Lunch
Tofu with peanut sauce and vegetables
Each serving has 306 kcal, 19 g of protein, and 6.2 g of fiber, or 6.2 g of protein per 100 kcal. Ready in 25 minutes; makes 2 servings.
Per serving
- 306 kcalCalories
- 19 gProtein
- 6.2 gFiber
Calculated ingredient by ingredient from USDA FoodData Central. 6.2 g of protein per 100 kcal.
- Prepared by
- Alex Gonzalez
- Published
- Sources
- 8 primary
No clinical review. No advertising from drug companies and no affiliate links.How we work
Ingredients
- 300 g11 ozfirm tofu, cubed (about 3/4 of a 14-oz block)
- 20 g0.7 ozunsalted smooth peanut butter (1 heaping tablespoon)
- 120 g4 ozgreen beans, cut into pieces (about 1 1/4 cups)
- 80 g3 ozcarrot, cut into thin sticks (1 large)
- 80 g3 ozred bell pepper, cut into strips (about 1/2 large)
- 5 golive oil (1 teaspoon)
- 100 g3.5 ozcooked brown rice (about 1/2 cup)
- Low-sodium soy sauce (1 tablespoon)
- Juice of 1/2 lime
- Grated ginger and garlic to taste
- Hot water (3 to 4 tablespoons, to thin the sauce and steam the vegetables)
Directions
- Pat the tofu dry with paper towels and cut it into cubes.
- In a bowl, whisk the peanut butter with the soy sauce, lime juice, ginger, garlic, and 2 tablespoons of hot water until smooth.
- Brown the tofu in a nonstick skillet with the oil for 6 to 8 minutes, turning, then set it aside.
- In the same skillet, add the green beans and carrot with the rest of the water, cover, and cook 5 minutes; add the bell pepper and stir-fry 3 minutes more, uncovered.
- Return the tofu, pour in the sauce, and toss for 1 minute over low heat until everything is coated.
- Serve with the brown rice.
Why it is filling
Tofu brings the protein, and a small amount of peanut sauce makes it creamy and full of flavor without any cream. The green beans, carrot, and bell pepper fill the plate with volume and fiber, and brown rice rounds out the meal. The sauce carries the fat from the peanuts: if heavy meals bother you, use less and thin it with more water or lime.
In numbers, each serving has 19 g of protein and 6.2 g of fiber, with an energy density of 87 kcal per 100 g of the dish. In the satiety index by Holt and colleagues (1995), the foods that were most filling per calorie were those with more protein, fiber, and water and less fat.
If your appetite is small
- If the serving is too much, start with the tofu and vegetables and leave some of the rice.
- Keep the sauce separate: the dish keeps for 2 days in the fridge, and the sauce loosens again with a splash of water.
- For a peanut allergy, swap the peanut butter for tahini (sesame paste), after checking that sesame is safe too.
Nutrition facts
| Nutrient | Per serving | Whole recipe |
|---|---|---|
| Calories | 306 kcal | 612 kcal |
| Protein | 19 g | 38 g |
| Carbohydrates | 29.7 g | 59.5 g |
| Fiber | 6.2 g | 12.5 g |
| Fat | 14.7 g | 29.5 g |
| Approximate weight | 353 g (12 oz) | 705 g (25 oz) |
How it is calculated
Each ingredient contributes its per-100 g values from the site’s food database, multiplied by the amount in the recipe. Seasonings, water, and lemon or lime juice are not counted. It is an approximation: the actual size of the foods and how you cook them shift the result a little.
| Ingredient | Amount | Calories | Protein | Fiber |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Firm tofu | 300 g | 234 kcal | 27.1 g | 2.7 g |
| Peanut butter | 20 g | 120 kcal | 4.4 g | 1 g |
| Green beans | 120 g | 37 kcal | 2.2 g | 3.2 g |
| Carrot | 80 g | 33 kcal | 0.7 g | 2.2 g |
| Red bell pepper | 80 g | 21 kcal | 0.8 g | 1.7 g |
| Olive oil | 5 g | 44 kcal | 0 g | 0 g |
| Cooked brown rice | 100 g | 123 kcal | 2.7 g | 1.6 g |
To plan your meals
- Daily protein calculator: an indicative protein range per day and per meal, to see how much of it this recipe covers.
- Weekly menu for small appetites: seven days of small portions with the protein spread across meals, ready to print.
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Sources
Nutrition values for each ingredient (USDA FoodData Central) and the satiety reference, with the access date.
- U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service.USDA FoodData Central: Tofu, firm, prepared with calcium sulfate and magnesium chloride (nigari) (FDC ID 172448).accessed .
- U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service.USDA FoodData Central: Peanut butter, smooth style, without salt (FDC ID 172470).accessed .
- U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service.USDA FoodData Central: Beans, snap, green, raw (FDC ID 169961).accessed .
- U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service.USDA FoodData Central: Carrots, raw (FDC ID 170393).accessed .
- U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service.USDA FoodData Central: Peppers, sweet, red, raw (FDC ID 170108).accessed .
- U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service.USDA FoodData Central: Oil, olive, salad or cooking (FDC ID 171413).accessed .
- U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service.USDA FoodData Central: Rice, brown, long-grain, cooked (Includes foods for USDA's Food Distribution Program) (FDC ID 169704).accessed .
- European Journal of Clinical Nutrition (PubMed).Holt SH, Miller JC, Petocz P, Farmakalidis E. A satiety index of common foods. Eur J Clin Nutr. 1995;49(9):675-90.accessed .