Tofu Alternatives For Your Favorite Vegan Dishes (2024)

FAQs

Tofu Alternatives For Your Favorite Vegan Dishes? ›

Instead of using tofu for the stir-fry, just add another high-protein element such as seitan, lentils, beans, or a soy-free meat analogue. Click here for this stir fry zucchini noodles recipe by Veggie Inspired!

Other Substitutes for Tofu

You can blend nuts like raw cashew nuts, raw almonds, hazelnuts, oats, pumpkin seeds, and peanuts as a soft tofu replacement. It is best to soak your nuts in cold water overnight and blend to get the soft tofu result. Cashew nuts are a good choice because they are rich in flavor.

While you can't go wrong with either plant-based protein, tempeh is generally considered to be the healthier option due to its rich nutrient profile. It contains more protein, fiber, and vitamins than tofu. Tempeh is also fermented, and fermented foods are easier to digest and provide healthy gut bacteria.

What is tofu? Tofu, or bean curd, is a popular food derived from soya. It is made by curdling fresh soya milk, pressing it into a solid block and then cooling it, in much the same way that traditional dairy cheese is made by curdling and solidifying milk.

Tofu's an especially good choice for people who eat vegan to ensure they meet their recommended daily protein intake. “Unlike animal sources of protein like beef, tofu is cholesterol-free,” says Romito. And while a serving of tofu has 5 grams of fat, it's mostly polyunsaturated fats.

And if you are thinking this means you need to eat lots of tofu, and you don't like tofu, there is good news: there are plenty of meat alternatives out there besides tofu, including tempeh, seitan, as well as other meat substitutes.

If you're looking to replace the protein that soy delivers, legumes may be your solution. Black beans, kidney beans, chickpeas, and lentils are filling and nutrient-rich ingredients that can be incorporated into salads, soups, or into mains like burritos and nachos.

Are plant-based alternatives healthier? Some plant-based alternatives can be a good source of protein and fibre and, if they've been fortified, can provide certain vitamins and minerals including vitamin B12, iron, zinc and iodine that are naturally found in meat and dairy.

Previous reviews have indicated that vegetarians and vegans may risk vitamin B12, vitamin D, iron, zinc and calcium deficiency as these micronutrients can mostly be found in animal foods or have a lower bioavailability in plant foods [8,9,10,11,12,13,14].

Tofu (Japanese: 豆腐, Hepburn: Tōfu, Korean: 두부; RR: dubu, Chinese: 豆腐; pinyin: dòufu) is a food prepared by coagulating soy milk and then pressing the resulting curds into solid white blocks of varying softness: silken, soft, firm, extra (or super) firm. Tofu is also known as bean curd in English.

Which tastes better tofu or tempeh? ›

Tempeh has a firmer texture than tofu and whilst it's super versatile, it's better suited to savoury dishes. Tempeh is especially great for salads, sandwiches, stir-fries, pasta sauces, nourishing bowls, curries and more. Compared to tofu, tempeh has a stronger flavour, often described as nutty.

Tofu is categorized by texture, or consistency. The texture is determined by the water content in the tofu. The more water, the softer or 'silkier' the tofu; with less water, the tofu is firmer. Tofu is categorized as silken, regular, firm, extra-firm and super-firm.

General Gut Health

One study found that consuming soy products led to an increase in the healthy bacterias bifidobacteria and lactobacilli in the gut. Both of these bacteria have been found to help decrease risk of chronic diseases.

Foods that have undergone some processing but contain very little or no added sugars and salt are considered “minimally processed” or simply “processed.” These include whole grain pasta, whole grain flours, tofu, and tempeh.

Often described as reminiscent of soya beans, or slightly sour or nutty. The fact it's stored in water further dilutes its subtle flavour. Tofu's high water percentage gives it its spongy, absorbent properties, which means it easily absorbs the flavour of sauces it's cooked or served with.

If you're starting your journey into a plant-based diet or if you're looking for a good meat substitute, tofu is completely vegan friendly. Tofu products are actually a staple soy-based part of a vegetarian and vegan diet. Tofu is vegetarian because it is derived from soy proteins.

Soy-free tofu is not a modern product born out of the recent soy fear mongering—it's a longtime staple of Burmese cuisine. Sometimes referred to as Burmese tofu or Shan tofu (named after the region from which it originated), soy-free tofu is simply made from chickpeas and water.