Photo incoming, as soon as I remember to take a picture before eating it. Still tinkering with this but I am very very happy with how it comes out. It really scratches that mall chinese food itch, except it tastes better.

Couple of notes: I used fresh squeezed orange juice just for funsies, you could probably use store bought orange juice just fine.

Also, I made it with tofu, but you can make it with whatever pieces of protein you want. If you want to use popcorn chicken, or chunks of stir friend steak, go right ahead. The process is about the same. I’ll provide instructions here for how to make it with tofu because that’s what I did, but if you want to use, say, chunks of chicken, I’d recommend using the technique outlined in the Serious Eats article here. The marinade and breading are great and would work perfectly with the sauce.

Also, when it comes to vegetables, I used carrots and broccoli, but you should feel free to use whatever you like. Bell peppers, water chestnuts, baby corn, or onions would all work really well here too. I fried them in batches, the important thing is that you don’t want the vegetables to steam. Only add as much as can all hit the bottom of your pan in a batch. For me, given the size of my skillet and the amount of vegetables, that worked out to two batches.

Ingredients

For the tofu:

14 ounce block of extra firm tofu

2 tablespoons soy sauce

1/2 cup cornstarch

For the vegetables

1/2 pound carrots, peeled, trimmed and sliced thin (you’re going to stir fry them)

1/2 pound broccoli florets

2-3 jalapenos, thinly sliced (optional)

Vegetable oil, for frying

For the sauce:

1 cup orange juice

1/3 cup soy sauce

1/3 cup rice vinegar

1/2 cup sugar

1/4 cup sambal oelek style chili paste (optional)

2 tablespoons sesame oil

1 inch ginger, minced

4 cloves garlic, minced

1/4 cup cold water

1/4 cup cornstarch

Directions

Press your tofu! Wrap the tofu lightly in a small towel, then put it in a pot or a rimmed pan, put a cutting board or something on top of it, and put a bunch of books on top of it. You’re going to want to weight it down to get the moisture out. Let stand for at least an hour, or if you want to go whole hog like I did, stick it in your fridge to press overnight.

Bake your tofu! Once it’s pressed, cut the tofu into bite sized pieces and toss in a bowl with the soy sauce. Cover and let stand for at least ten minutes to marinate. Once it’s done marinating, preheat your oven to 350, then remove the tofu from the soy sauce and put it in a different bowl. Add the cornstarch and toss to combine until the pieces are well coated. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and transfer the tofu chunks to it.

Bake the tofu at 350 for 45 minutes, then flip all the pieces over and bake for another 30-45 minutes, until you have a texture you like. Set aside to cool.

Next, cook the vegetables. Add two tablespoons of oil to a large stainless steel skillet on high heat. I set mine as high as it would go. Once the oil is shimmering, add half your vegetables to the pan and fry, stirring frequently, for 5-7 minutes, then transfer to a serving bowl. Return the pan to the heat, add some more oil, and then stir fry the rest of the vegetables. Set aside.

Finally, lets make the sauce. Add two more tablespoons of oil to the pan, then add the ginger and garlic and stir fry until fragrant, no more than a minute. Add all the sauce ingredients except for the cornstarch and water to the pan. Bring to a boil while stirring to combine, then in a measuring cup, whisk together the water and the cornstarch. Drizzle the cornstarch and water into the boiling sauce, stirring frequently, and continue to boil until the sauce thickens.

Add your tofu and vegetables to the sauce and stir to combine. Serve over rice, and you can top it with sesame seeds or green onions. Or probably cilantro. Enjoy!