My family devours these crispy tofu fingers! They’re a simple, kid-friendly snack or meal that even adults love. Easily made gluten-free, too!
If you want a new way to enjoy tofu, these crispy tofu fingers are a perfect place to start. In addition to our baked tofu, they are one of our family’s most made tofu recipes. I slice my tofu into strips or fingers, but you can always turn these into tofu nuggets by cutting them into cubes.
Similar to chicken nuggets or popcorn chicken, these are incredible with homemade ketchup or this incredibly good creamy honey mustard sauce. I can’t wait for you to make them!
Key Ingredients
- Tofu: Use extra-firm tofu for this recipe as it holds up well to the breading and pan-frying. Firm tofu should be okay if that is all you have.
- Oil: We pan-fry the breaded tofu fingers in avocado oil since it has a high smoke point. A higher-heat cooking olive oil or vegetable oil is fine, too.
- Flour: To keep these gluten-free, we use almond flour (sometimes called almond meal), but plain all-purpose flour is fine.
- Spices: I keep these simple and use garlic powder, salt, and pepper, but you can mix in more spices or spice blends if you’d like more flavor. Any all-purpose seasoning added to the flour would be excellent.
- Eggs: After rolling the tofu fingers in flour, I dip them in beaten eggs. If you want to make this recipe egg-free, you can substitute lightly beaten aquafaba, plant-based unsweetened yogurt, or vegan mayo.
- Cereal or Breadcrumbs: We wanted to keep this recipe gluten-free, so we use a gluten-free cereal like rice Chex. If gluten is not a problem, use other crunchy cereals like cornflakes or substitute them with panko breadcrumbs.
How to Make Crispy Tofu Fingers
These tofu fingers or nuggets are easy to make at home. You’ll want to press your tofu for 15 minutes first, removing extra moisture. I slice my block of tofu into slabs, cover it with paper towels, and then place a heavy baking sheet on top. The thinner slabs speed up the pressing process so you can get on with dinner!
Next, you’ll need a breading station. Flour and spices in one vessel, beaten eggs (or your egg-free substitute) in another, and finally, crushed cereal or breadcrumbs.
You’ll roll each tofu finger into the flour, dip in the egg, and roll in the crispy cereal (or breadcrumbs). Then, place them into hot oil in a skillet and cook until golden brown and crisp. From there, you can serve with your favorite dipping sauces. For us, that’s homemade ketchup!
Crispy Tofu Fingers
- PREP
- COOK
- TOTAL
My family devours these crispy baked tofu fingers! We roll tofu in almond flour, dip it in egg, then roll it in crushed rice cereal. Thanks to the almond flour and cereal, this is gluten-free. You can substitute the almond flour for all-purpose flour and the cereal for breadcrumbs.
You Will Need
1 (12oz) package extra-firm tofu
3 tablespoons avocado oil
3/4 cup almond flour or all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
1/4 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
2 large eggs, see tips for substitute
3 cups crushed gluten-free cereal like Chex or use panko breadcrumbs
Directions
1Slice the tofu into 1-inch slabs. Arrange in one layer onto a few paper towels or clean dish towels. Cover with more paper towels or another clean dish towel. Place a baking sheet with something heavy on top to weigh down the tofu, releasing some liquid. Leave alone for 15 minutes.
2Slice the tofu into fingers.
3Set up a breading station: Mix almond flour, garlic powder, salt, and pepper on a plate. Add egg to a bowl and beat well. On a third plate, mix the crushed cereal or breadcrumbs with another pinch of salt and a few grinds of black pepper.
4Dip each tofu finger into the seasoned flour, the egg, and finally into the crushed cereal so they are well coated on all sides.
5Heat oil in a large skillet pan over medium-high heat. Add the tofu, 4 to 5 fingers at a time, and cook until golden brown, 30 seconds to 1 minute on each side. Transfer to a plate lined with a paper towel or clean dishcloth. Serve with your favorite dipping sauce.
Adam and Joanne's Tips
- Eggs: You can substitute the eggs in our recipe with non-dairy yogurt, lightly beaten aquafaba, or vegan mayonnaise.
- Nutrition facts provided below are estimates.
I am so lucky to have found this recipe. That’s all that needs to be said! I used 2 cups cereal instead of 3.
OMGOODNESS! These were delicious! I used unsweetened almond milk instead of eggs. They were so good there were no leftovers! Dips we used: Sweet and sour sauce and sriracha sauce!
These are amazing! I made them tonight with gluten free flour and gluten free Panko crumbs and my husband (who doesn’t like tofu) gobbled most of them up before I could even get them on my toddler’s tray! Thanks for the easy and delicious recipe!
Made these today, but with a mix of chia seeds, dried bread crumbs and rye cereal instead of rice cereal, they turned out great!
Sounds great!
Want to try these but what can I replace the eggs and egg based cereals with? Resently found out my 3 year old is allergic to eggs and milk. And this will be our first time cooking and eating Tufu.
You could try using a bbq sauce or mustard in place of the eggs (we have only done this with chicken in our kitchen, but it worked well for us). As far as cereals — you could try panko breadcrumbs?
I made these last night and they were really good. I didn’t have all the seasonings, but they tasted amazing. My omni partner said they tasted like fish sticks. Also, I used panko bread crumbs instead of the chex mix and Ener-G egg replacer instead of eggs since I am vegan. I will be making these again. Thanks!
These look INCREDIBLE. I am going to try them for dinner tonight. Do you have other gluten/dairy free recipes?
Made these tonight without the cereal – they still came out great! Dipped them in Rao’s homemade marinara sauce and the family loved it!
Made this last night. We didn’t have Chex, so we substituted Corn Flakes. I told my son they were fish sticks until he agreed they were good and then told him the truth. It was amazing and we were in fact “still talking about it hours after finishing.” We all loved it! Thank you for sharing.
Yay! Love that you came back and let us know. We’re so happy you and your son liked it!
I love this!! I’m obsessed with tofu…this is going on my tofu pinterest board and I’m definitely trying it soon!
Oh my,these look so yummy!I just saw the picture on top and I knew I had to go through the recipe!
I love tofu,more because it is one of the best sources of protein/so healthy!Kids will love these,I am sure!
Thank you for sharing!:-)
Is there a way to make a baked version of this too? *_* Cause this is an awesome idea and the idea of eating healthier while cheaper pulls at my heartstrings like no other XD
Hi Connie — We definitely think so! Place the cereal-coated tofu on a cookie sheet that has been sprayed lightly with non-stick cooking spray then bake in a 400 degree oven for 8-10 minutes, flip tofu, then bake another 8-1010 or until golden and crispy.
Love these tofu sticks – this is the most appetizing take I’ve seen on tofu so far and what a fantastic crunch you’ve achieved… I am featuring this post in today’s Friday Food Fetish roundup (with a link-back and attribution), but please let me know if you have any objections. It’s a pleasure following your creations…
thanks! so happy you liked them and thank you for sharing!
They look great! I am not a tofu person but I’ve been trying to find reasons to start and these look like a great reason! Tofu generally takes on the taste of whatever they’re cooked in, so what do these tofu fingers take on the flavor of?
The breading is nutty in flavor (from the almond flour and cereal). We also use salt, pepper and garlic powder. They really do taste similar to a chicken nugget. Also, the sauce you dip the fingers in add a lot of flavor.
These look like a fun and easy way to get more tofu into our diet!