Spicy Sesame Zoodles? I say yes. And throw in some crispy tofu for good measure. This is SO totally how we roll.
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I’ve never ever left a comment or rated a recipe… anywhere on the internet before. But this was SO GOOD. I feel like the world needs to know. Such a home run recipe!!!
Alexandra
Are you down with this?
It starts with zoodles (zucchini noodles) tossed with a thick and intensely deep spicy sesame peanut sauce that will then eventually get loaded up with crispy tofu that has been made crispy by just pan-frying it with the same spicy sesame peanut sauce, but waiting until those crispy browned bits appear in the pan / wondering if this is going to be weird / actually loving the texture of the browned bits in contrast with the tofu and sesame zoodles.
We are letting this browned bits situation happen intentionally so it feels like we did more work (making an additional crispy topping) than we actually did (re-using the same sauce for everything and calling it good). Do you like this strategy?
No need to go out of our way for multiple sauces with this recipe. You know I’m weak for a one-sauce wonder.
How To Make Our Sesame Zoodles (1 MIN):
Now that you’re excited about all these chili flavors and crispy-creamy textures, I’m going to present you with the hot vs cold dilemma.
I know. Let me blow your mind for a hot second -> I DID NOT COOK THE ZOODLES. Repeat: DID NOT COOK.
I let them be raw and crunchy because sometimes I find that cooked zoodles are 50% awesome and 50% sad and soggy. When I made this as lunch for myself the other day, I was very okay letting it be more crunchy and salad-like in nature, and also cold. Cold sesame noodles are a thing, you know. So why can’t cold sesame zoodles have their moment to shine? The idea of taking this to the hot level was kind of weirding me out once I had the vision of trying to replicate those yummy cold sesame noodles.
It almost always happens like this – that I have an idea for what I want to make for dinner and then at the last minute I jump ship on whatever my idea was, delete all those grocery items from my grocery list and add a few new ones (or skip the grocery store altogether – amiright?), and just make something that’s way easier and more convenient than my initially overambitious plan.
But usually that’s a good thing, because usually what that means is that I end up making something that is faster, more practical, and tested + approved for everyday life while still being super delicious. Maybe even halfway healthy.
Just everyone cross your fingers that it’s not takeout sushi again. Ughhhh I’m weak.
In this case, sesame zoodles won out over takeout sushi and over my initial idea for a more complicated and time consuming recipe. Easy. Delicious. Halfway healthy. Check check check.
I’m telling you, those browned crispy bits. Let them get REAL nice and crunchy.
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Spicy Sesame Zoodles with Crispy Tofu
- Total Time: 25 minutes
- Yield: 6 1x
Description
Spicy Sesame Zoodles with Crispy Tofu! SUPER easy recipe with familiar ingredients – soy sauce, peanut butter, sesame oil, garlic, zucchini, and tofu. Vegan / Vegetarian
Ingredients
Chili Sesame Sauce:
- 1/2 cup peanut butter
- 1/3 cup sesame oil
- 1/3 cup light low sodium soy sauce
- 1/4 cup rice vinegar
- 2 tablespoons chili paste (like sambal oelek)
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 1 knob of fresh ginger, peeled and grated
Zoodles and Tofu
- 12 ounces extra firm tofu
- 4–6 zucchini
- sesame seeds and scallions for topping
Instructions
- Chili Sesame Sauce: Shake all the sauce ingredients in a jar or toss them in the food processor and give them a whirl. If you’re going to have this cold, refrigerate your sauce for a while.
- Tofu:Ā Press excess moisture out of the tofu. Cut into bite sized pieces. Heat a tiny bit of oil in a nonstick pan. Add the tofu and stir fry until golden brown. Add about 1/2 cup sauce and simmer until the sauce starts to evaporate / absorb into the tofu and becomes browned in the pan. Keep gently flipping and scraping browned bits off the bottom – after a while, you should end up with nicely golden brown tofu with some little yummy browned bits from the sauce.
- All Together: Spiralize your zucchini and toss with about 1/4 cup sauce per serving. Top with tofu, sesame seeds, and scallions. Serve immediately.
Notes
I did NOT cook the zoodles. I wanted this to be more like a salad, cold and creamy and crunchy. Whether or not you cook the zoodles, when the sauce hits those zoodles they’re going to get a little watery. I found that this was only a problem when I didn’t serve immediately, so to avoid excess moisture, serve it right after you toss it up!
