Marry Me Tofu
Seared tofu in a creamy parmesan & sun-dried tomato sauce. Marry Me Tofu is the perfect date night meal or cozy comfort food dinner.
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Servings: 4
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Equipment
- Enameled braiser or other skillet
Ingredients
Pan-Fried Tofu
- 1 (16 oz) block super-firm (high protein) tofu cut into 1/2" steaks or pieces
- salt and pepper to generously season the tofu
- 1/3 cup flour
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Marry Me Cream Sauce
- 2 tablespoons vegan butter
- 1/2 medium onion, or 2 shallots finely diced
- 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes optional, or use Calabrian chili paste
- 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
- 2-4 cloves garlic minced
- 1/3 cup oil-packed sundried tomatoes diced
- 1 cup vegetable broth I recommend chicken-style bouillon; see notes
- 1 cup cashew cream recipe follows; see notes for substitutions
- 1/4 cup grated vegan parmesan or sub 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil plus extra to garnish
- salt to taste
Cashew Cream
- 1/3 cup raw cashews soaked 4+ hours or boiled ~10 minutes
- 2/3 cup hot water
Instructions
Prepare the Cashew Cream
- If you would prefer to use a store-bought nondairy cream, check out the recipe notes for recommendations.
- Make sure the cashews are thoroughly soaked or boiled so they blend as smoothly as possible. Drain the soaking liquid and add the cashews to a high powdered blender along with 2/3 cup hot water. Blend for several minutes, until the mixture is completely smooth. Set aside.
Prepare the Tofu
- Cut the tofu into your preferred shape — you can do 1/2" steaks, cubes, or triangular pieces. I tend to prefer the smaller pieces because it gives the tofu a little more surface area for the sauce to coat.
- Generously salt the tofu pieces and add pepper to preference. Add 1/3 cup flour to a plate or shallow dish and dredge the tofu.
- Heat a skillet or braiser over medium heat. Add 2 tablespoons olive oil (or enough to coat the bottom of the pan) and heat until the oil shimmers.
- Add the dredged tofu pieces in one layer (work in batches if needed). The tofu should sizzle immediately when added to the pan; otherwise, the oil isn't hot enough. Pan-fry until lightly golden brown on both sides, about 3-5 minutes per side. Remove the browned tofu to a plate.
Prepare the Sauce
- Melt the nondairy butter in the same pan. Add in finely diced onion, 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes (optional), 1/2 teaspoon oregano, and 1/4 teaspoon thyme to the pan. Add a generous pinch of salt and sauté for 3-5 minutes, or until onion is tender.
- Add minced garlic and sauté for another 1-2 minutes.
- Stir in the 1/3 cup diced sundried tomatoes and sauté for another minute.
- Pour in 1 cup vegetable broth. If any bits are sticking to the bottom of the pan, gently scrape them loose with your wooden spoon.
- Stir in the 1 cup cashew cream (or plant-based cream substitute), along with the 1/4 cup shredded vegan parmesan (or 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast). If you are using nutritional yeast, you may need to add in an extra pinch of salt.
- Let the sauce simmer, stirring often, until it thickens to a creamy consistency. This usually only takes a minute or two. If it thickens a little more than you prefer, you can simply stir in an extra splash of water or vegetable broth.
- Give the sauce and a taste and season to preference with salt. The amount of salt needed will vary depending on the brand of broth and parmesan you used. Chicken-style bouillon tends to run on the salty side, but a regular veggie broth from a carton will likely need extra salt.
- Stir in 2 tablespoons fresh basil. Then add the pan-fried tofu back into the pan, gently tossing to coat with sauce. Allow it to simmer for another minute or two to reheat the tofu.
- Serve garnished with more fresh basil. Pair with pasta or rice for a satisfying meal.
Notes
- Chicken-style vegetable broth: This will make the sauce more savory! I recommend using double-concentrated broth for more flavor — just use 2x the bouillon required for 1 cup of broth. My favorite options are the Not-Chick'n Edward & Sons Bouillon Cubes or the Better Than Bouillon Vegetarian No Chicken Base.
- Vegan parmesan: I like the Follow Your Heart Vegan Parmesan Shreds or the Violife Just Like Parmesan Wedge.
- No Cashews: You can replace the cashews with raw sunflower seeds to make homemade sunflower cream. It doesn't have as neutral a flavor as cashews but it's very creamy. You can also use canned coconut cream if you don't mind the slight coconut flavor — I find the Sprouts brand works well for this. Alternatively, you can use your favorite plant-based half & half or heavy cream substitute. Silk and Country Crock offer two options. I haven't tested this recipe with either personally.
- Can't find super-firm tofu: You can make this with firm/extra-firm tofu. I recommend giving it a thorough press for at least 20 minutes to firm it up and remove extra moisture. Blocks of firm/extra firm tofu tend to be a bit smaller (usually 12 or 14 ounces), so the ratio of sauce-to-tofu will be a bit different. You can use 1 1/2 blocks firm/extra-firm tofu if you like.
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