Thai Inspired Green Curry Tofu
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This irresistible Thai Inspired Green Curry Tofu is absolutely packed with bright and fresh flavors. Air fried tofu in a garlicky and gingery green curry sauce packed with snow peas and finally served up with some fluffy rice. A must try for any curry lover. Talk about a healthy, vegan and veggie filled bowl that comes together in under 30 minutes!
Thai Green Curry Tofu
Since you guys love my Thai Red Chicken Curry so much, it’s only fair I give you a green curry that’s just as simple and just as delicious. If you’re someone who loves curries, you won’t be disappointed if making this recipe.
Green curry is considered the most popular curry. Because the green curry paste is made with green chilis, it is far hotter than other curries. However the coconut milk will tone down the spiciness quite a bit.
One of the best things to serve with Thai green curry is some nice fragrant fluffy coconut rice or plain jasmine rice. This is a very customizable dish that you can easily add other proteins or vegetables according to your liking. Try broccoli florets, green or red bell peppers, snap peas, mushrooms, sweet potato chunks, or even eggplant.
Thai Green Curry Tofu Highlights
- DELICIOUS. This Thai Green Curry recipe is tremendously creamy, a bit spicy and filled with lots of good-for-you ingredients.
- BIG BOLD FLAVORS. While tofu on its own is quite bland, it will shine in this recipe as it takes on all the wonderful flavors in this dish. That’s why it’s important to have a great tasting sauce or seasonings to really enhance it.
- VERSATILE. It is so easy to customize this recipe to your liking by adding some of your favorite vegetables or proteins.
For Tofu
- Tofu – I used firm tofu or even use extra-firm tofu that is drained and then patted dry with paper towels. Then cut them into 1 inch cubes.
- Soy Sauce – You’ll want a little bit of soy sauce to add some flavor to our bland tofu. I prefer a low sodium soy sauce.
- Sesame Oil – I also love to add a bit of sesame oil because I just love the flavor but you can skip this ingredient or use some olive oil or even peanut oil.
For Green Curry
- Peanut Oil – You need some peanut oil to sauté the curry and lemongrass paste, garlic, and ginger. You can use any vegetable oil you have.
- Curry Paste – This green curry paste is the main ingredient in the dish that gives the most flavor, so it’s important to get a good quality green curry. Feel free to adjust the amount of curry paste depending if you prefer a medium heat or a smoking hot curry.
- Lemongrass – I used lemongrass paste because it’s more convenient but you can use a couple of fresh lemongrass stalks instead.
- Ginger and Garlic – Use some finely grated fresh ginger and minced garlic.
- Broth – I like to use the low sodium vegetable broth. If you’re going for a vegan dish, then vegetable broth is the way to go, but if you don’t care, then chicken broth will also work.
- Coconut Milk – You’ll need a can of full-fat coconut milk to make our curry sweet and creamy.
- Fish Sauce – You’ll only need a little bit to bring a deeper, savory, umami punch to the curry. However, if you don’t have any, you can skip it.
- Sugar – A little white sugar will balance out the flavors and give us a bit of sweetness.
- Kaffir Lime Leaves – Kaffir lime leaves have a spiced-citrus fragrance that is a must in a green curry.
- Snow Peas – I decided to use snow peas in this curry, but you can use so many other veggies such as red or green peppers, mushrooms, broccoli, etc.
Tofu
- Prepare tofu. I decided to air fry my tofu because it’s much easier and while the tofu is being cooked I can actually make the curry at the same time and save time. Of course, you can also pan fry it. To prep the tofu, make sure you properly pat it dry using paper towels or a clean kitchen towel. Next, cut it into equal bite size pieces, about 1-inch. Transfer to a bowl along with the soy sauce and sesame oil. Toss everything together well.
- Air fry. Transfer the tofu pieces to your air fryer and air fry at 380°F for about 10 minutes, shaking the basket half way through to promote even cooking.
- Stove top. Alternatively, you can sear the tofu in a hot skillet until golden all around.
Green Curry
- Saute green curry. Heat the peanut oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the green curry paste, lemongrass paste, garlic and ginger. Cook and continually stir for 2 minutes.
- Add liquids. Pour in the vegetable broth, coconut milk and stir well until the paste has dissolved. Add the fish sauce, sugar, kaffir lime leaves and mix.
- Cook. Bring the curry to a boil. Turn the heat down and simmer for another 5 minutes. Taste and adjust with salt and pepper as needed.
- Finish the curry. Add the snow peas and cook for 2 minutes until softened. Remove and discard kaffir lime leaves. Toss in the crispy tofu and basil leaves.
- Garnish and serve. Garnish with green onions or chopped cilantro. Serve with jasmine rice and lime wedges.
