Ready to try the ultimate Japanese Agedashi Tofu Recipe? Lightly fried tofu with an airy crunch – covered in savory Tsuyu broth and topped with katsuobushi! Make this classic Japanese izakaya snack at home in only 25 minutes!
Agedashi Tofu Recipe
The warm tentsuyu broth added to the dish just before serving is full of savory umami and just a touch of sweetness. Meanwhile, the grated ginger on top brings a spicy freshness, that rounds out the flavor profile beautifully.
Our history with Japanese fried tofu
How to cook Agedashi Tofu
Lightly dust your drained silken tofu with a bit of potato starch. This will provide an airy, crunchy exterior to your tofu once fried.
Then heat your cooking oil to around 340°F. Once hot, carefully place your tofu cubes inside and deep fry until golden brown.
Drain on paper towels until the excess oil has run off.
Meanwhile in a small pan, heat up your dashi stock, mirin, soy sauce, sugar and salt. Stir until the sugar has disolved.
Serve your fried tofu cubes in the broth – and top with scallions, katsuobushi and grated ginger and daikon.
YUM!
Agedashi tofu makes a great side to noodle dishes such as miso ramen, ja ja men (dry ground pork noodles) or Vietnamese chicken noodle soup.
Here are some of my other favorite tofu dishes:
- Tofu Dengaku
- Green Beans and Tofu With Curry Sauce
- Tofu and Clam Scramble
- Chocolate Tofu Mousse
- Vegetarian Spicy Tofu and Celery Salad
Agedashi tofu (deep-fried tofu in tsuyu broth)
Make this traditional Japanese tofu dish at home in just 25 minutes!
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Total Time: 25 minutes
- Yield: 4 people 1x
- Category: Side
- Method: Deep fryig
- Cuisine: Japanese
Ingredients
- Two 12-ounce box silken tofu (drained)
- potato starch or cornstarch (for dusting)
- oil (for frying)
- 1 cup dashi stock
- 2 tablespoons mirin
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 1/2 teaspoon granulated sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
Toppings:
- ginger (peeled and grated)
- green onion or chives (finely chopped)
- shiso leaves (chopped) optional
- myoga (chopped) optional
Instructions
- Drain the tofu and then wrap it in paper towels and place in a strainer for 30 minutes to remove excess moisture. Cut the tofu into four pieces, dry again with paper towels, then coat with the potato starch.
- Heat the oil to a suitable temperature for deep-frying (around 340 degrees). Carefully put the tofu pieces in to fry and when they turn golden, remove and drain on paper towels to remove excess oil.
- In a small pan heat up the dashi stock, mirin, soy sauce, sugar and salt. Bring to the boil, ensuring that the sugar has dissolved.
- Divide the tofu among four bowls. Pour a little of the hot broth into each bowl and garnish with the grated daikon, a dab of grated ginger, shiso, myoga, and green onion to taste.
Notes
This Agedashi Tofu recipe is meant to be enjoyed immediately. The broth can be saved for later, but once the tofu is fried it will not keep in the fridge.
Nutrition
- Serving Size:
- Calories: 163
- Sugar: 4.3 g
- Sodium: 744.3 mg
- Fat: 7.9 g
- Saturated Fat: 1.4 g
- Carbohydrates: 9.4 g
- Fiber: 0.8 g
- Protein: 12.9 g
- Cholesterol: 2.3 mg
Keywords: recipe, vegetarian, appetizer, Japanese, izakaya
I loved this recipe so much and made it exactly as written. Made a cucumber salad to go with it and it was perfect
★★★★★
Does this yield a bit of crust on the tofu, even without potato starch? I’ve made one version of Agedashi Tofu, and most of the recipes I’ve read called for potato starch. I’d be happy to skip that step, but I do like the crispiness! Thanks!
★★★★★
Hi Joyce! You do need the potato starch to get the crispy gooey exterior. You can also use cornstarch! 🙂
Absolutely delicious and quite simple! Even the husband who doesn’t go for tofu likes it.
★★★★★
I was hoping to find a good agedashi tofu recipe after having a very disappointing experience at a restaurant in northern California. Your recipe look absolutely delicious and simple to make and I can’t wait to try it. Thank you!
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EXCELLENT! FIRST TIME I ‘VE DONE IT, I THOUGHT IT WAS DIFFICULT BUT IT TURNED OUT PERFECT. LOVE IT! QUICK & HEALTHY RECIPE.
FINALLY, I FOUND EXACTLY WHAT I WAS LOOKING FOR.
THANK YOU FOR SHARING THIS.
★★★★★
Thank you so much Therese!! 🙂
Thanks for the great recipe. Mine didn’t really brown though with just the potato starch. So I rolled in potato starch dipped in egg mix then rolled in panko. Gave it more of a crunch also.
Lovely recipe! The broth was perfect. We shallow fried because we don’t have a deep fryer. Because it requires more handling of the tofu we cut it into smaller pieces before coating and frying. Turned out great! I was craving this dish and was so chuffed to make it at home. Thanks for the recipe!
★★★★★
Wonderful Kris! I shallow fry all the time too and it works just as well 🙂
Thanks I love this recipe!
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Can the tofu be air fried? Instead of deep fried
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Hi Fabiola,
That’s a good question, I’ve never tried air frying tofu but I definitely will add it to the list of “must try”. If you get to it before I do, let me know how it turns out! 🙂
Really really tasty. This is serious comfort food.
I tried your recipe and it tastes exactly the same with the onese served in japanese restaurants. Thank you for the recipe.
I just googled for an agedashi tofu recipe and yours looks stunning! Im bookmarking it to make ASAP and after having a little nosy around your blog, I’m subscribing 🙂
Beautiful pictures! i love agedashi tofu. I just love tofu, but its a very under appreciated food…