Smokey Miso Tofu
I hate it when I order a tofu sandwich somewhere, and it pretty much just tastes like (or actually is) blocks of watery, plain tofu stuffed between two pieces of bread. What’s up with that? You might as well be eating a wet, mushy sponge. I love me some tofu, but you got to treat it right, you know?
So I was thinking about tofu, and imagining thin slices of flavorful goodness to stuff into sandwiches. I knew wanted to use miso as the base for the flavor. The first sauce I mixed together used a bit of maple syrup, which seemed like a good idea until I tasted it. Something about the combination of red miso and maple syrup did not sit well with me, so down the drain it went. I moved on to pure, unadulterated sugar, a twist of lemon, a splash of tamari… I was definitely getting close. I scooped in a little bit of nooch (nutritional yeast, aka vegan pixi dust) and liquid smoke and it was finished. It’s a dead-simple marinade, tangy, salty, smokey and rich. I wanted eat it like a soup.
I thought some pan-frying was in order, but when I heated up my cast-iron skillet and proceeded to burn all of the sauce right off the tofu, I decided the oven was a better choice. The oven baked the flavor into the tofu, and 20 minutes was all that was needed since the slices were so thin.
This tofu will keep well, so it’s nice to make a whole block and set it aside for sandwiches, salads, or.. umm… snacking directly out of the fridge.
Smokey Miso Tofu
Makes 18-20 Thin Slices
2 Tbs Red Miso
2 Tbs Lemon Juice
2 Tbs Sugar
2 Tbs Tamari/Soy Sauce
1 Tbs Nutritional Yeast
1/4 tsp Liquid Smoke
1 Tub Extra/Super Firm Tofu, drained and pressed
Preheat the oven to 425º F. Wrap your drained tofu in a few paper towels, then again in a terry cloth bar towel. Press with something heavy – a cast-iron skillet, a plate with some cans on top, etc, for 10-20 minutes.
Meanwhile, mix the marinade together.
Unwrap the tofu and make many thin, width-wise slices with a large knife. I got 18-20 slices out of one block of tofu. They’ll look something like this:
Line up your slices on a baking sheet topped with a non-stick baking mat. Brush both sides of the tofu with the marinade.
Let the slices absorb the marinade for 10 minutes or so, then brush just the tops again. Bake for 20 minutes at 425º F. Remove from oven and let cool on the sheet. The tofu should be darkened around the edges, but not burnt. Use immediately or refrigerate for later use.
I’m a simple girl, so some vegan mayo, baby spinach, and sourdough toast were all I needed to make a delicious sandwich. Whatever your favorite sandwich fixin’s are will go great, most likely. This would tofu would make a nice vegan BLT!
Now that’s a tofu sandwich!
MMM! I can’t wait to try this!!
Nice! That looks so good!!!
Ooh, that looks really good. I totally agree about plain tofu being just nasty on a sandwich. Can’t wait to give this a try…
I actually used to eat sliced plain tofu and mustard sandwiches when I was in high school – and liked it. But, I think your version sounds much better! Thanks for the recipe!
I know what I’m having for dinner tonight. Thanks for the great recipe!
Seriously, that looks so simple. I hate when restaurants can’t even put a little effort into their non-meat dishes.
It looks delicious!
WONDERFUL!!!
that looks really tasty, anything smoky and I’m there! I was planning on getting extra tofu this weekend while it’s still member appreciation days, I know what I’m making with it :)
I couldn’t agree more with you about the wet, raw tofu between bread… Bleh! You have created a sandwich that I am sure will become a favorite for me. Thank you for sharing!
Happy Birthday to you…
Happy Birthday to you…
Happy Birthday dear Alanna,
Happy Birthday to you!!!
Oh, yes Tofu sandwiches are one of my favourites – though the properly done up ones of course!! My top of the top – southern “fried” (which is really baked) tofu sandwich, but the smokey miso is sounding super appealing right now! No doubt this will be my next sandwich variation! Thanks!
Until I saw this – I would never have eaten a tofu sandwich. THis totally rocks though and I will get some liquid smoke tomorrow. You essentially barbequed it – sans grill. Lovely.
oh yes… THAT IS a tofu sandwich! Can’t wait to make it!
I have everything except liquid smoke and a nice rustic bread… I’m biking to whole foods for those right now – zoom zoom… :)
Between your descriptions and photography, I want to make so many of the recipes on your site! And I am not even vegetarian, much less vegan! I found your blog when following your knitted Marzipan, and have loved it ever since!
YUMM! I can’t wait to try this recipe! I love miso and I love tofu sandwiches…perfect!
Ha! I STILL eat tofu and mustard sandwiches, but this will make a… suitable alternative. Who am I kidding? These look absolutely delicious.
Holy COW that looks good.
I just found your website and it looks fabulous! It is difficult to find good vegan recipes and your site has tons. I can’t wait to try some of them!
This has to be the BEST Baco Tofu yet.
Love it.
Made it last night, on toasted whole grain bread, with tomatoes, lettuce, avocado and vegan mayo.
YUM!
Thank you for sharing.
this looks amazing, I’ll be making some of these real soon, thanks as always for not only mind blowing recipes but photos that are just so good!
