Tofu Benedict Salad is the ultimate vegan brunch dish for spring! It’s made with mixed greens, cheesy vegan baked tofu, tempeh bacon, and tomatoes, and it’s drizzled with dairy-free hollandaise sauce. It’s perfect for Mother’s Day brunch! It’s also a terrific recipe for lunch or a light dinner, too.
Vegan Brunch
It’s no secret that I love brunch food. I’ll take an excuse to make a big brunch on the weekend, and I often make brinner (breakfast for dinner, of course!) Some of my favorite brunch dishes include broccoli frittata, spinach mushroom quiche, and chickpea flour omelets.
Tofu Benedict Salad
I was recently flipping through Food Network Magazine, and I came across a recipe for eggs Benedict salad. It was full of eggs, meat, and dairy products, but it got me thinking about my own vegan tofu benedict recipe, and how fun it could be to turn it into a salad. So, I did just that! I would have liked to get the recipe ready for Easter, but I just didn’t have the time. But I’m happy that was able to get it up just in the nick of time for Mother’s Day.
This tofu benedict salad has everything I love about brunch in salad form. It has cheesy tofu, tempeh bacon, and a creamy hollandaise dressing. It’s super easy to make, too.
Cheesy Baked Tofu
Cheesy baked tofu is really the star of the salad. It’s dairy-free, of course. The cheesy taste comes from nutritional yeast, which is known affectionately as “nooch” in vegan circles. nutritional yeast is deactivated yeast that has a nutty, cheesy taste. It contains protein, vitamins, and minerals, and it’s a good source for vitamin B12.
Extra firm tofu, which comes in a water-packed container, works best in this recipe. To prepare it, you need to drain the water from the container and squeeze any excess out of the tofu. You can do this the night before by wrapping it in a clean towel and placing it in the fridge until you're ready to use it. The towel will soak up the excess water. If you're going to cook with it right away, you can wrap it in a towel and place it under something heavy, like a cast iron pan. You can also use a tofu press, if you have. I have a TofuXpress, which I use constantly.
The tofu can be baked in a regular oven for half an hour, or it can be cooked in an air fryer for 15 minutes. Either way, make sure you flip the pieces a few times while it’s cooking to make sure each side gets crispy.
Making a Tofu Benedict Salad is Easy!
- First, you cut the tofu into cubes.
- Then, you marinate the tofu and dip it into a mixture of nutritional yeast and spices.
- Next, the tofu is baked for half an hour.
- While the tofu is baking, you can prepare the salad base of mixed greens, cherry tomatoes, croutons, and tempeh bacon. If your hollandaise sauce isn’t prepared or your tempeh bacon isn’t cooked, you can do that while the tofu is baking, too.
- After the tofu has baked, you toss it into your salad, and drizzle on the dairy-free hollandaise.
Prepare Ahead
If you know you’re going to be busy in the morning, you can make the components of the salad the day before. Bake the tofu and mix up the hollandaise sauce and store them in the fridge. Just heat up the tofu quickly in the morning by popping it the oven for a few minutes. I’ve used my homemade tempeh bacon in this recipe. You can make it the night before, or you can use store-bought tempeh bacon, if you prefer.
It’s pretty easy to make your own croutons, but I usually buy them prepackaged. I find that it just saves some time. If you’d like to make your own, I explain how to do so in my Caesar Salad post. You can use roasted chickpeas or leave the croutons out if you follow a gluten-free diet.
Tofu Benedict Salad
Ingredients
- 1 14- ounce package extra firm tofu drained and pressed
- 2 tablespoons tamari
- 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
- ¼ cup nutritional yeast
- 1 teaspoon turmeric
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 5 ounces mixed greens
- 1 pint cherry tomatoes sliced in half
- 8 ounces tempeh bacon cooked
- 1 cup vegan croutons
- ½ cup Vegan Hollandaise Sauce
Instructions
- If you’re cooking the tofu in your oven, preheat it to 400°F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Cut the tofu into cubes about 1-inch in size. Place the cubes in a shallow dish or bowl.
- Mix the tamari and apple cider vinegar together and pour it over the tofu. Make sure the pieces are totally submerged. Allow the tofu to marinate for 10 to 15 minutes.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the nutritional yeast, turmeric, onion powder, garlic powder, sea salt, and black pepper.
- Place the tofu in a bowl that has a lid or in a small paper bag. Add the nutritional yeast mixture, place the lid on the bowl or seal the bag, and then give it a good shake. Try to coat as much of the tofu as possible with the nutritional yeast mixture.
- Oven instructions: Bake the tofu for 30 minutes, flipping the cubes every 10 minutes.
- Air fryer instructions: Bake the tofu on 400° for 15 minutes, flipping after 7 minutes. Depending on the size of your air fryer, you may need to cook the tofu in batches.
- To make the salad, place the mixed greens in a large bowl. Mix in the cherry tomatoes, tofu, tempeh bacon, and croutons. Top with the vegan hollandaise sauce.
If you liked this recipe, you might also enjoy:
- Vegan BLT Salad
- Reuben Salad
- Kale Caesar with Roasted Chickpeas
- Buffalo Tempeh Salad
- Tempeh Fajita Salad
Becky Striepe
Oh my gosh, you are my hero! This is my kind of salad - so decadent but full of leafy green goodness. I can't wait to make it!!
Dianne
Thank you, Becky! I hope you enjoy it!