Directions

1. Heat oil in a large dutch oven or electric deep-fryer to 350° F. Line the bottom-side of a cookie sheet with paper towels and place a cooling rack upside down on top of that. Set aside for now.
2. Place tofu block on its side and cut into three equal slices, thus creating three flat rectangles. Leaving them in stack, cut the rectangles into 1/2 strips, thus creating many long sticks (reference photo in post).
3. Place a layer of double-thick paper towels on a cutting board, carefully lay out tofu sticks, and place another layer of double-thick paper towels on top of that. Gently press down to release excess moisture. Keep aside for now.
4. Place tapioca starch in a cake pan or wide & shallow bowl. In a separate cake pan, whisk together panko, coconut, paprika, onion powder, salt, and black pepper. In a third cake pan, whisk together vegan egg powder with water and fish sauce until smooth.
5. Set up these pans near the fryer, with the starch being first, Vegan Egg being second, and bread crumbs being last and closest to the deep fryer.
6. Place about 1/6 of the tofu sticks into the starch and gently move them around to coat, ensuring you cover the ends and every side.
7. Wipe off as much starch as possible then transfer a few to the vegan egg mixture at a time. Move around to coat, wipe off excess, then transfer to the breadcrumb mixture.
8. Toss to coat in breadcrumbs. Gently shake tofu to release any loose breadcrumbs, and place in the oil one at a time, working as quickly as possible to ensure each piece cooks evenly. Cook until tofu is golden brown and crispy; 45-60 seconds. Transfer to draining rig from Step 1.
9. Repeat steps 6-8 for remaining batches. To avoid overcrowding, work in about 6 total batches.
10. While tofu cooks, combine all of the sauce ingredients in a small bowl and stir until smooth. Serve while fresh with dipping sauce!