For a crunchy snack or lunch try these crunchy air fryer balti tofu nuggets. Serve these crispy tofu bites with mayo or ketchup for dunking.
I made these air fryer balti tofu nuggets for my son's lunch today and thought it was about time I shared them with you too.
Protein-rich tofu bites or tofu nuggies as I like to call them (don't tell my son that, he asked me not to call them that anymore, haha), are super simple to make and one of the nicest ways to snack on tofu.
Jump to:
- ♨️ Air fryer tofu
- 🌡️ Baking spicy tofu nuggets in the oven
- 💭 Which type of tofu?
- 🔪 Cube that tofu
- 👩🏻🍳 What you need to make Balti tofu bites
- 💭 What is balti mix?
- 💭 What can Balti Mix be swapped with?
- FAQ
- 🥙 How to serve balti popcorn tofu
- ⏲️ How long will spiced tofu nuggets last?
- 💭 Top tip
- 📋 More tofu recipes
- 🥣 Dips to pair with tofu nuggets
- ⭐ Sign up for a free recipe sent to your inbox every morning
- 👩🏻🍳 How to make Air Fryer Balti Tofu Nuggets
- 📖 Recipe
- 💬 Comments
At a glance - balti tofu nuggets
⏲️ Ready in: 30 minutes
👪 Serves: 3
🍽 Calories: 375
🧾 Main ingredients: extra firm tofu (or firm tofu pressed), cornflour (corn starch), vegan mayo, balti mix (or bombay mix) found in the World food aisle
👩🏻🍳 Suitable for: Vegan, plant-based, dairy-free, egg-free, vegetarian
Summarise & save this recipe:
♨️ Air fryer tofu
Air frying tofu is a quick and easy way of cooking crispy tofu.
Much healthier than deep frying them, that's for sure.
Of course, if you don't have an air fryer you can bake them in the oven.
🌡️ Baking spicy tofu nuggets in the oven
To bake these Indian tofu snacks in the oven, just lay them on a lined baking tray and turn part way through the cook time.
They can be baked at the same temperature but will take a few minutes longer to be crisp and golden.
Have a deep-fat fryer? Heck yes, you can use that if you want to.
💭 Which type of tofu?
You need a firm tofu for this.
Extra firm is my favourite tofu as it is pre-pressed, so it's ready to go as soon as you are, with no pressing required.
However, you can press regular firm tofu in a press or wrapped in kitchen paper, a clean teatowel, and a pile of cookbooks as a weight to place on top.
NOT SILKEN TOFU - it's creamy, so keep it for desserts or creamy sauces.
🔪 Cube that tofu
Once it's pressed, or just out of the packet if it's extra firm tofu, it's time to chop the tofu.
I cut it into cubes that are about 1 - 1 ½ cm (about half an inch) wide.
It doesn't really matter if your cubes are a bit bigger or smaller.
However, this is a good size.
A nice bite-sized nugget.
Love tofu? Try this crispy Gochujang tofu, Gochujang Shredded Tofu Wraps or Easy Tofu Fried Rice.
👩🏻🍳 What you need to make Balti tofu bites
You only need 4 ingredients to make this delicious spiced popcorn tofu.
- Extra firm tofu - or firm tofu, but that needs to be pressed
- Cornflour - also known as cornstarch
- Mayo - it acts as a binder
- Balti mix
See the printable recipe card below for quantities and method.
💭 What is balti mix?
Balti mix is a popular Indian snack.
You can buy it in supermarkets, in the world food aisle, or online.
Heck, you can buy anything online.
It's a savoury and spicy snack of crunchy noodles. peas, peanuts, and lentils.
💭 What can Balti Mix be swapped with?
If you can't find a balti mix, you can make a simple swap.
Bombay mix is a good alternative.
It's a very similar snack mix with slightly different spices.
FAQ
Bombay Mix and Balti Mix are very similar. They are both an Indian savoury snack full of crunchy noodles, lentils, peas, and peanuts. However, the spice mix is slightly different and Balti Mix is hotter than Bombay Mix.
🥙 How to serve balti popcorn tofu
Yeah, I call it popcorn tofu too. A delicious snack with many names.
Anyway, here are a few serving ideas:
- Dip - serve with ketchup, mayo, Thousand Island dressing or Russian dressing for dunking, or why not go Indian style and serve with mint coriander chutney
- Pitta - Serve on pitta with mayo, lettuce, cucumber, and tomato
- Salad - serve on a dressed green salad, try this ranch dressing
- Chips - serve with chips and peas, chip shop style as you would serve tofish
And, of course, you have to test a tofu bite or two, when they are cooked.
