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Hey there, tofu lovers!
Are you looking for a new and exciting way to enjoy this versatile plant-based protein?
Try my Tropical Sheet Pan Tofu.
This colorful and flavorful dish is bursting with the vibrant flavors of pineapple, sweet potatoes, coconut milk, and a bit of spice. It’s easy to make, perfect for meal prep, and guaranteed to satisfy your taste buds.
Ingredients
For this recipe, we’re going to have 3 main components: the sheet pan, the rice, and the sauce.
We’ll start with the rice first since it will take the longest. For the coconut lime rice, we will use
- Long-grain rice, such as basmati
- Coconut milk – I used the light version because that’s all my grocery store carries.
- Water
- Lime
- salt and pepper
For the sheet pan, we will use
- Sweet potato – chopped small, you can do this yourself, or make it easy and buy the sweet potato already chopped.
- Pineapple chunks – I used canned
- Red onion – chopped fairly large
- Super firm tofu – or extra firm tofu that you have pressed for 30 minutes.
- Olive oil, salt, and pepper
For the sauce, we will use
- Soy sauce
- Pineapple juice – I used what was in the can
- Garlic – minced
- Ginger – minced or grated
- Sesame oil
- Olive Oil
- Coconut milk – I used the light version because that’s all my grocery store carries
- Red pepper paste – I used gochujang
- Salt
Optional garnishes include:
- Fresh cilantro
- Lime wedges
- Sesame seeds
Preparation Steps
The first step in any recipe is to wash your hands, then prep all your ingredients so you’re ready to go.
Set your oven to preheat to 425° F.
Rinse your rice thoroughly.
Chop all your vegetables and tofu. Sweet potatoes and other root vegetables can take quite a while to cook, so I recommend chopping these fairly small so everything cooks in the same amount of time. Give your onion a rough chop; don’t dice them!
Pour the pineapple juice into a measuring cup, separating it from the pineapple chunks.
If you’re using super-firm tofu, you won’t have to press it. Press extra-firm tofu for 30 minutes. Cut your tofu into cubes. You can also tear the tofu with your hands.
Cooking Instructions
Preheat your oven to 425°F.
Then start making your rice.
I’m using my Comfee Multi Cooker to make the rice. If you don’t have a rice cooker or something similar, you can absolutely make the rice stovetop. Make sure to keep the temp at a low simmer, and avoid lifting the lid to check as much as possible!
Place all your sheet pan ingredients in a bowl and mix well. Make sure your ingredients are evenly coated with olive oil, salt, and pepper.
Then, place your veggie/tofu mix in a single layer on a sheet pan you’ve lined with parchment paper. Cook in a preheated 425° F oven for 10-15 minutes. Depending on how large you cut your vegetables, you may need to cook them longer.
Alternately, to speed up the cooking of your sweet potato, place them in a microwave-safe bowl with water and microwave them for 3-5 minutes until softened but not done. Then, you can add to the bowl with other veggies as described above.
While the rice and veggie mixture is cooking, make your sauce.
Pour all of the sauce ingredients into a small pan. Bring to a boil and simmer until thickened. This conveniently took about the same time it took for the veggies to cook!
When your rice is done, add the lime juice and zest and gently fluff/mix your rice. Remove the veggies from the hot oven when they have just started to caramelize.
Serving Suggestions
I like to serve this as a bowl.
Put a serving of rice in your bowl, top with your tofu and veggies, and then drizzle with your sauce.
Alternatively, you could put the veggies and sauce ingredients in a pan and cook it down until the sauce is clinging to the veggies. This will make the flavor stronger but will also add cooking time.
If you are feeding someone who is averse to spicy food, such as my big kiddo, leave out the red pepper paste in your sauce. When you’re ready to serve the meal, sprinkle some crushed red pepper paste on top for those who like the heat.
I will say this dish really needs the spice. Otherwise, it’s a bit too sweet for my taste. The spice of the paste really balances out the flavors.
Garnish with fresh cilantro and sesame seeds, if desired.
