Step 1

Combine all the seasoning sauce ingredients in a skillet. Heat over medium high heat, stirring for about 1 to 2 minutes until bubbling. Remove from the heat and set the skillet aside. We’ll reheat this just before serving.

Step 2

Cut the tofu into 1 x 1½ inch bite sized pieces. Pat dry with kitchen towel or paper towel.Gently put the tofu into a plastic bag and add the potato starch. Seal the bag and gently turn it over until the tofu is well and evenly coated with the starch.Remove each piece from the bag individually and transfer to a large plate or a cutting board lined with plastic wrap, leaving some space between the pieces.

Step 3

Heat the oil in a skillet for 5 minutes, until it reaches 330-340°F. Carefully add the tofu pieces one at a time to the hot oil. Turn the heat down to medium and let the tofu cook for about about 2 to 3 minutes, until the bottom turns light brown and the surface is a little crispy .Turn the tofu pieces with tongs or a slotted spoon—they should be firm enough to turn without breaking—and fry for another 2 to 3 minutes, occasionally turning so that all sides turn light brown and crispy. Remove from the skillet and set in a wire mesh strainer set over a bowl.

Step 4

Reheat the oil for 1 minute over medium-high heat and fry all the tofu again for 3 to 4 minutes, rotating and turning them over with tongs or long wooden chopsticks, until all sides are golden brown and crunchy.Transfer the tofu to the strainer set over a bowl to drain the excess oil.

Step 5

If you use pumpkin seeds, put them into a slotted spoon and dip them into the hot oil to fry them for just 10 seconds or so. Transfer the seeds to a small bowl and turn off the heat.

Step 6

Reheat the sauce in the skillet until bubbling. Add the fried tofu and gently mix all together until they are well coated.Transfer to a plate and sprinkle the pumpkin seeds over top. Serve as a side dish for rice.

Step 7

SarahGermany Braunschweig, Germany joined 8/20 & has 1 commentPosted August 2nd, 2020 at 5:05 am | Log in to reply. Tried the recipe for the first time and I’m in love with it.I just the recipe for meal prepping and I fried som broccoli and bell pepper in the remaining sauce for a little extra.I didn’t had rice sirup so I just honey instead.See full size image Maangchi New York City joined 8/08 & has 12,051 commentsPosted August 31st, 2020 at 8:04 am | Log in to reply. It looks great! Jsalcedo Pasadena, California joined 7/20 & has 1 commentPosted July 13th, 2020 at 5:48 pm | Log in to reply. I had some tofu that I wanted to use, so I did a search on the Maangchi website and found this recipe. Since I had most of the ingredients (I did not have pumpkin seeds so I substituted toasted sesame seeds) I decided to make it. Easy to make and the texture was great!!!! Crunchy on the outside and almost creamy on the inside. The flavors were great. It was hard to stop eating it. I was disappointed when I ate the last piece…. I wanted more.See full size image hel Melbourne, Aus joined 7/20 & has 1 commentPosted July 8th, 2020 at 5:58 am | Log in to reply. I made this dish for my housemate and I, both of us have been vegetarian for a few years now and love tofu. My housemate said this is the best way he has had tofu!!! We used honey instead of rice syrup as it’s all we had, and sesame seeds instead of pumpkin seeds but still turned out great! Super crunchy, right amount of spicy! Next time I’ll make with spring onion salad and white rice ^_^ Emile Kentucky joined 7/20 & has 2 commentsPosted July 5th, 2020 at 6:41 pm | Log in to reply. This recipe is amazing! To deglaze the pan, I added about a tablespoon of rice vinegar, and heated it up until it became a sauce. This is delicious on top of the finished tofu! Emile Kentucky joined 7/20 & has 2 commentsPosted July 5th, 2020 at 6:42 pm | Log in to reply. Sorry, it would be about 2 tablespoons, since I halved the recipe BLMSaxon USA joined 6/20 & has 3 commentsPosted June 24th, 2020 at 3:02 pm | Log in to reply. What is everyone else having? I could eat this all by myself!See full size image henalpatel Los Angeles joined 6/20 & has 1 commentPosted June 17th, 2020 at 10:23 am | Log in to reply. I was making Tteokbokki the other day. I have gotten used to making pretty good Konbu/Anchovy stock. I was wondering if adding this stock to this marinade and reducing it down will make this dish better. Should I add this stock to everything since it add so umami? tkim10 Illinois joined 6/20 & has 1 commentPosted June 15th, 2020 at 3:08 pm | Log in to reply. I don’t have potato starch on hand. Would corn starch be an acceptable substitute? Maangchi New York City joined 8/08 & has 12,051 commentsPosted June 17th, 2020 at 7:31 am | Log in to reply. Yes, corn starch will work well, too. Good luck! MaangchiLove Montreal, Toronto joined 8/19 & has 19 commentsPosted June 12th, 2020 at 6:33 pm | Log in to reply. Yum! Followed maangchi’s recipe exactly this time See full size image Maangchi New York City joined 8/08 & has 12,051 commentsPosted June 15th, 2020 at 11:07 am | Log in to reply. Awesome! It looks crunchy and juicy!