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This is the archived version of the Milk Street website and is no longer up to date.

Please visit 177milkstreet.com to see the current website with all of the latest recipes!

Indonesian-Style Stir-Fried Red Chili Tofu with Peanuts

4 Servings

1½ hours 45 minutes active

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In Jakarta, at Warteg Gang Mangga, we loved the spicy, savory-sweet kering tempeh. Crisply fried nuggets of tempeh were tossed with bumbu dasar merah, a red spice paste made by pureeing aromatics, that was cooked to a thick, glaze-like sauce that coated the craggy bits. When we attempted to re-create the stir-fry at home, the quality of supermarket tempeh disappointed. So we shifted to tofu. Pressed to remove moisture, then cut into batons, coated with starch and fried, tofu makes a fantastic variation on the classic Indonesian dish. We also toss in peanuts for nuttiness and texture. Kecap manis is a type of sweet soy sauce with a deep savoriness and a syrupy, molasses-like consistency. If it is not available, make an approximation by stirring together 1 tablespoon each soy sauce, molasses and light brown sugar; use in place of the 2 tablespoons kecap manis added at the end of cooking.

4

Servings

Tip

Don’t skip the step of pressing the tofu. With excess moisture removed, the tofu will be sturdier and meatier and will better hold up to stir-frying. To be efficient, use the hour it sits under weights to prep the other ingredients.

1½ hours

45 minutes active

Ingredients

  • 14- 16

    ounce container firm or extra-firm tofu, drained

  • ¼

    cup coconut milk

Directions

Reviews
Scott S.
August 8, 2026
lime leaves
find the leaves. wow what a flavor. they were in the freezer section in the Asian Market. Made the sauce so I could toss fried chicken wings in it. Fantastic! With coconut mango sticky rice.

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