Just to make sure they are just right of course!
Love the sound of these tofu nuggies? Try this Harissa Popcorn Tofu or my Air Fryer Vegetable Bhajis next.
⏲️ How long will spiced tofu nuggets last?
They won't last long at all, they are bloomin' gorgeous!
Oh you mean how long can you store them?
Once they are cool. pop them in an airtight container in the fridge, lined with kitchen paper.
They will last for 3-4 days.
Although, they won't be as crisp after they have been in the fridge unless you reheat them to crisp them up.
They will however be lovely and chewy.
Great for adding to lunch boxes.
💭 Top tip
Don't coat each tofu bite individually, as it takes ages.
And yes I used to be foolish enough to do that.
It's much quicker to toss them in the toppings in a mixing bowl.
Lesson learned!
📋 More tofu recipes
Looking for more tofu recipes? Try these:
🥣 Dips to pair with tofu nuggets
These are my favorite dips to serve with Balti tofu nuggets:
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👩🏻🍳 How to make Air Fryer Balti Tofu Nuggets
These step-by-step photos will show you how to make this air fryer crispy tofu. Keep scrolling for the full printable recipe (with full ingredient list, calories and nutritional info)
Step 1
- First, prepare the spicy topping. Add the balti mix to a food processor or blender and whizz until a rough but fairly fine breadcrumb texture (full printable recipe card below with cooking temperature, full quantities and method).
- If you don't have a blender, you can bash the mix with a rolling pin in a mixing bowl or pop it in a freezer bag and roll the rolling pin over it to crush it.
Step 2
- Cube the tofu (if you are using firm tofu, you will have to press it first, extra firm is pre-pressed)
- Toss in corn flour.
- Then add mayo as a binder.
Step 3
- Toss the tofu in the mayo until well coated.
- Add the balti crumbs to another large bowl and add the mayo-coated tofu, then toss until well-coated.
Step 4
- Place the coated tofu on your mesh air fryer shelf, or if you have the drawer type, add it to the drawer.
- You can add a spray of olive oil for an extra crunchy finish to the tofu bites, but this isn't essential.
- Bake until golden and crispy.
- Serve and enjoy!
📖 Recipe
Air Fryer Balti Tofu Nuggets
Ingredients
- 450 g extra firm tofu (or firm tofu pressed)
- 3 tablespoons cornflour (also known as cornstarch)
- 3 tablespoons mayo
- 100 g balti mix (or bombay mix, whizzed into crumbs)
Instructions
- First prepare the spicy topping. Add the balti mix to a food processor or blender and whizz until a rough but f fairly fine breadcrumb texture.
- If you don't have a blender, you can bash the mix with a rolling pin in a mixing bowl or pop it in a freezer bag and roll the rolling pin over it to crush it.
- Cube the tofu (if you are using firm tofu, you will have to press it first, extra firm is pre-pressed).
- Toss the tofu cubes in cornflour.
- Next, toss the tofu in mayo until well coated.
- Add the crushed balti mix to another large bowl, then add the mayo-coated tofu and toss until well coated.
- Spread in a layer on your mesh air fryer shelf or in the drawer of your air fryer. You could also spread on a lined baking sheet if you are baking them in the oven.
- Bake at 180c/350f for 20 minutes. If you are baking in an oven, turn part way through the bake time and they may take a few minutes longer.
- Once crisp and golden, serve with a dip.
- Enjoy!
Notes
- You can swap the balti mix with bombay mix.
- For an extra crisp finish, you could spray the tofu lightly with olive oil before baking.
- Once they are cool. pop them in an airtight container in the fridge, lined with kitchen paper. They will last for 3-4 days. Although, they won't be as crisp after they have been in the fridge unless you reheat them to crisp them up. They will however be lovely and chewy.
Janet says
My first post, I forgot to put stars 😀
Jacqueline Meldrum says
Thanks Janet. Much appreciated.
Janet says
These are seriously good, definitely a keeper recipe 💕
Jacqueline Meldrum says
I am so glad you enjoyed them Janet, they are popular in my house too.
Jill says
Those look absolutely delicious. I can't wait to try them Jaq and maybe with that Russian dressing. Jill x
Jacqueline Meldrum says
Oh yes they would be lush with the Russian dressing. Enjoy them Jill.
George says
Now I know what I am doing with the tofu in my fridge. Cheers!
Jacqueline Meldrum says
You are very welcome George. Enjoy the tofu nuggets.