You may want to use more tofu depending on how many servings you are wanting to get out of this. I was fine with 12 ounces as 6 servings (just doing a small scoop of tofu on each pile of zoodles) but if you were super hungry you might want more.
Storing this: I would store the sauce separate from the zoodles and tofu, and then toss it all together just before serving.
- Prep Time: 10 mins
- Cook Time: 15 mins
- Category: Dinner
- Cuisine: Asian-Inspired
Keywords: sesame zoodles, zoodle recipe, tofu recipe, vegan recipe, noodle recipe
One More Thing!
This recipe is part of our collection of easy tofu recipes. Check it out!
I have had this saved for quite a while, and stumbled across it again ., it says 6 servings , and of course the recipe called for 6 zucchini. However zucchini at my store are not that big . I wouldnāt think I that would be a full meal for someone
This was absolutely delicious. I liked the zoodles cold. It reminded me of a vermicelli dish. Thanks!
I knew I’d like this recipe but did not expect my husband and kiddo to like it as much as they did! A win!
I made this with a couple of adjustments and we loved it! Added some sliced bell peppers in with the tofu after adding the sauce. Also put the zoodles in the pan for a few minutes after removing the tofu/peppers so they softened up and picked up some flavour from the sauce remnants still in the pan. Yum!
How do you make zoodles
Hi Lakshmi! Here’s a tutorial on how to make zoodles! https://www.thekitchn.com/zucchini-noodles-259080
I was honestly a bit skeptical about the zoodles being uncooked but this was seriously so good. The peanut sauce is to die for! Iāll definitely be adding this to my rotation.
This is a great way to use zucchini! The peanut sauce is fantastic!
This was so delicious! Definitely without cooking the zucchini noodles. I did Zoodles, cilantro and a light coating of peanut sauce. Itās delicious without being decadent!
This has been my go to sauce for YEARS. From when this blog was pretty new. You were in Indonesia I think? I was living on Guam when I found it. So at least 10-14 years now Iāve been making this sauce for noodles and zoodles. About time I rated it the 5 stars it deserves.
I never leave comments. But I also never eat tofu or zoodles so this is an evening of firsts! I’ve always secretly wanted to try tofu so I tried this recipe. Wow. Super yummy!! Spicy and creamy, salty from the tofu. It was so good that I cooked up another plate. I sincerely had my doubts lol, but the first bite laid them all to rest. Thanks!!
YES. this was great. Great way to use zucchini. I used almond butter which I just like for a sauce more than PB.
Donāt need to squeeze out water from zucchini either.
We added some chili crisp on top and wow it was fresh and easy and delicious.
Super easy and delicious!
How long can you store the sauce in the fridge?
We’d store it for 5-7 days in the fridge in a sealed container. Hope this helps!
I made this today and it was amazing!
I read about watery Zoodles and the key is to drain them in a colander with a little salt and then ring them out in a cheese cloth. Itās a deal breaker for us! Hope this helps and I think your green ā¤ļø
Holy cow this is awesome!!!! Made the sauce in the food processor and it came out the perfect texture, and the flavor is just ridiculously good. Love the tofu and little crunchy browned bits.
Glad to hear this was enjoyed, Kim!
tried this recipe this evening.
absolutely delicious.
If you want to keep spiralized veggie noodles from getting watery, 5 minutes in an air fryer at 350Ā° will remove a lot of the excess water.
Great tip! Thanks, Jeff!
Wow!! This was so good! Amazing flavor! So delicious, I am making this over and over again. I am so glad I found this recipe. Thank you for sharing this to all.
The most delicious recipes! I have converted many meat eaters into liking tofu with this one. Super flavourful and easy!
Delicious and simple. I added spinach (because I had it on hand) and it was a successful addition. Thanks for sharing the recipe!
This recipe was excellent! I did use fresh ramen instead of the zucchini but you could put that sauce on anything and the dish would be amazing!!
Delicious. I forgot the garlic and purposefully did not add sugar. It was scrumptious nevertheless. Poured it over cold zoodles. A keeper.
I am so excited to try this recipe tonight. One question however, how long would the sauce last in a jar for?
The sauce should last for up to 5 days in the fridge! Enjoy!
Tried this tonight and it was as easy as the recipe said. Crispy yummy tofu cooked in the peanut sauce during the last five minutes per the recipe. Save this one for later!!!