Tofu Satay Bowls

Satay, in bowl form! These tofu satay bowls feature peanut tofu, rice, cucumbers, and the yummiest peanut satay sauce. A healthy and filling plant-based dinner.

this Recipe

Peanut sauce fans, these tofu satay bowls are for you. A good sauce can make or break a recipe, and I find that I can eat almost anything with the right sauce.

I know that traditional satay is served on skewers, but I decided to give it the bowl treatment in this recipe. Marinating tofu slabs in a peanut-soy dressing, baking until chewy and tender, then covering in a savory peanut sauce.

Serve with rice, crunchy cucumbers, and more chopped peanuts. This tofu satay bowl is one you’ll be turning to over and over again.

Especially if you like my popular Peanut Tofu Buddha Bowls, you’ll love this recipe. See below for tips for success and step-by-step photo directions, or scroll down to the full recipe below.

Ingredient Notes

I like extra-firm tofu in these tofu satay bowls for firmer texture, but you can use any firm tofu. I slice the tofu into thin pieces, but you can also cube the tofu or even crumble it if you’d like.

The peanut-soy marinade is nice and thick, easy to brush or rub onto your tofu. I do this technique in my Smoky Tofu Sandwiches and it’s a great way to ensure that every piece of tofu has plenty of flavor.

I like using full-fat coconut milk for these peanut sauce as I think full-fat coconut milk has so much more flavor and texture than light. It’s worth the extra fat and calories to me, but you can use light if you’d prefer. You can use any leftover coconut milk in my chickpea veggie curry and my chickpea curry with coconut rice.

The red curry paste is a thai curry paste, I like the brands Maesri, but Thai Kitchen is also a good brand that you can find at most grocery stores.

If you want to make this recipe gluten-free, use tamari instead of soy sauce.

Lastly, I like creamy peanut butter but you can use crunchy peanut butter if you have it. I really like adding in chopped peanuts on top for extra crunch. It’s a must for me!

How to make these Tofu Satay Bowls

Brush Tofu with Peanut Marinade

Whisk together the ingredients for the peanut marinade, then brush or spread onto the tofu. It will be thick!

Bake

Bake tofu until chewy and tender, flipping halfway through.

Make the Peanut Sauce

While the tofu is baking, make the peanut sauce! Whisk together and cook until hot and reduced. The sauce is very forgiving, so adjust based on how you like little lime juice for more brightness, more coconut/peanut for richness, etc.

Assemble

Ready to eat! Toss the tofu with a little of the peanut sauce, then serve over hot rice, sliced cucumbers, more sauce and a generous garnish of cilantro, chopped peanuts and sauce.

Tips for Success

I really like the addition of cucumbers in these tofu satay bowls for crunch and balance to the rich satay sauce. You can use other vegetables if you’d like, but I think thin skinned cucumbers, like Persian or English are best. I use cucumbers in other bowl recipes, like my chili crisp tofu bowls, gochujang tofu bowls and the latest– my bang bang tofu bowls!

I highly recommend garnish with chopped cilantro, crunchy peanuts and a squirt of lime juice on top. So good!

More Tofu Recipes

• Baked Tofu Nuggets
• How to Make Crispy Baked Tofu
• Japanese Cold Silken Tofu
• Tofu Scramble
• Copycat Chipotle Sofritas Tofu
• Tofu Rice Bowls with Black Beans and Corn

If you make these Tofu Satay Bowls, make sure to come back to leave a rating and a comment! Seeing you make my recipes makes my day and your feedback helps other readers.