3 Ingredients, 3 Ways:
How to Make Soy-Free Tofu to Use in Egg- and Dairy-free Recipes
As if living gluten-free isn’t challenging enough, for those with allergies to egg or dairy, also having a soy allergy can turn everyone else’s simple swaps into a struggle. Our Easy Soy-free Tofu is one way we can help!
At Little Northern Bakehouse, we want to welcome as many people as possible to our gluten-free table—not only through our top 9 allergen-free baked goods, but also through our recipes. This 3-ingredient, 3-way recipe for soy-free tofu makes the egg- and dairy-free recipes in our collection that use regular tofu accessible for more of our gluten-free fans!
Will It Tofu? Chickpeas, Fava Beans, Red Lentils—and More!
Every person living with multiple food allergies has their own unique cluster of possible co-sensitizations, co-allergies, or cross-reactivities to contend with. Some who are allergic to soy can also be allergic to other specific legumes from peanuts to peas, but not necessarily all of them.1
We’ve included chickpeas, fava beans and red lentils in this recipe—and a tip for other possibilities to try as tofu alternatives—in the hope that you’ll be able to find a soy-free tofu option that’s safe for you.
Not sure which one to choose? Check out our Gluten-free Test Kitchen: The Best Soy-Free Tofu Recipe to read our team’s reviews of the three options featured here! We made, tasted, and tested these three allergy-friendly tofu alternatives in our popular Egg(less) Salad Sandwich recipe to make sure they live up to their soy-free recipe swap promise.
Instructions for the Bean-based Soy-Free Tofu:
- Soak chickpeas or fava beans (or other dried bean of choice) in water 4 hours or overnight, drain and rinse.
- Blend with 2 ¾ cups fresh water and salt until smooth. (As blender power varies widely, blend, check for lumps, and blend longer as needed).
- Transfer smooth bean (or chickpea) purée to a medium saucepan. Put over medium-high heat, stirring constantly to avoid the purée sticking to the bottom of the pot using a heat-proof silicone spatula or wooden spoon. Cook for 6 to 8 minutes until the purée is very thick, glossy and begins to pull away from the sides of the pan as you stir. (Turn heat down to medium as needed). When ready, the cooked down soy-free bean tofu batter should be the consistency of mashed potatoes.
- Scoop the soy-free chickpea/bean tofu batter into a clean glass or ceramic heat-safe dish (we used a 6-inch × 8-inch glass baking dish, but other sizes will do (a wider dish = a thinner tofu block, a smaller dish = a thicker tofu block)). The soy-free chickpea/bean tofu will start to set quickly, so work fast to spread it evenly.
- Refrigerate the soy-free tofu, uncovered, for at least 8 hours, or overnight to set.
- When set, cover and refrigerate unused portions for up to 5 days, or freeze for up to 3 months.
Instructions for the Red Lentil-based Soy-Free Tofu:
- Soak red lentils in boiling water with salt (if using) for 20 minutes. You can do this in the medium saucepan you’ll use in Step 3—bring the water to a boil, add lentils and remove from heat to soak. Or you can do it in your blender if the container is heat-proof. (Either way, it’s the same number of dishes to wash!).
- Blend with the water the lentils soaked in until smooth. (As blender power varies widely, blend, check for lumps, and blend longer as needed).
- Once blended, pour the lentil purée into a medium saucepan. Cook over medium-high heat, stirring constantly to avoid sticking using a heat-proof silicone spatula or wooden spoon. Cook for 5 to 10 minutes until the lentil purée is very thick, glossy and begins to pull away from the sides of the pan as you stir. (Turn heat down to medium as needed). When ready, the cooked down soy-free lentil tofu batter should be the consistency of mashed potatoes.
- Scoop the soy-free lentil tofu batter into a clean glass or ceramic heat-safe dish (we used a 6-inch × 8-inch glass baking dish, but other sizes will (a wider dish = a thinner tofu block, a smaller dish = a thicker tofu block)). The soy-free lentil tofu will start to set quickly, so work fast to spread it evenly.
- Refrigerate the soy-free red lentil tofu, covered. Allow to set 1 to 8 hours depending on desired firmness (see tip below). Keeps up to 5 days (covered) or freeze for up to 3 months.
General Soy-Free Tofu Tips:
- Technically, salt is optional (if you’re on a low-sodium diet, leave it out). However, our team’s taste tests were unanimous in noting that a little salt brings out the best flavour in these soy-free tofu recipes.
- Try other seasonings, too! When you start from scratch, you can add your own flavourful twist to these neutral soy-free tofus before you ever get to the marinade or sauce stage! Blend in your favourite herbs or spices before you cook the purée.
Tips for the Bean-based Soy-Free Tofu:
- * We used fava beans and chickpeas for the soy-free tofu edition of Gluten-free Test Kitchen, but other dried beans—like lima beans, black beans, pinto beans, and more—will work with the same bean-to-water ratio and instructions. Experiment to find your favourite (and be sure to tell us if you find a winner!)
- Using chickpeas? Their tough skins can stand between you and a seriously smooth soy-free tofu base. For best results, remove them before blending in Step 2. How?
- After the first rinse, return chickpeas to the bowl you soaked them in and cover them with cool water.
- Gently rub the chickpeas under the water with your hands. The skins will float to the top—skim them off and discard.
- Rinse and repeat if necessary, then proceed to Step 3.
- Adjust the water volume to achieve a range of tofu textures:
- For soft soy-free bean tofu, use 3 cups (725 ml) water
- For firm soy-free bean tofu, use 2 ¾ cups (650 ml) water (as stated in recipe above)
- For extra firm soy-free bean tofu, use 2 ½ cups (575 ml) water
- If you soak your dried beans in big batches to use in multiple recipes for the week, remember to convert the dried bean volume in the soy-free tofu recipe to a cooked bean equivalent. For most beans, 1 cup dry beans yield about 3 cups of cooked beans. That means you’d need 2 ¼ cups of soaked beans to go with the 2 ¾ cups of water in our recipe.
- Although we did not try it ourselves, sources suggest canned beans or chickpeas are not a suitable swap for making soy-free tofu with this method.
Tips for the Red Lentil Soy-Free Tofu:
- ** We used red lentils because they’re quick cooking. To use other lentils—like green, brown, French, or black—soak them overnight with a pinch of baking soda. Drain, rinse, then follow the directions from Step 2.
- Adjust the set time to achieve a range of tofu textures in the red lentil soy-free tofu:
- For soft soy-free red lentil tofu, set for ≅1 hour
- For firm soy-free red lentil tofu, set for 4 – 6 hours
- For extra firm soy-free red lentil tofu, set for ≥8 hours
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Footnotes:
[1] Smits, M., Verhoeckx, K., Knulst, A., Wesling, P., et al, Co-sensitization between legumes is frequently seen, but variable and not always clinically relevant. Frontiers in Allergy, Volume 4 – 2023, 16 March 2023. PMID: 37007648. Available from: https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/falgy.2023.1115022/full, accessed May 14, 2024.
Dried bean soy-free tofu recipe adapted from:
Red lentil soy-free tofu recipe adapted from: