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Need a vegan alternative for the grill? You’re going to love this easy 30-minute grilled tofu steak recipe! A simple tofu steak marinade infuses it with flavor and then it’s cooked on the grill. Serve it up your favorite sides as a vegan steak or chop it up to add to salads and wraps!
Cooking on the grill makes a nice alternative to heating up the house on hot days or a method of cooking throughout the year.
When the weather isn’t so cooperative, swap it out for an indoor grill pan to cook up your tofu steaks and other grilling favorites.
The best thing about grilled tofu steaks is that they can be used in so many different ways to create a variety of meals. They go great served up as a vegan steak with mashed potatoes or dice the vegan steaks up after cooking and add over the top of your favorite salad.
If you love grilling as much as we do, try grilled pineapples or grilled potatoes with chickpeas.
Why This Recipe Works
- Tofu steaks are the perfect meatless solution for all your grilling needs!
- Makes a great stand-in for meat for meals!
- So many ways to use it.
- Simple ingredients and easy preparation.
What Goes Into This Recipe
Tofu, bbq sauce, and a simple marinade are all it takes to make the best tofu steak recipe. Here’s what you need:
- Extra-firm tofu: When grilling tofu, you definitely need to use extra-firm tofu so it will stay intact for cooking on the grill. Check out this guide to tofu if you want to learn more!
- Brown sugar: Adds some sweetness to the tofu marinade or rub but you can also swap with a vegan liquid sweetener as well.
- Spices: We’ll be using a blend of chili powder, onion powder, garlic powder, paprika, and cayenne pepper to flavor the tofu. Adjust the cayenne pepper to your own spice preference.
- Bbq Sauce: Use a store-bought vegan barbecue sauce or make your own to add to the tofu after grilling. It’s completely optional but it adds more great flavor.
How To Grill Tofu
Here’s a simple method for grilling tofu easily for meals. See the recipe card for detailed instructions.
- 1) Slice the tofu horizontally (on its side) and slice it into thirds to get thick, large slabs of tofu. Press the tofu with a tofu press or a heavy object to squeeze the water out.
- 2) Mix the seasonings in a small bowl and rub the mixture onto the tofu pieces.
- 3) Place the tofu on a grill (or indoor grill pan) and cook each side for 7 to 10 minutes.
- 4) When almost ready, brush the bbq sauce on each side of the tofu and grill for another 2 to 3 minutes.
Expert Tips
- Take the time to press the tofu. If you aren’t sure how to do it, you can learn more in this guide to pressing tofu. But really, it makes such a difference in the final texture and flavor of the tofu.
- Use extra firm tofu. It will cook up the best on the grill resulting in a firm piece of tofu. Other types of tofu are likely to be too fragile for the grill.
- For perfect grill marks on your steak, place the tofu on the grill and cook without moving on each side.
FAQs
Tofu doesn’t always need to be marinated but it does benefit from adding seasonings. For tofu steaks, we use a rub instead of a marinade which adds bold flavors to the tofu without needing to marinate it. This saves time and still results in a tasty tofu meal.
A tofu steak will taste much like whatever seasonings you use to flavor it. By itself, tofu has a rather mild but slightly nutty flavor that will absorb or take on any flavors rubbed on the outside or used to marinate it. The texture of a tofu steak is slightly softer and a bit more tender but using extra-firm tofu, pressing the tofu, and grilling does help it firm up a bit.
Variations
- No grill or grill pan? That’s ok, you can make oven tofu steaks instead. Cook them in the oven on a baking sheet for 10 minutes on each side at 400° F. Then add the BBQ sauce and cook a bit longer.
- Try a different sauce. Mango cucumber salsa, pico de gallo or parsley pesto work great!
- Turn them into kebabs. After rubbing them with the seasoning marinade, slice the tofu into cubes and thread them on a skewer.
- Serve the tofu on a sandwich or add it to a salad.
More Tofu Recipes
You can also check out these 16 Savory Tofu Recipes as well!
Photos by Alfonso Revilla
Grilled Tofu Steak Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 block of extra firm tofu
- 2 Tablespoons of brown sugar
- 1 Tablespoon of chili powder
- 1 teaspoon of cayenne pepper
- 1 teaspoon of black pepper
- 1 Tablespoon of onion powder
- 1 Tablespoon of garlic powder
- 3 Tablespoons of paprika
- BBQ Sauce (optional)
Instructions
- Flip the tofu on its side and slice it into thirds. Press tofu to squeeze water out.
- Mix seasonings in a bowl and rub the mixture onto the tofu pieces.
- Place tofu on a grill. Cook each side for 7 to 10 minutes.
- Brush bbq sauce on each side of the tofu and grill for another 2 to 3 minutes.
Notes
- Take the time to press the tofu. If you aren’t sure how to do it, you can learn more in this guide to pressing tofu. But really, it makes such a difference in the final texture and flavor of the tofu.
- Use extra firm tofu. It will cook up the best on the grill resulting in a firm piece of tofu. Other types of tofu are likely to be too fragile for the grill.
- For perfect grill marks on your steak, place the tofu on the grill and cook without moving on each side.
Came across this recipe online. It looked good, and easy to put together, so I gave it a shot. I substituted super firm tofu in place of extra firm. Didn’t even need to press it. My wife is not a fan of spicy, so we tweaked the spice ingredients. It turned out fantastic! So easy to do on the grill. We will definitely be making this again soon.
So glad you both enjoyed it!
Love that you guys gave it a go and enjoyed it! It’s a delicious one!
I wanted a plated tofu dish so I used my tofu pressed tofu in the fridge for this. I made mashed potatoes and because I felt I was cooking too much, roasted a frozen pack of vegetables. This tofu recipe was what I was looking for, personally. My partner thought it needed salt, so we sprinkled salt after it was made. I chose the path of BBQ sauce and thought it rounded it out much better. You can taste the sweetness from the brown sugar, but that’s what crisps it up nicely, I think. The spice blend seems like a lot, but I covered my tofu, entirely. No bland space left behind.
Love to hear it! When tofu is seasoned right, it is delicious! So glad you guys enjoyed it!
The sauce for this and the seasoning looks amazing! I am definitely trying this one out!
You’re going to love it! It’s a delicious one!
Oh yum! What a great way to enjoy tofu. The spice mix is delicious!
Couldn’t agree more! The marinade is soooo tasty!
An interesting and super tasty way to cook tofu. The flavors are spot on and wonderful with a side of rice. Give it a try!
This has to be one of my favorite ways to cook tofu! Yum!
The flavor of these tofu steaks is so good!! So happy to have something new to grill 🙂
Love the seasoning of this tofu steak so much. So tasty!