What Other Proteins Can I Add To Green Curry?
If tofu is not your thing, no worries. Chicken is a great alternative, along with fish or shrimp.
What Is Green Curry Paste Made From?
Thai green curry paste is incorporated into far more dishes than any other paste. Some of the standard ingredients include dried chilis, garlic, shallots, lemongrass, galangal, cilantro roots, makrut lime zest, white peppercorns, shrimp paste, and salt.
What’s The Difference Between Red And Green Curry Paste?
The biggest difference is that red curry uses dry red chilies as a base for its paste, whereas green curry paste requires fresh green chilies.
My Favorite Air Fryer
I often get asked which air fryer I use so here’s the one I use on a regular basis.
Expert Tips
- Instead of serving the curry with rice, try rice noodles for a change.
- Make sure you don’t crowd the tofu in the air fryer. The circulating air is what cooks and crisps it the best.
- Using firm tofu will allow it to stay intact. If you get soft, it can just fall apart.
- For tofu to get crispy, make sure you pat it dry with paper towels. Pressing out the water also allows the tofu to absorb more flavors from any marinade or seasonings you might use.
- If you really love tofu, buy a tofu press for the easiest way to remove all that moisture.
- If you don’t have an air fryer, pan-fried or baked tofu works well.
- Add a splash of lime juice at the end to balance sweet, salty and sour flavors.
Leftovers
Store leftover curry in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3-5 days.
Freezer
Yes, it’s possible to freeze Thai green curry tofu. Freezing tofu does change the texture but may not be as noticeable if using it in a dish that contains many other ingredients such as various vegetables.
More Delicious Recipes You Might Enjoy
- Coconut Shrimp Curry
- Thai Red Chicken Curry
- Coconut Chicken Curry
- Coconut Basil Chicken Curry
- Thai Red Curry Turkey Meatballs
- Pad Thai
- Mapo Tofu
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Thai Inspired Green Curry Tofu
Video
Ingredients
For Tofu
- 12 ounces firm tofu (drained and patted dry with paper towels)
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce (low sodium)
- 1 tablespoon sesame oil
For Thai Green Curry
- 3 tablespoons peanut oil
- 4 tablespoons green curry paste
- 2 teaspoons lemongrass paste (or 2 stalks of lemongrass)
- 2 teaspoons fresh ginger (finely grated)
- 2 cloves garlic (minced)
- 1 cup vegetable broth (low sodium)
- 14 ounces coconut milk ((1 can))
- 2 teaspoons fish sauce
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 5 kaffir lime leaves
- 1½ cups snow peas
- 8 leaves Thai basil
Before You Begin! If you make this, please leave a review and rating letting us know how you liked this recipe! This helps our business thrive & continue providing free recipes.
Instructions
Tofu
- Prepare tofu. After the tofu has been properly patted dry, cut it into equal bite size pieces, about 1-inch. Transfer to a bowl along with the soy sauce and sesame oil. Toss everything together well.
- Air fry. Transfer the tofu pieces to your air fryer and air fry at 380°F for about 10 minutes, shaking the basket half way through to promote even cooking.
- Stove top. Alternatively, you can sear the tofu in a hot skillet until golden all around.
Green Curry
- Saute green curry. Heat the peanut oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the green curry paste, lemongrass paste, garlic and ginger. Cook and continually stir for 2 minutes.
- Add liquids. Pour in the vegetable broth, coconut milk and stir well until the paste has dissolved. Add the fish sauce, sugar, kaffir lime leaves and mix.
- Cook. Bring the curry to a boil. Turn the heat down and simmer for another 5 minutes. Taste and adjust with salt and pepper as needed.
- Finish the curry. Add the snow peas and cook for 2 minutes until softened. Remove and discard kaffir lime leaves. Toss in the crispy tofu and basil leaves.
- Garnish and serve. Garnish with green onions or chopped cilantro. Serve with jasmine rice and lime wedges.
Notes
- Instead of serving the curry with rice, try rice noodles for a change.
- Make sure you don’t crowd the tofu in the air fryer. The circulating air is what cooks and crisps it the best.
- Using firm tofu will allow it to stay intact. If you get soft, it can just fall apart.
- For tofu to get crispy, make sure you pat it dry with paper towels. Pressing out the water also allows the tofu to absorb more flavors from any marinade or seasonings you might use.
- If you really love tofu, buy a tofu press for the easiest way to remove all that moisture.
- If you don’t have an air fryer, pan-fried or baked tofu works well.
- Add a splash of lime juice at the end to balance sweet, salty and sour flavors.
- Store leftover curry in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3-5 days.
Nutrition Information
Notice: Nutrition is auto-calculated for your convenience. Where relevant, we recommend using your own nutrition calculations.
