• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
Go Cook Yummy
  • Air Fryer
  • Browse Recipes
    • Easy Dinners
    • Traybakes
    • Slow Cooker
    • Baking
    • Sauces
    • Collections
  • Cooking Tips

Home » Air Fryer » Crispy Air Fryer Tofu Nuggets (From Scratch)

Crispy Air Fryer Tofu Nuggets (From Scratch)

By Victoria · On: Jan 21, 22 · Last Modified: Mar 14, 22

16 shares

The air fryer tofu nuggets are perfectly crispy, healthy and you can make this appetizer in just 20 minutes. A high-protein plant-based dinner for your family that you can serve with your favorite dipping sauce or on top of your favorite salads.

Jump to Recipe • Print Recipe
Close look of golden panko nuggets in air fryer.

As the tofu by default is very soft, you will need to find a little secret to get that meaty texture instead of the mushy one. These tofu nuggets, are insanely crispy, are a great alternative to the classic chicken nuggets and they are a thousand times better and healthier than the store-bought vegetarian chicken nuggets.

Because we will make these tofu nuggets in the air fryer, we will have them ready to be served on the table in just 20 minutes, and as we will know, we will get a crazy crunchy texture by using minimum oil.

In This Post: show
1 📖 What is Tofu?
2 🎓 What You Will Find in This Post?
3 👩‍🍳How to Make Tofu Nuggets in Air Fryer?
4 🥰 Why You Will Love This Recipe?
5 🥘 Ingredients and Variations
6 🍽️ What to Serve with Air Fryer Tofu Nuggets?
7 👩‍🍳 Step-by-step How to Make Air Fryer Tofu Nuggets
8 🏆 Expert Tips. What to Pay Attention On?
9 ♻️ Make Ahead, Storage and Heating:
10 📋 Recipe Card:

📖 What is Tofu?

Tofu is made from fresh or dried soybeans that were soaked in water, crushed, and boiled. Then later calcium and magnesium are added to the soy milk to separate the curds from the whey. After that, these curds are pressed into white blocks of tofu that we see on the store shelves.

You also may find different types of tofu, like extra-firm, firm, soft or silken. That firmness of tofu depends on how much liquid has been pressed out of the curds.

Two woman hands break one tofu nuggets to see the inner texture.

🎓 What You Will Find in This Post?

  • The secret behind meaty tofu nuggets texture.
  • How to cook all the nuggets evenly.
  • How to store them.
  • How to reheat and to keep the crunchy texture.

👩‍🍳How to Make Tofu Nuggets in Air Fryer?

  1. Freeze and defrost tofu to get a meaty texture.
  2. Cut the tofu into similar-sized cubes.
  3. Roll over the tofu nuggets on a plate with starch or flour, then on a plate with water.
  4. Then quickly cover them on all sides with breadcrumbs.
  5. Cook in the air fryer for 15 minutes at 400°F / 200°C.
A plate with air fryer tofu nuggets coated in panko.

🥰 Why You Will Love This Recipe?

  • These tofu nuggets are high in protein, iron, calcium, and magnesium which is important for our body.
  • It’s a great vegan alternative to the classic chicken nuggets.
  • It’s a good way to add protein to your diet.
  • It’s perfect for kids and they love all the crunchy stuff.

🥘 Ingredients and Variations

Needed ingredients for the air fryer tofu nuggets made from scratch.
  • Tofu. Use hard tofu because it will keep its shape during baking.
  • Starch. I used corn starch but you can also replace it with flour or potato starch.
  • Panko bread crumbs. You can replace it with breadcrumbs or with crushed puffed brown rice cereal or corn flakes.
  • Cooking Spray or you can use a little vegetable oil. We are doing that to make the tofu nuggets crispier. If you are looking for a healthier version of them, just skip the oil.

🍽️ What to Serve with Air Fryer Tofu Nuggets?

You can enjoy them as is near your favorite dipping sauce or for a complete meal, serve the tofu nuggets with a green salad or near some cooked vegetables.

👩‍🍳 Step-by-step How to Make Air Fryer Tofu Nuggets

Quick Note: If you’re trying to serve these nuggets to your kids instead of the traditional chicken nuggets then you can give a texture to these tofu nuggets like they are made from chicken meat.

Best Recipes to Try in The Air Fryer:

  • BBQ Chicken Breast
  • Fried Eggs in Air Fryer
  • Air Fryer Yogurt Cake
  • Stuffed Mushrooms

All you will need is to press a little on the tofu and put them in the freezer. Then you will need a night before to put them into the fridge for defrosting. By doing that, you’ll get a perfectly meaty texture that nobody will believe that that’s not chicken.

If you’re ok with the regular tofu texture then let’s go to the actual steps.

Cut tofu into equal cubes about 1″.

Take a plate and pour in it the corn starch or other alternatives that you decided to use. Put all the tofu nuggets into this plate and roll them over until they will be evenly covered with starch on all sides.

Five pieces of tofu coated in a plate with starch.

After that, take a plate of cold water and quickly immerse each cube in turn in the water.

Woman hand holding a piece of tofu.

After that, put the wet cubes on a plate with panko or breadcrumbs and cover each tofu cube on all sides.

Do You Love Your Air Fryer?

Level up your experience even more with these air fryer accessories!

