Air Fryer Tofu
Updated Jun 28, 2025
This Air fryer tofu is soaked in a quick marinade and super crispy coating. Cook in the air fryer for 20 minutes to get it crispy crunchy!
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Air Fryer Tofu!
These air fryer tofu bites started as a lazy dinner experiment and quickly became one of my go-tos. I’m not always in the mood to cook meat, but I still want something hot, crispy, and filling, and tofu delivers when you treat it right.
I press it, toss it in whatever’s in the spice drawer, and let the air fryer do its thing. No flipping, no babysitting. Just crispy little bites that work with rice, salad, or straight from the tray while I’m standing at the counter.
Happy Cooking!
– Yumna
Air Fryer Tofu Ingredients
- Tofu: I use extra firm tofu and press it for about 20 minutes to squeeze out all the extra moisture.
- Cornstarch: I like using cornstarch to coat my tofu (that’s what give it its crunch) but you can use flour or breadcrumbs as well! Just know that it’ll cook a bit slower.
- Soy sauce: A soy sauce-based marinade is my absolute favorite tofu-flavoring.
- Avocado oil: I love avocado oil, but you can use whatever neutral oil you have on hand!
- Spices: My tofu marinade calls for garlic powder, ginger powder, chili powder, and black pepper. Feel free to play around with your own favorite spices, too.
- Garnishes: I love serving my crispy tofu bites with sliced green onions and a dipping sauce like spicy mayo or avocado crema.
How to Make Air Fryer Tofu
Air Fryer Tofu Recipe
Ingredients
- 12 ounces extra firm tofu pressed and cubed
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon avocado oil
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon ginger powder
- ½ teaspoon chili powder
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- Green onions sliced, for serving
Instructions
- Toss the tofu with soy sauce, oil, garlic powder, ginger powder, chili powder and black pepper. Add cornstarch and toss until coated, let sit for a minute, toss again.
- Preheat the air fryer to 400˚F.
- Carefully lift the tofu cubes out of the bowl and place on the hot air fryer basket. Air fry until the tofu is golden brown, shaking the basket every 5 minutes, about 20 minutes total. Garnish with green onions and serve immediately.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information provided is an estimate. It will vary based on cooking method and specific ingredients used.
Recipe Tips
- Make sure to press your tofu. The key to the ultimate crispy tofu is getting as much moisture out as possible, which is why it’s so important to press your tofu! Take a look at my tutorial on easy tofu pressing techniques (without any fancy tools). I promise, it’ll make all the difference!
- No air fryer? Make your tofu bites in the oven. If you don’t have an air fryer, you can still make this tofu in the oven. I recommend setting the tofu on a wire rack over a baking sheet and baking them at 400˚F for 25 to 30 minutes.
- Preheat your air fryer first. A hot air fryer is great for getting a crispy coating on these tofu cubes. It jump-starts the cooking process, so the outside starts to cook immediately while the insides warm up a bit slower.
- Toss twice for the best coating. For the best crunch on my tofu bites, I make a point to toss them them in the seasoned cornstarch twice! The second toss is the key to the perfect coating.
- Place your tofu in an even layer and shake your air fryer basket. If your tofu is overlapping, it won’t get crispy all over! I also like to give my basket a good toss every 5 minutes to move the tofu bites around.
Serving Ideas
- Make it a noodle dish: I love making homemade Asian noodles…especially Pad Thai! And these crispy tofu bits are a perfect addition in place of chicken or seafood.
- Throw your tofu bites on a salad: Crunchy tofu is the best protein-heavy topping for a salad. It’s a great way to make sure a light green lunchtime salad is filling enough!
- Serve as a snack: Finger foods like this are a great opportunity to try your hand at some dipping sauces. My favorites are Spicy Mayo, Homemade Ranch Dip, and Creamy Feta Dip!
FAQs
You can store your tofu in the fridge in airtight container for up to 4-5 days. To reheat, just toss it in the air fryer for about 4-5 minutes to heat through. You can also reheat your tofu in a pan or in the oven.
Yes, you can freeze tofu before or after cooking, as long as it’s pressed! Just place your marinated and coated pressed tofu cubes or cooled air-fried tofu bites on a parchment-lined baking sheet and freeze them. Then, transfer them to a zip-lok bag and store them for up to 3 months. To reheat them, toss them the air fryer while frozen and shake the basket every few minutes until they’re cooked through (it may take a few extra minutes).
I like to air fry my tofu at 400 degrees for 20 minutes, tossing the basket every 5 minutes for even cooking until they’re brown and crispy.
If your tofu bites still aren’t crispy after 20 minutes of cooking and tossing in the air fryer, it may be because your tofu wasn’t pressed long enough to get rid of the moisture. It’s also possible that your basket is overcrowded so your tofu doesn’t have enough room to crisp up properly, or that your air fryer wasn’t preheated for long enough!
For me, pressing the tofu to remove moisture is the most important step for better frying texture. I recommend wrapping your tofu in paper towels and setting a heavy pan on top with a few cans. Then, you can just let it sit like this for about 20 minutes to press all the extra liquid out.
