Snap Pea, Tofu and Herb Salad With Spicy Peanut Sauce

By Hetty Lui McKinnon

Published May 28, 2024

Snap Pea, Tofu and Herb Salad With Spicy Peanut Sauce — Ryan Liebe for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Maggie Ruggiero.

Total Time: 30 minutes
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Rating: 5(187)
Notes: Read community notes

When the season gifts us sweet, juicy sugar snap (or snow) peas, use them raw in this textural salad. Slicing them in half diagonally not only unlocks their innate crispness, but also allows the inner peas to spill out, creating more texture. This salad is brazenly herb forward, and offers an excellent way to use up any leftover bundles in your fridge; mint, cilantro or basil can be used singularly or as a mix. The two-ingredient dressing is the simplest, and possibly tastiest, peanut sauce you’ll ever make: Peanut butter is whisked together with chile crisp and loosened with boiling water, which helps encourage it to emulsify, creating a smooth, creamy and intensely savory sauce. Looking for another shortcut? You can even skip pan-frying and use store-bought pre-baked firm tofu.

or to save this recipe.
Subscriber benefit: give recipes to anyone
As a subscriber, you have 10 gift recipes to give each month. Anyone can view them - even nonsubscribers. Learn more.
Subscribe
Share
Print Options
Include recipe photo

Ingredients

Yield:4 servings

1(14- to 16-ounce) package of extra-firm tofu, drained, patted dry and cut into ½-inch slices
Salt and pepper
Extra-virgin olive oil
¼cup creamy peanut butter, stirred
1tablespoon chile crisp (or more for more heat)
¼cup boiling water
12ounces sugar snap peas or snow peas, trimmed and sliced diagonally in half
2scallions, trimmed and thinly sliced
2cups mint, cilantro, basil or Thai basil (or a mix of all), large leaves torn

Ingredient Substitution Guide

Preparation

Step 1
Lay the tofu out on a cutting board and scatter with salt and pepper.
Step 2
Heat a large skillet on medium-high for 2 minutes. Drizzle with olive oil then place the tofu, seasoned side down, onto the hot surface. Drizzle the top of the tofu with a little more oil and season with a little more salt and pepper. Cook until the bottom is golden, 2 to 3 minutes. Flip over and cook the other side until golden, another 2 minutes. Remove from the pan and set aside to cool.
Step 3
To a medium bowl, add the peanut butter and chile crisp. Pour in the boiling water and whisk to combine. If it is too thick, add more room temperature water, 1 tablespoon at a time, until the sauce is smooth and pourable. Season with salt and pepper.
Step 4
When the tofu is cool, slice lengthwise into thin strips.
Step 5
Place the sugar snap peas into a large bowl. Add the tofu, scallions and herbs. Drizzle over half of the peanut sauce and toss to coat. Taste, season well with salt and pepper, and toss again. To finish, drizzle with the remaining peanut sauce, olive oil and serve.

Ratings

5 out of 5

187 user ratings

Have you cooked this?

Private Notes

Leave a Private Note on this recipe and see it here.

Cooking Notes

Rita2 weeks ago

Really delicious. I added a bit of butter lettuce, and used all the herbs - mint, basil, and cilantro. I arranged the veggies and tofu on a platter, drizzled with juice of half a lime, olive oil, and sea salt, and then drizzled the peanut sauced over the whole thing (rather than tossing). It looked pretty and tasted fresh and good. Next time I will chop up some roasted peanuts to scatter on top.

sue7 hours ago

As suggested, I stirfried the snap peas first for a few minutes and added a little bit of brown sugars since I had unsweetened organic peanut butter. Since people were suggesting noodles, I thought to add my leftover quinoa….great addition!

boston cook6 days ago

I sautéed whole sugar snaps in peanut oil, then cooked the tofu in the same pan. I found the peanut sauce easier to make with a fork than a whisk. Thumbs up!

