This simple Green Bean & Tofu Stir Fry is easy to make, healthy, and delicious. It’s vegan, gluten-free, and ready in about 20 minutes!

I’ve got a delicious dish for you today – my Simple Tofu Green Bean Stir Fry. It’s easy to whip up in about 20 minutes and is a healthy meal the whole family will enjoy.

Now let’s get cooking!

What’s in This Tofu Stir Fry

This recipe requires just 9 ingredients, many of which I’d bet you already have in the pantry. Here is everything you’ll need to assemble:

A few things to consider about your ingredients:

• Green Beans – while I opted for regular green beans, you can easily sub in French haricots verts instead! While they can sometimes be a little harder to find and a bit pricier, you don’t have to snip off any tough ends.
• Extra Firm Tofu – only have firm tofu on hand? You can totally make it work! Just press the firm tofu with paper towels in a tofu press or with a cookie sheet weighted down with heavy cans.
• Maple Syrup – maple is my sweetener of choice, but you can easily swap in agave syrup instead.
• Tamari or Soy Sauce – Tamari is a gluten-free version of soy sauce. If you are avoiding soy, feel free to use coconut aminos instead.
• Cornstarch – if you are avoiding corn for any reason, you can use half the amount of arrowroot powder (also known as arrowroot flour) in place of cornstarch to thicken the sauce.

How to Make My Simple Tofu Green Bean Stir Fry

No matter how you choose to prep your tofu for this simple stir fry, you’re going to need to get your green beans cooked first.

Step 1: Using a saute pan or pot with a steamer basket, steam green beans for 8-10 minutes, depending on how crisp you like them. If you don’t have a steamer basket, feel free to blanch them in boiling water for 2-4 minutes.

Pan Fry Method

Step 2 (option 1): Heat oil in a nonstick pan over medium heat. Add tofu cubes and cook (undisturbed) for 5 minutes. Flip tofu and cook for another 3-5 minutes until crispy.

Oven-Baked Method

Step 2 (option 2): Line a sheet pan with parchment for easy clean-up. Preheat the oven to 350F.

Toss your tofu and oil together, then spread out on the sheet pan in a single layer. Bake for approximately 25 minutes, flipping the tofu once halfway through.

Putting It All Together

Step 3: While the tofu is cooking, mix sauce ingredients in a bowl until smooth.

Step 4: If you went with the pan-frying method, add the sauce ingredients to the pan and cook while stirring continuously until thick.

If you opted for oven baked tofu, set a sauté pan over medium heat and add the sauce ingredients, stirring until thickened. Tip the tofu into the pan and stir to coat.

Step 5: Turn off the heat, add your cooked green beans, and stir until incorporated. Serve with some brown rice and enjoy!

Helpful Tips

• If prepping a bag of green beans seems like too much fuss for you, check out this informative post on how to get it done in (almost) no time. You can also opt for French haricots verts or use a bag of frozen green beans if you just don’t wanna mess with it.
• We eat a lot of grains in my house, and so I find that it makes my life much easier if I prep large batches to last me throughout the week. Seriously, do the future you a favor and make a double portion of any grain (in this case, brown rice) so that you can whip up another fast meal on the fly. You can even freeze it if you’re worried about using it in time!

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I add or substitute any other vegetables for the green beans?

Heck yeah you can! Stir fries are such an easy way to add more veggies to your diet. I’m of the opinion THE MORE VEGGIES, THE BETTER!
While bell peppers and onions would play nicely with the green beans, you can get as creative as you like. Zucchini, summer squash, broccoli, cauliflower, mushrooms, edamame and Brussels sprouts are all excellent stir fry veggies.

Can I use frozen green beans?

For sure! I love keeping frozen vegetables on hand as a general rule. They are picked and frozen at premium ripeness, and they maintain all of their nutritional value.
As an added bonus, many frozen veggies like onions, bell peppers and broccoli are already prepped in bite sized pieces. Fewer dishes AND less prep? That’s a big HECK YEAH for me!

Can I leave the cornstarch out?

I’m using cornstarch as the primary thickening agent for the sauce. If you’re avoiding corn, simply swap a smaller amount of arrowroot powder.