Bourbon Braised Smoked Tofu

I do a lot of smoking, which typically entails making ribs, brisket, pulled pork and other meaty classics. But smoking isn’t only about meat. This delicious and easy-to-make recipe for Bourbon Braised Smoked Tofu provides a memorable vegan/vegetarian option for BBQs and is also great for anyone (it’s in frequent rotation at the Neumann household).

If you don’t have a smoker, you can prepare it in your oven (you just lose out on the smokey goodness).

Bourbon Braised Smoked Tofu

Adapted from Brown Sugar Kitchen by Tanya Holland.

• Serves: 4-6

• Preparation time: 5 minutes

• Cooking time: 60 minutes

Ingredients

• 1 454g (1 lb) package of firm tofu

• ½ tsp kosher salt

• ½ tsp paprika

• ½ tsp onion powder

• ¼ tsp garlic powder

• ¼ tsp ground black pepper

• ¼ tsp dried oregano

• ¼ tsp dried thyme

• 1 cup bourbon BBQ sauce

• 2 cups water

Preparation

Remove the tofu from the package and gently press on all sides with a paper towel to remove the excess moisture. Cut into ¾-inch / 2-cm cubes.

In a large bowl, combine the salt, paprika, onion powder, garlic powder, black pepper, dried oregano and dried thyme. Add the tofu cubes and toss to coat.

Cooking

Prepare smoker at a temperature of 225 - 250ºF with a light wood (alder, apple, maple or hickory). This is the same temperature range you typically use for ribs, brisket and many other meats, so you can easily slide this into your smoker alongside other foods if you’re preparing a vegan option for a BBQ).

If you don’t have a smoker, preheat your oven to 225ºF.

Spread the tofu in a single layer on a grilling pan (or a baking sheet lined with parchment paper if you’re cooking in the oven).

Put the tofu in your smoker and cook until the tofu is infused with the flavor of the smoke — 25 - 30 min. If using an oven, cook the tofu for 25 minutes.

While the tofu is cooking, combine the BBQ sauce and water in a large sauce pan. Bring to a boil and then reduce to barely a simmer. Cook the mixture until it thickens (about 25 - 30 min). If you’re doing this right, the tofu and braising liquid will be ready at the same time 😃.

Remove the tofu from your smoker or oven. It should have a nice golden color.

Add the smoked tofu to the saucepan and simmer until the tofu is infused with the sweet, smokey flavor of the BBQ sauce.

Serve immediately.

Notes

For this recipe, you can use your favorite BBQ sauce or experiment with different flavors. Using a molasses-based BBQ sauce, for example, will give you a thicker, “stickier” sauce with a heavier flavor than using a ketchup-based sauce.

My favorite choice for this recipe (and most things) is bourbon BBQ sauce. This recipe from Meat Church is easy-to-make and, with a heavy dose of pepper, holds up well to smoked flavors.