Tropical Sheet Pan Tofu
Ingredients
For the Coconut Lime Rice
- 1 cup Long-Grain Rice rinsed
- 2 cups Coconut Milk lite
- 1 Lime zested and juiced
- ½ tsp Salt
Sheet Pan Ingredients
- 1 Block Super Firm Tofu or extra firm, pressed
- 1 Sweet Potato cubed
- 1 Red Onion chopped
- 1 can Pineapple Chunks
- 2 Tbsp Olive Oil
- 2 tsp salt and pepper
Sauce Inredients
- ¼ cup Soy Sauce
- ½ cup Pineapple Juice from the can
- 3 cloves Garlic minced
- 1 Tbsp Fresh Ginger minced or grated
- 2 Tbsp Sesame Oil or olive
- 1 tsp Red Pepper Paste such as gochujang
Instructions
Prep all of your ingredients
- Wash your hands.
- Wash and chop all your vegetables. Mince the garlic and ginger. Rinse the rice. Zest and juice the lime.
- Preheat oven to 425°F
Start the Rice
- Add the coconut milk and rice to the rice cooker or pan. Add salt and mix well.
- Use the white rice setting on your rice cooker.
- When done, fluff the rice. Add the lime zest and juice and mix gently.
Cook the Vegetables and Tofu.
- While the rice is cooking, mix all the sheet pan ingredients in a bowl, ensuring everything is coated in oil, salt, and pepper.
- Spread evenly on a sheet pan and roast in oven for 10-15 minutes.
Make the Sauce
- Whisk all of the sauce together in a small pan.
- Bring to a boil, and simmer until thickened, about 10-15 minutes.
Assemble the Meal
- Spoon 1/5 of the rice into a bowl.
- Top with 1/5 of the tofu mixture, then drizzle with the sauce.
- Top with fresh cilantro and sesame seeds, if desired.
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Tips and Variations
Aside from modifying the spice level, there are a few variations you can do.
In the case of a soy allergy, consider using seitan or even white beans for protein instead. You can also use tamari instead of soy sauce.
Avoid sesame seeds if there is an allergy. If you’re extra worried, swap out the sesame oil for olive or avocado instead.
Make this recipe gluten-free by swapping the soy sauce for tamari.
Consider different vegetables. I chose sweet potatoes because they are a bit more commonly used on tropical islands than some other vegetables and are readily available. A more authentic option would be taro, but I’ve never seen that in stores near me.
However, you can really utilize any vegetables you want. Sheet pan recipes are great for using up whatever veggies you have on hand. I think red peppers, summer squashes, eggplant, cauliflower, or broccoli would all do well here.
In fact, if you are serving this to someone who is diabetic, it may be better to swap out sweet potato for a non-starchy vegetable.
Health benefits of Tropical sheet pan tofu
This recipe has 20 g of protein, 9 g of unsaturated fat, and 7 g of fiber.
It also has a whole host of vitamins and minerals, such as vitamin C, vitamin A, calcium, and a whopping 1.5 mg of iron.
And even more, this recipe gets it’s fiber from a variety of sources. This is an important part of health, this variety of fibers, because it improves the diversity of your gut microbiome. And when our gut is happy, the rest of us is happy.
The Benefits of Incorporating Tofu into Your Diet
Tofu, especially the super firm variety, is a fantastic way to add protein to your diet without adding any saturated fat.
Additionally, phytochemicals in soy can improve heart health and may even improve symptoms of depression!
Read more about the health benefits of soy!
This Tropical Sheet Pan Tofu recipe is a game-changer for anyone looking to add more plant-based meals to their weekly rotation.
The combination of sweet pineapple, tangy lime, savory tofu, and a little bit of heat creates a burst of flavors that will have your taste buds dancing.
Plus, the easy prep and minimal clean-up make it perfect for busy weeknights. So give it a try and let us know what you think – we’re sure you’ll be hooked after just one bite!
Jennifer Hanes MS, RDN, LD is a registered dietitian, mom, wife, and vegetarian in North Texas. She has dedicated Dietitian Jenn to be a source of information, ideas, and inspiration for people like her, vegetarians that live with people with different dietary beliefs and/or needs in a multivore household.