Five pieces of tofu coated in a plate with panko

Arrange the tofu nuggets in the air fryer basket and sprinkle them with vegetable oil or cooking spray.

Quick Note: If you cook a larger amount of tofu nuggets, be careful not to stick them together because you will lose the crust. If necessary, cook them in a few batches.

Top view of panko tofu nuggets in the air fryer basket.

Bake them for 15 minutes at 400°F / 200°C or until they will get a golden crust.

Quick Note: The cooking time is approximate only because it may differ by the air fryer model, size, and what kind of tofu you are using. Because of that, after 10 minutes, please check how cooked is the tofu and adjust the timing if is needed.

Top view of panko tofu nuggets in the air fryer basket.

In the end, you will get a bunch of tofu nuggets that have a crunchy texture and a rich golden color.

Close look of golden panko nuggets in air fryer.

🏆 Expert Tips. What to Pay Attention On?

  • Cut all the pieces of tofu into equal sizes to be sure that all of them will cook the same.
  • If you prefer a “meatier” texture more like a chicken-like texture, you can freeze the tofu then in the evening or the morning the next day, put the tofu in the refrigerator to defrost before cooking. It’s also important after you will freeze the tofu, to press on it to remove all the water excesses.

♻️ Make Ahead, Storage and Heating:

Can I Prepare the tofu nuggets Ahead?

Yes! You can make them in a big batch and then coated, but uncooked to keep them in the fridge overnight or to freeze in the refrigerator for up to 3 months.

How Long Do they Last in the Fridge?

You can keep the tofu nuggets in the fridge for 3-4 days in a tightly closed container.

Can You Freeze the tofu nuggets?

After you have rolled them in breadcrumbs, you can put them in a single layer in a tightly closed container and freeze them for 2-3 months. But as this is a dish that is easy to prepare, I will recommend preparing them fresh before eating them.

How to Re-heat the Tofu Nuggets?

To get the same crunchy texture as at the beginning, re-heat them in an air fryer for 3-5 minutes at 370°F / 190°C.

📋 Recipe Card:

Close look at air fryer tofu nuggets on a dark plate.

Crispy Air Fryer Tofu Nuggets

Victoria
Crispy air fryer tofu nuggets made from scratch using only tofu, starch, panko, and oil. They will have a nice golden color, crunchy texture on the exterior, and fluffy interior.
5 from 3 votes
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 5 mins
Cook Time 15 mins
Total Time 20 mins
Course Appetizer, Dinner, Quick Recipes, Snack
Cuisine American, Vegan
Servings 2 people
Calories 188 kcal

Equipment

Cosori Air Fryer 5.8QT
Cosori Air Fryer 5.8QT
White Plastic Cutting Board.
Cutting Board
Chef Knife
Chef Knife

Ingredients
 
 

  • 7 oz Tofu
  • 3 tablespoons Starch
  • ¼ cup Water
  • ½ cup Panko
  • Cooking Spray

Instructions

  • Cut tofu into similar-sized cubes of about 1".
    7 oz Tofu
  • Pour the corn starch in a plate and roll over the tofu nuggets until they will be well covered with starch on all sides.
    3 tablespoons Starch
  • Then quickly moisten them in a plate with cold water.
    ¼ cup Water
  • Once you have moistened tofu nuggets, take another plate and pour panko in it. Roll them over through the panko. If the water from the tofu will dry, the panko will not stick to it.
    ½ cup Panko
  • Arrange all the pieces of tofu in the air fryer basket in a single layer and sprinkle them with cooking spray or vegetable oil.
    Cooking Spray
  • Bake for the tofu nuggets for about 15 minutes at 400°F / 200°C or until you will get a golden brown color.

Notes

  • It is necessary to quickly pour tofu through the water because if you will keep it for too long in the water, you risk the starch washing off it and you will not get a uniform crust.

Nutrition Estimates

Sodium: 116mgCalcium: 153mgSugar: 1gFiber: 2gPotassium: 30mgCalories: 188kcalSaturated Fat: 1gFat: 5gProtein: 11gCarbohydrates: 24gIron: 2mg
Keyword air fryer, easy recipe, fried, mid-week, vegan
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!
We are participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.
16 shares
Previous Post: « Best Air Fryer Twice Baked Potatoes
Next Post: Air Fryer Chicken Strips Coated in Breadcrumbs »

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Keith

    Feb 08, 22 at 7:21 AM

    5 stars
    They turned out great! Thank you for the recipe!

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




Primary Sidebar

Happy to Have you there!

Hey, I'm Victoria, the blogger behind the Go Cook Yummy. I'm running this blog with my husband, Alex, where we share our family recipes that actually work. Read more about us...

Recipes to Try:

Air Fryer potato skins with sour cream on a blue plate.

Easy Air Fryer Potato Skins

Close look of chili cheese nuggets on a black plate with a few splashes of dill sauce.

Chili Cheese Nuggets in Air Fryer

Twice baked potatoes with green onions, ham and cheese.

Best Air Fryer Twice Baked Potatoes

Pieces of juicy air fried orange chicken breast on a blue table.

Juicy and Easy Air Fryer Orange Chicken

Footer

Follow Us:

  • Facebook
  • Pinterest
  • TikTok

Copyright © 2023 GoCooYummy • Stories • Contact Us • Privacy Policy