all you need are 10 ingredients and about a half hour to make this easy vegan tofu parm! it is so delicious and perfect to pair with pasta, veggies, or use for a sandwich.
the inspiration
I am so excited to share this easy vegan tofu parm! If there is one thing I am a fan of it is sauce and vegan cheese. Put it on just about anything and it is guaranteed to make it better. A few weeks ago I shared my dinner on Instagram stories with this tofu parm and a bunch of people wanted the recipe.
This recipe is very easy as we don’t need to deal with breading the tofu. Also, making it gluten free. You just bake it and it comes together so quickly.
ingredients
- Super firm tofu
- Marinara or tomato sauce
- Vegan mozzarella
- Non-dairy milk
- Nutritional yeast
- Seasonings
Tofu Choice
I mainly use super firm tofu or sometimes called high protein tofu. It is the most firm tofu and has the highest protein. I also really love that you do not need to press it. However, if you can only find extra firm tofu you can use that too. If you do, I suggest you use a tofu press (paid link), to press it. In case you need to learn more about the different types of tofu and it’s versatility you can check out my tofu 101 video (it’s a few years old but info is still good).
why is this tofu parm so easy to make?
There are a few things that help to make this recipe so quick and versatile!
- No breading required! The only thing you do is coat the tofu in some nutritonal yeast and seasonings. You don’t need to go through the process of coating the tofu in flour, non-dairy milk, and breadcrumbs.
- Store-bought sauce. Listen, as an Italian there are very few instances where I like to use store-bought sauce. However, for something like this when I want a quick and easy dinner it works out really well. I personally love the one from Rao’s (paid link), Carbone (paid link), or Vincent’s (paid link).
- Bake it, no frying. While fried things taste yummy it is a pain to deal with and makes a mess. So, we just need to bake this or you can use an air fryer.
more tofu recipes
easy vegan tofu parm faq
- Can I make this soy free? If you can’t have tofu you could use cauliflower, eggplant, zucchini, seitan – however, you will need most likely need to dredge and bread it, similarly to this recipe.
- How does your vegan cheese look so gooey and melted? I use my vegan cheese melting hack! If you don’t feel like taking this extra step just throw the vegan cheddar shreds on and bake it.
- What to do with leftovers? Just pop them in the fridge and then you can reheat in oven, microwave or air fryer.
- What vegan cheese do you use? I like the Violife mozzarella, Follow Your Heart mozzarella, or 365 plant based mozzarella. Miyokos would also be delicious here.
- Where do you get nutritional yeast? You can either order it online (paid link) or most food stores have it now, just need to look in the “health” food section.
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Easy Vegan Tofu Parm
Ingredients
- ½ block super firm tofu 8 ounces*see note
- 1 ½ tablespoons nutritional yeast
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ teaspoon onion powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon paprika
- ¼ teaspoon dried parsley
- ⅓ cup vegan mozzarella shreds
- 3 tablespoons non-dairy milk, unsweetened and unflavored
- ½ cup tomato or marinara sauce
- spray oil for baking, optional
- basil for garnish, optional
- grated vegan parmesan for topping, optional
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400°F (204°C).
- Cut the ½ block super firm tofu into about ¼ inch thick slices. As many slices as you can make, I did 5. Do not cut tofu too thin. Do not pat the tofu dry, you want it to be wet so seasonings stick.
- In a dish combine the 1 ½ tablespoons nutritional yeast ¼ teaspoon garlic powder, ¼ teaspoon onion powder, ¼ teaspoon salt, ¼ teaspoon paprika and ¼ teaspoon dried parsley.
- Coat each piece of tofu in seasonings and then place on lined baking sheet.
- Spray with spray oil if you like and bake it oven for 13 minutes or until golden brown.
- Meanwhile, in a small saucepan add the ⅓ cup vegan mozzarella shreds and 3 tablespoons non-dairy milk, unsweetened and unflavored. Cook over low heat stirring occasionally until cheese is melted down and liquid.
- Once tofu is done baking remove from oven. Spread ½ cup tomato or marinara sauce equally over tofu pieces and then add vegan mozzarella from stove.
- Place back in oven and bake for 5 more minutes. If desired, you can broil on high for 2 minutes please watch carefully.
- When it is done allow it to cool for 1 to 2 minutes before removing from pan.
- Plate it up and add any garnishes or toppings you like, such as basil or grated vegan parmesan
Video
Notes
- Vegan parmesan used is Go Veggie
- Nondairy milk used is Ripple
- Vegan mozzarella shreds used is 365 whole foods
- I would say this is 2 to 3 servings – depends on how hungry you are, and what else you are serving this with.
Things You May Want
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Very nice recipe chef 👍👌👏. I had it for breakfast 😋 this morning. Thank you for your effort 🌹🌞😎
thank you so much!!! 🙂
Makes a great sandwich too!!!! Love your recipes.
Hi Francesca can you make the cheese sauce ahead of time and freeze it?
Hi Curtis, hmmm I haven’t tried doing that with this particular method. I have done it with my cauliflower “mozzarella” cheese and it worked fine https://plantifullybasedblog.com/2019/06/13/homemade-vegan-pizza-and-vegan-mozzarella/ if you would rather that recipe. you also don’t need to make the cheese sauce if you don’t want to you can just sprinkle vegan mozzarella shreds on they just don’t melt in the most beautiful manner!
if you do decide to do it and freeze it, just come back and let us all know how it went, it should be fine but can’t say for certain.
Wonderful, easy recipe!
yay! so happy you enjoyed it!! thank you
This was delicious Francesca! So simple yet so flavorful! <3
yay I am so happy you enjoyed it Bekah!! xo thank you for leaving a comment/review
I am so grateful for you! Your recipes are my go-to for family meals and this is another winner!
hi Synette!! That just put the biggest smile on my face. I am so happy you and your family enjoy them. thank you for taking the time to leave a review/comment xoxo
I make this a couple times a month and absolutely love it. Thank you for the great recipes!
Hi Patty! thank you so much for making it. I am so glad you enjoy it, thank you for taking the time to leave a comment/review xoxo
It was really tasty, just could be a little crispier! I’d make again and maybe air fry first!
thanks for trying it Carly!
This is my go-to, favorite quick meal. Honestly it’s my comfort meal too. Absolutely love it!
yay!! that makes me so happy to hear. thank you so much for leaving a review/comment!!
It would be amazing to offer the option to convert the measuring quantities to metric as well and also to offer option to increase the recipe info to accomodate for the the quantity of people you are cooking for (by offering 2 times or 3 times) like quite recipe sites do now.
Hi Ana, I do have all the measurements in grams right next to every ingredient and write the temperatures in Celsius 🙂
How would I make in air fryer?
just follow the recipe and place in air fryer instead of an oven 🙂
Makes a great sandwich too!!!! Love your recipes.
Yay thank you so much Connie! So glad you enjoyed it!!!