This savory silken tofu is incredibly simple to prepare and calls for a handful of basic ingredients to make the most flavorful soft tofu in just 5 minutes. Seasoned with a savory sauce with crisp aromatics, this quick & easy dish makes for the perfect appetizer or side dish for any occasion.
What is Silken Tofu?
Tofu is a popular ingredient in Korean cuisine and is used in many different dishes including Dubu Jorim (Korean Braised Tofu), Soondubu Jjigae (Korean Soft Tofu Stew), and Doenjang Jjigae (Korean Soybean Paste Stew) that I’ve previously shared on my blog.
This Korean-style silken tofu is one of my favorite side dishes to prepare, as its ease of preparation and alluring taste make it to be the perfect choice for any time of the day, especially on days that I’m feeling a bit lazy to cook up a full meal.
This soft tofu dish is traditionally served cold, but can also be served warm using a microwave or a steamer depending on your preference.
Nevertheless, It is truly one of the easiest & quickest ways to prepare tofu and contains all the essential flavors from Korean cuisine.
It calls for silken or soft tofu, which has a delicate, melt-in-your-mouth texture that pairs wonderfully with the crisp aromatic vegetables that are melded into the sauce.
The neutral taste of the silken tofu coupled with the fragrant, savory sauce is truly a match made in heaven.
This is one of my go-to cold dishes for the summertime as well, as the chilled tofu drenched in the delectable sauce is beautifully refreshing especially in the summer months when it can be too hot to work with heat.
There is absolutely no cooking required for this recipe and the preparation is so effortless with easy cleanup. Truly a life-saver for the busy days! This recipe is also vegan and vegetarian, and can be made gluten-free by using gluten-free soy sauce.
What do I need to make Silken Tofu?
This soft tofu recipe has to be one of the easiest recipes I’ve shared on the blog so far and calls for only a handful of ingredients that are commonly found in the pantry. Here is a list of ingredients you will need:
- Silken tofu: I recommend using silken or soft tofu that is sold in a rectangular shape, and not the cylinder shape that is ideal for soups/stews. Firm or extra-firm silken tofu will also work, but it may not be as silky and delicate as the soft kind.
- Soy sauce, sesame oil, sugar, toasted sesame seeds, and Gochugaru (Korean chili flakes) or crushed red pepper: for the sauce.
- Green onion, garlic, and chili pepper: for the aromatics. I used green chili peppers in this recipe, but feel free to use any type of chili pepper and adjust it to taste. You can also skip this entirely if you prefer the sauce to be mild.
And that’s it! All the ingredients you need to make a delicious serving of soy sauce tofu.
How to remove tofu from the box
This recipe requires the tofu to be plated as a whole which can be a difficult task to master, but I wanted to share an easy method to remove your tofu from the packaging without damaging it.
To safely remove the tofu from the package, flip the box over and trim off the edges of the box with a pair of sharp scissors (as per the photo above), turn it over, and peel away the plastic.
If you want to go the extra mile, you can carefully pull the sides of the box to pull apart the tofu from the packaging, then run some tap water in the spacing to create a layer of water in between the packaging and the tofu.
Afterwards, simply remove the excess moisture and cover the tofu with a plate to flip it over, and voila! The tofu should come out in perfect condition for you to enjoy.
How to serve Silken Tofu
This soft tofu dish is served cold straight from the fridge, which makes it incredibly convenient to prepare and refreshing to have during the summertime.
If you don’t prefer the tofu to be cold, you can leave it on the counter for about 20 minutes to bring it to room temperature, poach it for 1-2 minutes in boiling water, or microwave the tofu for about 30 seconds to quickly warm it up.
This silken tofu is incredibly soft and delicate which makes it easy to serve as a whole to be eaten with a spoon, but you can also cut it up into small pieces to serve.
Using a spoon not only makes it easy to consume but also helps to spoon out the delicious sauce to add maximum flavor to the tofu.
I hope you enjoy this easy and delicious soy sauce tofu recipe, and please feel free to leave a comment below or message me on Instagram for any questions you may have!
Other easy Korean recipes you may like:
- Korean Potato Salad (Gamja Salad)
- Mayak Eggs (Korean Marinated Eggs)
- Dubu Jorim (Korean Braised Tofu)
- Soondubu Jjigae (Korean Soft Tofu Stew)
- Gamja Jorim (Korean Braised Potatoes)
5-Minute Silken Tofu (Soft Tofu)
Ingredients
- 1 package silken tofu or soft tofu
Sauce
- 2 tbsp soy sauce
- 1 tsp sugar or honey
- 1 tsp sesame oil
- 1/2 tsp toasted sesame seeds
- 1/2 tsp Gochugaru (Korean chili flakes) or red pepper flakes, optional
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1 green onion chopped
- 1/2 chili pepper chopped, optional
Instructions
- Prepare the tofu by soaking up the excess liquid with a paper towel, or by carefully tilting the open package over the sink. Place a serving plate on top of the tofu and transfer it onto the plate.
- Combine all sauce ingredients in a bowl and pour it over the tofu. Enjoy!
