbs and spices and sauté until fragrant.
  5. Pour in your vegetable broth, remaining soy sauce, black beans and maple syrup. Reduce your heat to a simmer and cover with a lid for 8 minutes to cook the sweet potato through.
  6. Remove the lid and gently fold in the tofu, lime zest, juice and pinch of salt and stir well to coat.
  7. Cook for an additional 2 minutes with the lid off and then remove from heat allowing the skillet to rest for 5 minutes before serving.

Notes

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. If you want to save on the oil, you can also bake your tofu.

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.