This recipe is fantastic! I’ve been looking for a good tofu sandwich idea. Thank you!
These look just like the tofu sandwiches at my bakery – they actually do treat their tofu damn well. It is savory and delicious with all the vegetables and thick sourdough bread. I am been trying to recreate it, so I might just have to try this recipe.
This looks fantastic. You know what else works really well on sandwiches? Tempeh. In fact, I have some in my fridge right now that would do nicely with this recipe – I think it has a “meatier” taste, especially good for fooling husbands into thinking it’s not fermented soybeans.Grilling might also work for this as well!
This looks so lovely and I really like how you explained how you found the best flavors! Is liquid smoke easy to find?
Ok, vegan food never looked so good! I’m a meat eater and when I see these recipes I don’t even think of them being vegan, or vegetarian, I just think YUM! :)
Wow, the sandwich looks soo yummy! I have never had tofu sandwich before, but I just might give it a try. :-)
There’s really nothing more satisfying that a sandwich stuffed with tasty baked tofu!
oh… yeah… mmm… mmm… mmmmmmm….
let’s hear it for snacking out of the fridge….
It’s a new staple at my house.
THANK YOU!!!
:)
OH! p.s. I had guilt with 2 Tbs sugar – only used one.
That looks great! Definitely trying it….
I don’t have any miso :( but i’m going to make this anyway. Perhaps toss in some yummy asian chili that I have as well.
Hey there, nice looking recipes! I was just curious, being that you’re Vegan and eat high amounts of tofu, do you watch your iron intake since tofu has such high amounts of oxalic acid which prevents the body from properly absorbing iron, which in turn can lead to iron-deficient anemia? Might explain why vegans seem to have a common pallor.
I’m definitely going to have to try this recipe -yum!! To the poster above me – I’m curious where you heard that tofu is high in oxalic acid. I’ve never heard that or read it anywhere. In fact, I’ve heard tofu is a rather good source for iron with around 34% of the daily reccomendation in one serving.
What a killer tutorial! I say be kind to tofu and it will be kind to you. Now I need to find some red miso.
I made this for lunch today and it was delicious! My sister was visiting and it gluten-free, so I made sure to use soy sauce without wheat, and spelt English muffins. My vegan mayo was a little past its peak, so I used honey dijon and it was yummy.
This recipe is terrific! I sliced my block a little thicker (just prefer it), used honey instead of sugar (I didn’t have any sugar on hand), and it came out just fine. I ate two pieces while it was cooling and they were good but they were better (at least to me) after a bit of chilling in the fridge. Served a few slices up on some toasted Ciabatta with a little Veganaise, some pea and sunflower shoots, a little purslane, and an incredibly ripe New York tomato. Vegan Yum Yum to be sure! Great summer lunch!
This recipe looks delicious and I love tofu!…. but where do you get liquid smoke? I’ve never even heard of it.
You can get it at most grocery stores near the BBQ sauces, I buy mine at Whole Foods. The brand is Calgon, I believe.
Good idea! My only question is: would you say any kind of Miso would work?
Yeah, the recipe should be pretty flexible. However, if you use a sweet miso I’d go easy on the sugar, and if you use a stronger miso, you might want a little more lemon juice to balance the saltiness. Whatever miso you try, add the remaining ingredients little-by-little to see what your preferences are. I happen to really love red miso, though!
Thanks again for running this amazing blog.
I so have to try this amazing recipe. You make it look so easy!
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Totally, it is all about slicing thin and letting the flavor in. I discovered another way to do that recent, by cutting in a crosshatch pattern.
Yum! I’m looking forward to trying this.
I totally agree with you about mushy restaurant tofu & can never figure out why most places never even bother to press their tofu.
Love your blog & thanks for sharing all the fab recipes.
Just wanted to let you know that I made this last night and it turned out awesome! Great recipe!
Made these for lunch today. I LOVE them! Husband loved them. So easy to make, and a quick clean up too. We added tomato and used arugula instead of spinach. I’m going to have to buy another silicone sheet so I can double the recipe. It’s too hot here to have the oven on longer than 20 minutes!
Love this recipe! so much that I’ve made it 3 times already!
I could only find one type of miso – Hacho. It’s a very thick dark brown paste. Is it similar to red miso?
Does anyone know how long it can be stored in the refrigerator?
I ate this and it was good.
Traditional miso from Japan or Korea is one color and has a lot of natural sea salt in it with some sticky rice to make it thick in texture. You can only get it at an Asian market. It’s tan in color and you don’t really need to add soy sauce but I made this with Kikkoman and black bean paste instead with no liquid smoke. I added a little bit of red pepper paste and I think honey would have been better than sugar but oh well it was still really good.
I found you through My Paper Crane’s blog. This recipe looks amazing! All ingredients I have on hand too. Will definitely be trying this soon.
Thanks so much for sharing the recipe! I’m always looking for new tofu marinades.
Do you know where I can find one of those non-stick baking mats that you use? I’ve tried Bed, Bath & Beyond, Target, and WalMart with no luck. Is there an online store that sells them?