Zucchini Stir Fry With Tofu (Vegan)

All you need to make this zucchini stir fry recipe are 12 simple ingredients:

• cooking oil or spray – I love using avocado oil spray for this
• zucchini
• bell pepper
• carrots – feel free to swap carrots + bell peppers for other veggies, like broccoli, mushrooms, snap peas, eggplant, spinach, etc!
• shallot – or you can swap with onion
• garlic
• tofu (firm or extra firm) – if you’d prefer to serve this with another protein, you can use shrimp, chicken, or beef
• toasted sesame oil
• soy sauce or tamari
• ginger (ground or fresh)
• rice wine vinegar
• cornstarch – or other thickening starch, like arrowroot powder
• optional: green onions (to garnish)

Full ingredient measurements and detailed instructions are located in the recipe card at the bottom of this post!

Should you peel zucchini before cooking?

There is no need to peel zucchini before cooking it. In fact, the skin of fruits and vegetables often hold a lot of the micronutrients and fiber, so I’d hate to throw that away!

How do you cut zucchini for stir fry?

For this stir fry recipe, simply:

1. remove the hard ends off the zucchini
2. lie zucchini on its side and slice down the middle, lengthwise
3. then take each half and place it on your cutting board, face-side down
4. cut along the zucchini in half-inch segments – the pieces should resemble little half-moon shapes!

How do you cook zucchini without making it soggy?

When sautéing or frying zucchini, I recommend holding off on the salt until after the zucchini is cooked.

In this recipe, all the veggies are cooked first and then we add the sauce (which contains salt) at the end. This results in veggies that still have some firmness to them!

Salt draws the water out of the vegetable, and can make everything in your pan a little soggy.

This recipe is a great source of veggies, protein, and healthy fats and can be enjoyed on its own if desired.

That said, I love serving it over a starch to round out the meal! Some ideas:

• brown or white rice (as I’ve done in these pictures)
• other whole grains, like quinoa, millet, or farro
• your favourite noodles (I love these brown rice ones!)

Zucchini is rich in many micronutrients, like:

• vitamin A
• vitamin C
• vitamin K
• vitamin B6
• folate
• manganese
• magnesium
• potassium
• copper

This summer squash is also a great source of dietary fibre, with one medium zucchini providing 2 grams or 8% of your daily fibre needs.

Like other fruits and veggies, zucchini is also a great source of antioxidants, especially carotenoids like lutein and zeaxanthin.