Vegan Caprese Salad

Make the most of ripe, seasonal tomatoes this summer with just a handful of fresh and simple, inexpensive ingredients and a few minutes in this vegan caprese salad recipe. It’s a quick, easy, light side salad perfect for picnics, potlucks, BBQs, pool parties, and summer get-togethers.

What is Caprese Salad?

A traditional Caprese salad (pronounced kuh-preh-zay) is a simple, refreshing Italian salad made with creamy mozzarella, ripe and juicy seasonal tomatoes, aromatic basil, sea salt, pepper, and a drizzle of olive oil.

For this vegan tofu caprese, however, I’ve replaced the dairy mozzarella with silken tofu (check out this guide to tofu). Its mild flavor and soft texture are a surprisingly good replacement for dairy-based mozzarella, while adding a healthy dose of plant-based protein. The resulting salad is fresh, bright, and surprisingly complex tasting for such a simple recipe. Plus, there are several delicious recipe variations!

Looking for more summer tomato recipes? Try this garden fresh salsa, tomato gazpacho, and panzanella salad.

Ingredient Notes

These are my ingredient notes, swaps, and additions to help you customize the recipe. For the full list of ingredients and exact measurements, check out the recipe card below.

What Else Could I Add?

This is where you can have fun with the recipe and make it your own. Consider adding fresh, flavorful ingredients or simple extras to enhance texture, color, or taste.

• Avocado: Add thin layers of avocado for creamy texture and healthy fats (check out this guide to avocado for more).
• Onion: Thinly sliced sweet onion adds tangy, robust depth.
• Cucumber: For extra crisp crunchiness in this easy caprese salad, add thinly sliced, thin-peel, low-seed Persian or English cucumber.
• Eggplant: Add layers of grilled or breaded eggplant stacks for creaminess.
• Asparagus: Serve the vegan tomato salad over a bed of steamed asparagus.
• Pasta: Make hearty tomato caprese salad with pasta, orzo, or giant couscous.
• Pesto: Make vegan pesto caprese salad instead of using vinegar.
• Pine nuts: Raw or toasted, to garnish for crunch.
• Vegan Mozzarella: If you’d rather use a store-bought vegan mozzarella, I recommend Miyoko’s brand.
• Balsamic Glaze: This recipe has a twist, but it’s usually made with balsamic glaze instead of red wine vinegar.

How to Make Vegan Caprese Salad

FAQs

My Recipe Tips

• Use the best tomatoes: The tomato is the leading flavor in simple vegan caprese salad, so use the ripest, in-season tomato, ensuring it’s fragrant, smooth, and heavy for its size.
• Use other high-quality ingredients: With only a few ingredients, make sure to use good-quality olive oil, vinegar, and fresh basil.
• Leave it to marinate: Even just 10 minutes will enhance the flavors, though 30 minutes is even better.
• Adjust the texture: Instead of overlapping slices, make a chopped caprese salad by finely dicing the ingredients instead.
• For more ‘cheesy’ flavor: Marinate the tofu with lemon juice and salt (+ optionally a sprinkle of nutritional yeast) for 15 mins to overnight.

Serving Suggestions

Enjoy this fresh vegan caprese salad as a crowd-pleasing summery side alongside:

• Bread: Use crusty no-knead bread or vegan focaccia to soak up all the juices or use leftovers to serve over bruschetta, vegan avocado toast, or make a Caprese sandwich/panini.
• Pasta: Enjoy as a light side alongside avocado pesto pasta, vegan pasta primavera, vegan lasagna, vegan stuffed shells, etc. It also pairs well with brown rice risotto.
• Vegan pizza: Like a Mediterranean hummus pizza, vegan pizza rolls, or a vegan calzone.
• At a BBQ: Alongside vegan burgers, plant-based hotdogs, grilled vegetables, and more.
• ‘Eggs’: Like a vegan quiche, omelet, or veggie herb frittata.

Storage Instructions

Once assembled, enjoy this fresh Italian tomato Caprese salad within 24 hours for the freshest tomatoes, or up to 2 days total. Store in an airtight container. Serve at room temperature for the best flavor and texture.