How to Make Pressed Tofu (豆腐干)

This pressed tofu (dòufu gān – 豆腐干), is a necessary recipe for our readers who live far away from an Asian market. Firm tofu is (somewhat) widely available, thank goodness, but as of this writing, you can only find pressed tofu (also sometimes known as spiced tofu) in Asian markets. There are actually a couple variations—plain pressed firm tofu and five spice tofu. This is a spiced version, but if you’d like to make it plain, you can skip the braising step!

How to press firm tofu at home

Plain pressed tofu has become particularly popular as vegan and plant-based cooking has taken off. Removing the extra moisture content from firm tofu gives it more of a hearty bite for salads, sandwiches, and other “tofu steak” applications. 

Some folks simply press the tofu to remove the water and then proceed with searing, baking, etc. as they wish. This recipe is a more traditional Chinese preparation, which gets even more excess moisture out of the tofu to create a chewy and pliable tofu that is delicious as a cold dish or in stir-fries. 

This recipe goes like this: Cut the tofu, press the tofu, braise the tofu, dry the tofu in the oven. You can braise the tofu for that five spice flavor or skip it for plain pressed firm tofu.  

Variation: Plain Pressed Firm Tofu

To get a plain pressed tofu, simply omit the braising step and proceed to the baking step. This isn’t inauthentic. It’s actually a commonly found option at the Chinese grocery store. Without the Chinese aromatics and soy sauce, you can use the pressed tofu, a hearty vegan protein, in your other cuisines.

Variation: Customize Your Braising Sauce

For the braising step, you can adjust the aromatics as you see fit. For example, if you don’t like star anise, just omit it! 

Most store-bought pressed tofu does not have much flavor—mostly a darker coloring to give it the signature look people expect. If I’m being honest, it is a bit disappointing. The pressed five spice tofu we bought and ate when the girls were little was much more flavorful. 

With this recipe, I couldn’t stop eating it, I just sliced and ate it as a snack or finger food. It’s very tasty—not to mention good for you! 

How to Store Pressed Firm Tofu 

Pressed tofu should be stored in the refrigerator. It should not be frozen. The tofu turns porous and crinkly. (Though frozen tofu has its own uses.) 

Pressed firm tofu should be used within a week, unless you have a food saver you can shrink-wrap your tofu with. Doing so will increase your tofu’s shelf life to about 1 month. In that case, you might be able to double the recipe and make more each time. 

How to cook with pressed firm tofu 

I personally love pressed tofu. I could eat it every day. It’s so versatile in Chinese cooking, especially when it comes to stir-fries. We have a large collection of recipes that use this pressed tofu:

• Spicy Sichuan Boiled Tofu
• Spiced Tofu Stir Fry with Garlic Chives
• Jen’s Tofu Stir Fry
• Vegetable Moo Shu
• Hot and Sour Soup
• Shanghai Hot Sauce Noodles
• Steamed Vegetable Buns
• Five Spice Tofu with Shredded Pork 
• Ma Lan Tou Spiced Tofu
• Vegetable Five Spice Tofu Stir-fry
• Chinese Eight Treasures Stir-fry

Pressed Tofu Recipe Instructions

Step 1: Pressing

Cut the block of tofu into 5 equal slices. Each piece should be about ¾-inch thick (about 2cm). It’s important that all sides are as straight and even as possible, so they can be pressed evenly. A cleaver is a good tool to get straight sides. 

Place the tofu pieces in a single layer in between two cutting boards or sheet pans, then place something heavy, like a 5-pound bag of flour or sugar, a couple of bricks, or a pot of water, on top to squeeze out the water and compress the tofu. Don’t worry—this should not damage the tofu. 

You can put the entire apparatus on a sheet pan, to catch any of the liquid that gets pressed out of the tofu. I used a skillet, since I had a round cutting board:

Press the tofu for 4-6 hours in the refrigerator. (If it is wintertime and cold in your kitchen, you can get away with leaving it out on the counter.)

Less time = a softer pressed tofu. More time = firmer tofu. I did this batch for 5 hours, and was able to squeeze out 5-6 tablespoons of water.

Step 2: Braising

In a flat-bottomed deep skillet or pot, add the star anise, cloves, bay leaves, cinnamon, white peppercorns, light soy sauce, sugar, dark soy sauce, salt, and 2½ cups of water.

Stir to combine, and add the pressed tofu pieces. Do your best to handle the tofu pieces gently, as they can break easily at this stage. The goal throughout this whole process is to keep the pieces whole.

Bring to a boil, cover, and cook for 5 minutes over medium heat. Shut off the heat, and let the tofu marinate in the sauce for at least 6 hours or overnight. Flip them midway through (or right before you go to bed).

Step 3: Drying

Preheat the oven to 350°F/175°C. Remove the tofu pieces from the braising liquid. Transfer to a baking rack set on a baking sheet, so excess braising liquid can drain off. 

Bake for 20 minutes, flip, and bake for another 20 minutes. Remove from the oven, and let cool before storing in the refrigerator in an airtight container.

I also tried cold drying, simply leave them on a baking rack, uncovered, in the refrigerator for 24 hours or so. They will dry evenly this way as well, but the oven method is faster and takes up less fridge space. 

They’re ready to eat as is, or in stir-fries and other applications!