Air Fryer Tofu with Honey Garlic Sauce

Crispy air fryer tofu is made to perfection every time, with less fat than the traditional method of deep-frying. In less than 20 minutes, you are tossing your air fryer tofu in a homemade honey garlic sauce that is balanced in flavor and totally satisfying.

air fryer tofu with honey garlic sauce on a white plate next to broccoli

I’m sure like most tofu eaters you have tried it about every way imaginable and sometimes the crisp just isn’t there!

Air frying is your answer! 

I recently got an air fryer and I have to say I am in love!

It is user friendly, minimal cleanup and the fact that you can make anything you want to in it is amazing (anything that can be cooked in the oven can be made in the air fryer, ex. cookies, muffins, breads, chicken, etc!)

The first thing I air-fried was air fryer cauliflower gnocchi which was so good!

I was actually impressed with the crispiness!

close up of crispy air fryer tofu squares

When using the air fryer, it cooks by convection, therefore leaving foods more crispy without having to be deep-fried.

Convection simply means that there’s really hot air blowing all around the food as the cooking method. 

Air frying tofu allows you to decrease the cooking time without comprising that crunch you are wanting.

Not to mention you don’t have to worry about all the unhealthy stuff like you do when deep-frying! 

honey garlic air fryer tofu served over rice and snap peas

How to Make Air Fryer Tofu 

Here are some of the ingredients you will need to get started!

Don’t forget the honey garlic sauce, it adds so much flavor! 

Extra Firm Tofu – By using extra firm, most of the excess water is already squeezed out, but you will need to press it a little more before air frying.

If you have a tofu press that’s perfect!

If not, simply lay the tofu in the center of a clean thin dishtowel and gently press to remove excess moisture.

Removing the excess moisture plays a huge part in the tofu being crispy. 

Cooking spray – By spraying the bottom of your air fryer and the tops of the tofu, this reduces the fat content, because we won’t be using added oils.

Other Ingredients: corn starch, garlic powder, paprika, onion powder, salt, soy sauce, honey, and minced garlic. 

air fryer tofu topped with a honey garlic sauce

Tips for Making Air Fryer Tofu

  • Did you know you can purchase parchment paper liners to make cleanup super easy? These liners already have precut holes in the bottom, so there it doesn’t affect the quality of cooking, nor does it increase the time. 
  • Don’t overload your basket. This is really the only downside to cooking with an air fryer. If you overload the basket, it will increase the cooking time and your tofu will not get as crispy. The best way to avoid this is to cook in batches. Keep your previous batch in the oven at a higher temperature so it stays ways and doesn’t lose its crunch. 
  • If you have leftovers and want to reheat the tofu, simply use the air fryer for just a few minutes on the reheat setting. 
air fryer tofu with honey garlic sauce on a bed of rice and broccoli

How Should I Serve Honey Garlic Air Fryer Tofu?

If you are using the honey garlic sauce, which I highly recommend you do, it gives the tofu more of an Asian style meal.

Here are some side dishes and ways you can serve it:

I am so excited to make more recipes in the air fryer!

If you have some suggestions for me, let me know on Instagram

Don’t forget to tag me so I can see how they turn out!

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Healthy Air Fryer Tofu with Honey Garlic Sauce

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air fryer tofu with honey garlic sauce on a white plate next to broccoli

Air Fryer Tofu with Honey Garlic Sauce

Crispy air fryer tofu is made to perfection every time, with less fat than the traditional method of deep-frying. In less than 20 minutes, you are tossing your air fryer tofu in a homemade honey garlic sauce that is balanced in flavor and totally satisfying.
4.70 from 108 votes
Cook Time 18 minutes
Total Time 28 minutes

Ingredients
  

  • 14 ounces extra firm tofu
  • 1 tbsp Corn Starch
  • 1 tsp Garlic Powder
  • 1/2 tsp Paprika
  • 1/2 tsp Onion Powder
  • 1/2 tsp Salt
  • Cooking Spray

Honey Garlic Sauce

  • 3/4 Cup Chicken Broth
  • 1/3 cup Honey Can add more if you like it sweeter!
  • 2 tbsp Soy sauce
  • 2 tsp Garlic minced
  • 1/2 tsp Ground Ginger
  • 1/2 Tbsp Cornstarch
  • 1 Tbsp Water

Instructions
 

  • Lay the tofu in the center of a clean thin dishtowel and gentle press to remove excess moisture. Cut the tofu into ~1 x1 inch pieces.
  • Place the squares in a large bowl or a large ziploc bag. Add the cornstarch, garlic powder, paprika, onion powder, and salt. Toss or close and shake the bag until the tofu is completely coated.
  • Spray the basket of the air fryer and place the cubes in a single layer. (Optional to use air fryer parchment paper for easy clean up!) Spray the tops of the tofu with cooking spray. Set the air fryer at 360F for 18 minutes. After the 10 minutes, give the basket a shake. Arrange tofu back in a single layer across the basket and cook for another 8 minutes at 360F.
  • While the tofu is frying, combine chicken broth, honey, soy sauce, garlic, and ginger in a saucepan over medium heat; bring to a gentle boil. Reduce heat and simmer sauce, stirring often, until flavors combine, about 5 minutes.
  • Whisk water and cornstarch together in a small bowl. Pour into the saucepan; simmer until sauce thickens, about 5 minutes.
  • When the tofu is done frying. Place in the bowl with 1/2 cup honey garlic sauce and toss.
  • Plate the tofu, drizzle with extra sauce as desired. Enjoy!
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

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39 Comments

  1. 5 stars
    Love this easy to make recipe! I too have discovered air fryer cooking!!! I made this recipe vegan by using maple syrup instead of honey and used my homemade vegan chicken broth instead of storebought. Turned out so good and delicious!!!

