This is an easy, vegan thanksgiving main dish. The baked tofu is flavorful and chewy. And the vegan mushroom gravy has great meatiness, making this a very satisfying dish overall. Serve this thanksgiving entrée with some stuffing, and few vegetable side dishes.

I like to insert a few thin slices of garlic into the tofu before baking. I enjoy the little bits of garlic in the tofu. You could do this with carrots or celery as well, or just leave this step out.

I love chanterelle mushrooms and always use them in gravy. They have a nice meaty texture, and chicken like flavor. You could use a mix of whatever mushrooms you like. I’ve used buttom mushrooms, criminis, shiitakes and chanterelles.

The mushroom gravy with thyme and sage goes really well with the chewy baked tofu. You could easily make the gravy the previous day and re-heat it in the microwave. You could also marinate the tofu the previous day (flavor will be stronger), and throw it in the oven about an hour before you eat.

Some great baked tofu recipes..

Baked tofu recipe on Fat free vegan
Baked tofu recipe on the kitchn
Kalyn’s baked tofu recipe with soy and sesame
Simple baked tofu recipe on Vegweb
Smokey miso baked tofu recipe on vegan yumyum

Some great mushroom gravy recipes..

Mushroom gravy recipe on Epicurious

Martha Stewart’s vegetarian mushroom gravy recipe
Home brew chef’s wild mushroom gravy recipe using beer
Vegan mushroom gravy recipe on what do I know blog

Baked tofu steaks and Mushroom gravy recipe

serves about 2

One 14 oz block extra firm tofu, drained
1 tiny garlic clove, peeled

For the marinade
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
3 tablespoons light soy sauce
A pinch of dried Italian seasoning or poultry seasoning, optional
Cracked black pepper

Cut the tofu vertically in half. Then cut each half widthwise into two pieces. You will have 4 tofu pieces. Using a kitchen towel, pat the tofu pieces to absorb as much moisture as you can.

Make 2 small slits on top of each tofu piece. Thinly slice the garlic clove into 8 slices. Insert one slice of garlic into each slit on the tofu. Skip this step if you don’t like garlic.

Whisk together all marinade ingredients and pour into a dish. Place the tofu slices in the dish with the marinade. Carefully flip the tofu pieces so they are covered all over by the marinade. Let the tofu marinade for about 15 minutes.

Pre heat oven to 350f

Remove the tofu pieces from the marinade and place on a non-stick baking dish. Bake for about 1 hour and 15 minutes, flipping the tofu pieces every 20 minutes. Cooking times will vary depending on your oven and thickness of tofu slices.

Tofu is done when it is firm and browned all over.

Mushroom gravy with thyme and sage

makes about 3 cups

12oz  fresh mushrooms (a mix of white, crimini, shiitake, chanterelle etc)
2 tablespoons olive oil, butter or margarine
1 onion, finely chopped
3 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped
2 sprigs fresh thyme
3 large sage leaves, chopped
3 splashes sherry or red wine

For gravy
½ teaspoon balsamic vinegar
2 cups vegetable stock or water (I used water)
2 tablespoons flour
Salt & pepper

Clean the mushrooms using a paper towel. Then slice them into even sized pieces. If using shiitakes, remember to remove and discard the stems.

Heat oil, butter or margarine in a large skillet. Add onions and cook on medium-low. When onions are soft, add garlic, thyme and sage. Stir for 30 seconds. Add chopped mushrooms. Increase heat to high and cook for about 3 minutes. Add the sherry or wine and continue cooking another minute or till the alcohol evaporates.

Whisk together all the gravy ingredients (balsamic vinegar through salt and pepper). Make sure there are no lumps. Pour this mixture over the mushrooms. Bring to a boil. Then reduce heat and simmer for about 5 minutes. Taste and adjust salt, pepper and balsamic vinegar if needed.

This is my veggiefied version of Ina Garten’s Grilled Herb Shrimp. Ive made this recipe several times. Ive also made the shrimp version for my carnivore friends. Everyone always loves the herb and dijon marinade! It tastes great in pasta too. Use fresh herbs, it makes a big difference.

Extra Firm Tofu – 1 package
Onion – 1/2 large, finely chopped
Garlic – 4 cloves, minced
Basil – 1/4 cup chopped
Parsley – 1/4 cup chopped
Dijon Mustard – 2 1/2 tsp
Dry Mustard – 1 tsp
Lemon Juice – 2 tbsp
Salt – 1 1/2 tsp
Pepper
Olive Oil – 1 tbsp (Ina uses 1/4 cup olive oil)

Mix together all ingredients except the tofu. Place in a bowl.

Wrap the tofu in several layers of paper towel. Place a weight on top for 1 hour to extract the liquid. Then cut the tofu into triangles.

Heat a large non stick pan. Arrange the tofu pieces in a single layer and ‘dry fry’ them. Press the tofu triangles so that they let their water out. When one side is slightly browned, turn the tofu once and cook the other side while pressing out the water. I learned this method from veganyumyum’s site. Check it out for a detailed explanation of dry frying tofu and “tofu geometry”!
When the tofu is done (if you stop hearing the angry hiss from the tofu while pressing down, youve probably gotten most the water out!), place the triangles in the herb-dijon bowl. Carefully toss the tofu in the mixture to coat. Let the tofu marinade an hour (or overnight if you have the time).

When you are ready to eat, heat a large non stick pan. Spray with olive oil spray. Place the tofu, along with the herb-dijon mixture in the pan. Grill both sides on medium, turning once.

Remember, the tofu is already cooked. We just want to cook the onion and garlic in the marinade!

If you have a lot of the herb dijon mixture stuck to your pan, deglaze with a splash of white wine (or even water) and drizzle over the tofu.

Mushroom Medley

Button Mushrooms – 1 box
Crimini (baby potobellos) – 1 box
Garlic – 2 cloves
White wine – couple of splashes
Basil – 2 tbsp chopped
Parsley – 1 tbsp chopped
Olive oil – 1 tbsp
Marinara sauce – 4 tbsp
Salt
Pepper

Clean and chop the mushrooms. Heat a non stick pan and add the oil olive. The pan should be very hot. Add the chopped mushrooms and spread them evenly on the pan. Cook them on high without moving the mushrooms around too much. If you stir too often mushrooms will release a lot of water.

When the mushrooms are golden, add the garlic, salt, pepper, basil and parsley. Then add a few splashes of white wine and let it reduce on high heat.

Turn heat off and stir in marinara sauce.