🌶️ Salt and pepper tofu
Salt and pepper tofu is a Cantonese favourite: cubes of tofu fried until crisp outside and soft and silky inside, then tossed with salt, white pepper, fresh chili, garlic and scallion. The coating is light and crackly, the seasoning punchy and aromatic. It is served as a shared dish or snack, straight from the wok.
Diets
Allergens
Contains (in a typical recipe):
What it is made of
Recipe
Ingredients
- 400 g firm tofu
- 2 tbsp cornstarch
- Oil for frying
- 1 tsp salt
- ½ tsp ground white pepper
- 1 red chili, sliced
- 3 garlic cloves, chopped
- 2 scallions, sliced
Method
- Press the tofu dry, cut it into cubes and toss in the cornstarch.
- Fry in hot oil in batches until golden and crisp, then drain on paper.
- Pour off all but 1 tsp oil and fry the garlic, chili and scallion for 30 seconds.
- Return the tofu, sprinkle with the salt and white pepper, toss and serve at once.
How to make it lighter
- Bake or air-fry the coated tofu instead of deep-frying to cut the absorbed oil sharply.
- Drain fried tofu well on paper towels before tossing.
- Pair it with steamed greens rather than fried rice.
History
The “salt and pepper” (jiāo yán) style of frying comes from Cantonese cooking, where it is applied to squid, prawns, pork ribs and tofu. It is now a fixture of Chinese restaurant menus around the world.
Count it in one photo
Point your camera at the table — Me Nutrition recognises Salt and pepper tofu and every other dish, with calories and macros for each. Ate only half? Slide it.
Download on the App StoreSimilar dishes
Values are estimates per 100 g for a typical recipe; home and restaurant versions vary. Diets and allergens are worked out from the ingredients of a typical recipe — always check with whoever cooked the dish. Not medical advice. Nutrition data: Me Nutrition dish database v13. How we count →