  2. 5 stars
    This is a great recipe. I wanted a way to entice my 10 year old to eat tofu. This seems to have opened her mind to it. My husband found the sauce a little too sweet using the 1/3 cup honey. Would use less next time and taste to see as it cooks (maybe add a touch more honey to my daughter’s). Thanks!

  3. 5 stars
    Tried this for dinner tonight and was very happy with the recipe. Loved it. We will definitely be making this again!

  4. 5 stars
    I just got an air fryer and was very happy to see this recipe, which I tweaked just slightly. I made fried rice with kale in a wok, then transferred those items to a warm bowl. After cutting and coating the tofu I added sesame oil to the wok then the coated tofu for about 5 minutes to coat with oil then spread on a pan to air fry. At the end, I added half the heated sauce to the wok then mixed in the tofu. It was tasty! Kale fried rice and garlic honey Tofu…Yum! Thank you

    1. That combo sounds amazing!! I need to try it for myself as I love fried rice 🙂 Thanks for sharing and I’m so glad you enjoyed it! P.S. – the air fryer is awesome!! You will love it!

    1. Hi Penny! I don’t include the nutritional information on my recipes, but if you search for a calorie calculator online you can add all the ingredients and it will calculate it for you 🙂 Glad you liked it!

  5. 5 stars
    Best meatballs I’ve ever made! Why did I wait so long to bake them? I was short on breadcrumbs so I put French Fried Onions in the food processor and added to the breadcrumbs! Turned out marvelous! Going to start another batch to freeze tomorrow

    https://www.beckandbulow.com

  6. My husband and I have never had tofu. It always seemed off-putting to us. After beginning a healthier lifestyle I decided to finally try it. This recipe was my first attempt and it was delicious! My husband thought it was chicken and kept commenting on how crispy the outside was and how soft the inside was. It tasted just like Chinese food and satisfied my craving for it while still being healthy! So excited to try more tofu recipes!! Thank you for this awesome recipe, it’s going in the book!!

  7. 5 stars
    This is honestly the best tofu recipe I’ve ever used. The tofu comes out great and is consistent every time. The sauce is also delicious and is great with stir fries too. The last time we made this we used Hot Honey instead of regular honey and it made it even better!

  8. AIR FRYER TOFU WITH HONEY GARLIC SAUCE does anyone have the nutritional info for this recipe? Please post.
    Thanks

  9. 4 stars
    Wonderful flavors and would be great for meal prep!!! We ate with broccoli and rice. The only issues were that the sauce is quite thin, and the tofu softens a lot with the sauce – any recommendations to thicken the sauce and maintain the crisp?

  10. 5 stars
    I tried the tofu recipe without the sauce since I was low/did not have all of the ingredients. I ended up making the same-ish sauce. Anyway, the tofu came out incredibly crispy. It’s one of the best dinners I’ve made for myself and passes the nutrition test! I ate it with two servings of broccoli (hadn’t eaten lunch and wanted to make up for it in dinner). Let me just say, this recipe is wonderfully easy and fun to do! From coating the tofu by shaking the bag to the short cooking time, what is not to like???!!! If I could, I’d post the photo I took.

  11. 4 stars
    A bit sweeter than I typically like as written. I added a healthy dose of red pepper flakes to balance out the sweetness with some spice and that tasted great. Next time I will keep the crispy tofu outside of the sauce and drizzle that on top when serving so they stay crispy…mixing with the sauce, mine became soft again. I ate this with rice and steamed broccoli. Will definitely keep this in the rotation with my minor tweaks.

  12. 5 stars
    My kids love this! I just had to make a second batch of tofu because they ate it all while I was making the sauce!

  13. 5 stars
    I had given up liking air fryer tofu until I tried this recipe. I think the 1” cubes are the perfect size, along with coating them in seasonings. I don’t find it makes any significant difference whether I flip foods in my air fryer or not. I think the only critique I have is that this makes a lot of sauce. You can either try to reduce the sauce by cooking it longer, or use it for your rice and veggies.

      1. 5 stars
        My boyfriend I really love this recipe. The tofu was perfectly crispy and Seasonings were awesome. The sauce was over the top amazing ,next time I’m going to make one and a half times the sauce because we enjoyed it on the broccoli and short grain brown rice too!!
        kudos to you and thank you for sharing!

4.70 from 108 votes (91 ratings without comment)

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