Notes
♥ Did you make this recipe? Please give it a 5-star rating or leave a comment below to share your experience, or tag @cookerru on Instagram to showcase your creations!
41 comments
This was so delicious and easy to make! I’ve been craving this dish and this really hit the spot!!
I’m so happy you enjoyed it Jessica! Thanks so much for sharing! x
How long can I store this in the fridge ?
Hi Nabeelah! This dish is best served fresh, so if you want to prepare it in advance, I would suggest making the sauce prior and adding it to your tofu on the day of serving. I hope that helps! 🙂
Delicious and so quick to make. Will definitely be on my regular menu, thank you.
Good tip also about draining the tofu from the packet without it falling apart.
Made this for breakfast today and it was SO flavorful and a breeze to make. Always adore your recipes!!
Amazing! Thanks so much for sharing June! 🙂
So scrumptious! I substitute honey/sugar for organic maple syrup. Been having this dish every week. 3x’s so far. Haha! I store mine’s in a prex glass container if I can’t finish in one sitting, and still good the next day. Thank you for sharing the recipe, Elle.
Maple syrup is a great substitution! So happy to hear that you are enjoying the recipe Arjin – it’s definitely one of my favorite dishes to make during the summertime
Wow this was so easy and so yummy! Great for this hot summer heat, thank you for the recipe ☺️
The pleasure is all mine Kylie! So happy you enjoyed it! 🙂
This was extremely delicious. Warning to those who are sensitive to chilli. Halve or skip the Korean chilli powder (I added all of it and regretted nothing, my father-in-law was a bit brutalised though )
Haha! Yes you can definitely adjust the spice to your liking 🙂 So happy you enjoyed it Luisa!
This tastes amazing. Thank you for sharing this recipe.
My pleasure! Glad you enjoyed it Faye! ♡
So refreshing, simple, delicious, easy and talk about “hit the spot”!!!
I am going to always have silken tofu in my fridge from now on!
It’s a surely great simple meal! Thanks for sharing your experience with us! 🙂
anyone know the calories in this dish? btw it is amazing and flavourful, recommend to everyone x!
First time making it — so simple, yet incredible!
I added a smoked pepper pate cause I was out of peppers and OMG! Heaven in a bite! Pate made by Oregon Growers!
Fantastic quick side dish, we served this along broccoli and beef. So good!
I made this with ground Sichuan chili pepper and cilantro, and I had it with hot jasmine rice. It was very easy to make, and it was delicious. A great way to serve silken tofu!
Very simple to make while boasting an impressive presentation, and what an incredible taste! I shall consider this as a starter option when I’m entertaining guests in the future.
i’m addicted to this. having one a day per meal is the best. i can eat it on its own too.
Loved it! Was looking for a way to use my tofu and this is super quick! Will do again for sure.
I made one small modification. I fried the garlic and green onion in about 2tsps of a neutral high heat resistant oil (avocado in this case) for a few minutes to sweeten the flavours. Ill never need to do take out of this dish again. Thanks:)
Super delicious and easy dish. The flavors meld together beautifully and the smells created by the sauce will make you hungry, even if you think you aren’t.
So easy to make and a hit!!!
it really took only 5 minutes. totally hit the spot. thank you for sharing recipe.
I’ve enjoyed Korean food since the late ’70s; cooking it frequently. I love this recipe. It’s great in summers in the South, easy and quick to make, and delicious. I do like to allow time for the herbs and spices to sit on the tofu cake such that more flavor is absorbed into the tofu.
This was so simply but so so delicious!! This will be a staple in my recipe repertoire. I used maple syrup instead of sugar and Sambal Oelek because I ran out of gochugaru. Still tasted amazing! It served this with steamed rice. I cannot get over how good it was!
It was delicious! This was my first ever eating this and I will definitely do it again! So quick to prepare and easy as well.
This recipe brought back memories of the times I spent in Japan with my Japanese grandparents. It’s refreshing and delicious.
Quick, simple and foolproof recipe. Can’t believe how easy it was. You can be sure this is going to be one of my favourite go to recipes, when I’m in a hurry and lost for ideas.
I had some silken tofu left over from making chocolate mousse and this was the perfect way for me to use my leftovers! I microwaved my leftovers for 30 seconds.
This is literally the easiest dish to make. I was looking for a vegetarian dish and I love tofu so this was perfect. I could not believe how quickly this dish came together and how pretty it is when serving. It looks fancy and is tastes delicious! I prefer to eat this dish warm, so I steamed the tofu. This recipe is a winner and will be making a regular appearance on my dinner table.
I accidentally added gochujang instead of gochugaru and it was incredible. It’s my new favorite meal to eat on hot summer days!
omg…I can’t describe how delicious this was…I’ve already made it 3 txs…will make it again
Thank you for this delicious soft tofu recipe! Instead of toasted sesame seeds, I used roasted/salted pumpkin seeds and some minced ginger. It was perfect for the California summer.
Absolutely delicious and so easy, thanks for this recipe I loved it
Amazing thank you! Ate an entire packet of silken tofu because I couldn’t stop…