Drain the block of tofu from the liquid it comes packaged in.
Dice the tofu into small cubes, then place the cubes of tofu on a stack of 2-3 paper towels on top of a cutting board.
Place another stack of 2-3 paper towels on top of the tofu, then place a baking sheet on top of the paper towels.
Place heavy cans of vegetables or a cast iron skillet on top of the baking sheet to press down on the tofu.
Press the tofu for at least 20 minutes, or up to 1 hour.
Preheat the oven to 425°F.
Remove the heavy cans and baking sheet from on top of the paper towels. Remove and discard the soaked paper towels.
Toss the drained and pressed tofu cubes with olive oil, cornstarch, sea salt, garlic powder, black pepper and cayenne pepper.
Arrange the seasoned tofu in an even layer on a parchment paper lined baking sheet.
Place in the oven for 15 minutes.
Remove from the oven, flip the tofu and continue cooking for another 15 minutes.
When the tofu comes out of the oven, add it to a bowl with the buffalo sauce and toss to coat.
Salad
While the tofu is baking, assemble the salad.
In a large bowl, toss the chopped romaine lettuce with the vegan avocado ranch dressing.
Divide the dressed lettuce between four bowls.
Top each bowl with cherry tomatoes, carrots, red onions, green onions and avocado.
Add the buffalo tofu to the salad and serve immediately.
Notes
Serve the tofu as soon as you toss it with the sauce. If the tofu sits in the sauce too long, it will become soggy and therefore defeat all of our efforts to get perfectly crispy tofu!
Be sure to purchase extra-firm tofu! You will not get crispy tofu with anything less than extra-firm. Trust me, I've tried this recipe with firm tofu and it's just not the same!
Make sure to bake the tofu on a large enough baking sheet that each cube is not touching. If the tofu cubes are crammed together or overlapping, they will not bake evenly, or get crispy, on all sides.
Not all brands of buffalo sauce are vegan. Be sure to check the label before purchasing buffalo sauce to make this salad. Frank's Buffalo Sauce is my favorite and it is vegan. That's what is used in this recipe and pretty much all of my recipes with buffalo sauce!