Perfect Grilled Tofu

  4.7 – 22 reviews  • Tofu

Yummy grilled tofu! It’s fairly simple to multiply this recipe by two, but you only need roughly one and a half times the marinate for four packages of tofu.

Prep Time: 10 mins
Cook Time: 15 mins
Additional Time: 1 hr
Total Time: 1 hr 25 mins
Servings: 6
Yield: 12 tofu slices

Ingredients

  1. 2 (14 ounce) packages extra-firm tofu, drained
  2. ½ cup sherry vinegar
  3. ½ cup low-sodium soy sauce
  4. ⅓ cup olive oil
  5. 1 teaspoon garlic powder
  6. ½ teaspoon kosher salt
  7. ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper (Optional)
  8. ½ teaspoon dried marjoram or thyme (Optional)
  9. ¼ teaspoon black pepper

Instructions

  1. Place tofu onto a plate and place another plate on top. Set a 3- to 5-pound weight on top. Press tofu for 20 to 30 minutes; drain and discard the accumulated liquid.
  2. Meanwhile, mix vinegar, soy sauce, olive oil, garlic powder, salt, cayenne, marjoram, and black pepper together in a small bowl.
  3. Cut each piece of tofu crosswise into 6 thick slices; place in a baking dish. Pour marinade over tofu, turning to coat, and chill, covered, turning occasionally, for at least 30 minutes or up to 48 hours. Longer is better, but shorter is totally fine.
  4. Preheat an outdoor grill or charcoal grill for high heat. Reduce heat to medium and lightly oil the grate.
  5. Remove tofu slices from marinade and shake off excess; reserve remaining marinade to make the sauce.
  6. Cook tofu on preheated grill, turning once, until well browned but before grill marks get black, 10 to 15 minutes total. Transfer tofu to a platter and cover with foil to keep warm.
  7. Bring reserved marinade to a boil in a saucepan; simmer until it reduces to about 1 cup, about 2 minutes. Pour over tofu and serve hot, warm, or at room temperature.
  8. To minimize sticking, wait 5 minutes before turning the tofu and use a pancake turner–style spatula to loosen it from the grate before turning.
  9. Nutrition data for this recipe includes the full amount of marinade ingredients. The actual amount of marinade consumed will vary.

Reviews

David Schmidt
This was so good! I last-minute decided to make grilled tofu for a vegetarian in our family for 4th of July. I was drunk and did not realize it was for 2 packages of tofu; I thought it looked like a lot of liquid, haha. It ended up marinating for about an hour or so. I grilled it along with our meat grillables and think I may have liked it better than the meat!! I did take the extra marinade and rather than pour it on top I reduced it down a bit and brushed it on while grilling. I did use the full amount of cayenne – it was pretty spicy but again I think that may be because I only used one package of tofu.
Anthony Farmer
Great texture and flavor and I will experiment with more ingredients in the marinade -very tasty! Even my meat-loving husband liked it!
Crystal Baker
I made the following modifications: — broiled instead of grilled; — didn’t have the courage to put all the cayenne pepper — just a dash; it was not flavorful in the end, so I added about a teaspoon of shriracha sauce. I must have used soy sauce that is so low-sodium that in the end the recipe didn’t have enough salt (I don’t like salty food). Try the marinade before using it and adjust the salt. The texture is great. The marinade needs something more — maybe something slightly sweet or a vinegar that has a hint of sweetness.
Jasmine West
We love this recipe!! I use balsamic or rice wine vinegar instead of the sherry and use all the spices listed. My family loves this so now I make it all the time to add to dishes!
Jason Mcdonald
Tangy and flavorful!! My new favorite way to tofu!! Substituted in red wine and olive oil and used fresh thyme because thats what I had. Pan fried on stove top. My friends loved this and asked for the recipe.
Benjamin Ward
This was excellent, I used extra firm tofu so it was really easy to grill. Quick and healthy.
Stephanie Butler
I enjoyed the flavors. I used Thyme, and extra firm tofu. I grilled it over charcoal, along with vegetables. I will use this marinade again
Emily Woods
I’ve been a vegetarian for 12 years but haven’t experimented with cooking tofu much myself. When I have cooked with it, I felt like it never took up the flavor the way I wanted it to or the texture wasn’t what I was hoping for, but this recipe got me excited!! It’s super flavorful (with a nice kick) and grilling it really firms up the outside — I only had time to marinate it for 30-45 minutes. Even my meat eating husband said he’d eat it himself. Next time I plan on cutting the tofu in half length wise as well to see what that does to the texture.
Steven Gillespie
This was delish and definitely a new go to! I marinated as recommended then reduced the sauce while the tofu was getting its first direction of grill marks. Just before reducing I added about 1tsp of fresh ginger and a scant Tbsp of brown sugar(you could substitute with agave or maple syrup). I then brought the sauce pan out with me and poured the sauce on for each turn. It made the flames give it a crisp texture to the outside. Soooo gooood!
Tina Bailey
Way too much vinegar, not enough complexity. Olive oil is absolutely the wrong choice – substitute in a different more neutral oil if you’re going to make this. It would be better to leave out the oil from the marinade and instead brush it on at the end before grilling. Also add a sweetener (maple syrup, honey, something) to add some depth instead of just acid and salt.
Noah Alvarez
Prepared the recipe per instructions and it was wonderful and quite tasty.
Misty Bryant
I made this recipe and I loved it I only added a few things not because it needed it because I cannot help it wink Before marinating the tofu I added agave syrup about a tablespoon just to balance it out with a little sweet. you do not need to add salt because the soy sauce works just fine I use Braggs Amino Acid (much lower in sodium) While I was cooking I brushed a little truffle oil on top and then when I slipped it I brushed it on the other side again real thin nothing major for the sauce afterwards I added lime juice because I thought it was a nice little addition to the marinade for dipping or to pour on top are use the stove top iron grill that I got super cheap at the kitchen store works fabulous
Erica Davis
100% my favorite tofu so far! This was my first go at grilling tofu since going vegan 4 months ago, and it was amazing. I replaced the soy sauce with liquid aminos but everything else stayed the same. Did quick marinade for 45 mins. Pressing your tofu is key! This will become a staple, I already know it.
Tonya Hall
Delicious! My new favorite way to have tofu!
Christian Rivera
I am sure the original would be wonderful too, but I modified for what I had available. I used rice vinegar, sesame oil instead of the canola oil and sherry vinegar and I added a tsp of siracha for a little kick. I omitted the extra salt as soy sauce is salty enough.
Angel Bell
Delicious!
Kevin Juarez
This was great!
Susan Richard
very good marinade!
Paul Clay
I love this recipe. I added 1 tablespoon of dales for an extra kick, and it seemed to work out well.
John Bradford
It was delicioso!
Karen Garcia
Perfect Grilled Tofu Haiku: “Halved the recipe, didn’t boil and use ‘sauce’. Just marinated.” I followed half the recipe’s ingredients for 1 block of well-drained tofu, marinated it for 4 hrs. and slapped on ye olde George Foreman for lunch. Tasty!

 

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