Dagmar1 week ago

So good! A perfect summertime dinner, fresh and satisfying. The only change I made was adding a ½ teaspoon of brown sugar to the peanut sauce, because my peanut butter was unsweetened. Used cilantro and mint, but would make again using whatever herbs are in the crisper. This will be on repeat at ours all summer long!

Janet in Seattle1 week ago

Also great served hot! I doubled the peanut/chili crisp sauce (and added 1/2 tsp. garlic powder, 1 Tbsp. maple syrup, 1 Tbsp. fresh zested ginger, 1/4 tsp. basil oil, salt and pepper to taste). Fried the extra firm tofu per the recipe 's instructions, parboiled a whole bag of Trader Joe's snap peas for 3 minutes, then mixed everything with 4 big, minced mint leaves from our garden and the cup of cilantro. Baked 30 minutes at 375 degrees.

Bri1 week ago

We LOVED this!! Delicious vegan summer main! I used a combo of sugar snap peas and snow peas because of what was available at the store. For herbs I did basil and mint. And after taste testing the sauce (and a quick check of the comments), I added lime juice and soy sauce, and garnished with chopped peanuts. Served with buckwheat soba noodles. A total hit! Will be making again!!

mobius1 week ago

Yum. I didn't do as much fresh herbs as suggested, but SURGAR SNAP PEAS are the bomb, right now!

Kady2 weeks ago

Good, but needs some work. Depending on the kind of peanut butter you're using (we used organic, palm oil free), it's missing a bit of sweetness. I remedied this by adding some agave syrup, lemon juice (we had no limes), and soy sauce. Made vermicelli noodles to go alongside. Would try again with lime juice and a dash of fish sauce.

saltnpepper2 weeks ago

Adding the boiling water made a mess of the sauce. It was nasty looking and tasting. Became lumpy vs more saucy. Made it again without the water and just used it that way. Simple and tasty. Will try peanuts on top next time and fresh squeezed lime.

Kathy2 weeks ago

Recommend a quick blanch for the snap peas. Raw they were a little tough. If you grow your own maybe they’d be more tender! I like someone’s suggestion to use snow peas; they’d be great raw. I also squeezed some lime juice on it at the end. Used only 1 tsp of chili crisp(actually sichuan chili oil which suited our spice tolerance. Easy a quick to make, and very tasty!

Tara2 weeks ago

yummy next time add some lime juice and peanuts , and serve with rice or noodle to make heartier. but overall A , oh also added regular peas to flesh it out

charlotte3 weeks ago

What is chili crisp? From the UK and not sure.

Kimberly3 weeks ago

Its an asian blend of ingredients....the one I have called Mr. Bing, has canola oil, onion, chili pepper, rice bran, garlic, sugar, salt, mushroom powder and white pepper and sichuan peppercorn. I believe some mixes are spicer than others. Hope this helps! looks like spices suspended in an oil.

SSP3 weeks ago

Its a new side/seasoning. Its chilis crisped up in oil.

Elizabeth3 weeks ago

It's an asian condiment (in North America, we refer to Chinese/Japanese/Vietnamese/Korean/... as asian - not the same reference as in the UK) I first was turned on to it in a Northern Chinese dumpling restaurant. It's basically chile and other spices to create umami flavours, cooked in a neutral oil. There are lots of recipes if you'd like to make your own - there's a quite good one on NYT, or you can buy jars of them in some stores. I like the Zing brand - there's an awesome chile miso

ME2 weeks ago

Add peanuts and mango or dried fruit to accent the flavours

MaryEllen2 weeks ago

Add some mango or a tart dried fruit as an accent flavour. Garnish with peanuts.

becky2 weeks ago

DELISH! Added cooked rice noodles to make it feel like a bowl. Also will try chopped peanuts next time for crunch

Nora2 weeks ago

Made this with mint and basil and a mixture of sugar snap peas and snow peas and served it with rice. It was delicious, and we will be making it again! The sauce was too spicy for my friend, so I added a lot of lemon juice and some hoisin sauce, which helped.

Private notes are only visible to you.