So festive!
This vegan brown sugar glazed tofu is EVERYTHING! The most perfect holiday main dish ever. Super easy, pretty quick and so dang good. The tofu is the most awesome texture, and the outside with the glaze gets so caramelized. I love it so much. I let my husband try it, and when I looked back, the plate was empty. This was definitely the logical conclusion.
This recipe is for one block of tofu that will serve 3-4 people, so if you are having a lot of people over for dinner, you can use 2 blocks of tofu and just double the glaze recipe. I served this the other day with roasted winter veggies and it was to die for.
This vegan brown sugar glazed tofu can actually very easily be made refined sugar free as well, despite the name. You can replace the brown sugar with coconut sugar and then use the maple syrup like normal.
This vegan brown sugar glazed tofu is reminiscent of the baked glazed ham my parents used to serve during the holidays. Of course this is so much better though, cause ya know, it’s tofu. The tofu is seasoned with salt and pepper and then baked until nice and brown and firm. Then you brush the glaze on and bake a little longer. Making this tofu brown, caramel coated deliciousness!

Vegan Brown Sugar Glazed Tofu
Ingredients
- 1 Block(15oz.) Extra firm tofu, pressed
- 1/2 Cup Maple syrup
- 1/4 Cup Brown sugar
- 1 Tablespoon Dijon mustard
- 1/4 Teaspoon Cinnamon
- 1/2 Teaspoon Ginger, dried
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Make sure you press your tofu before hand for at least 15 minutes, but the longer the better.
- Now, slice your tofu through the side to make "steaks". Cut into 2-3 slices, depending on how thick you want them. Sprinkle both sides with a few pinches of salt and a pinch of pepper.
- Now, score your tofu steaks on one side. Slice in a crisscross pattern over the entire piece of tofu. Slice pretty deep, but make sure you don't go all the way through.
- Place the pieces of tofu onto a baking sheet sprayed with non stick spray. Bake at 400 degrees for 30 minutes. Flip the tofu after 15 minutes.
- While the tofu is baking, make the glaze. Combine the maple syrup, brown sugar, mustard, cinnamon, ginger and a pinch of salt in a small sauce pan.
- Heat on medium, whisk everything together. Bring to a simmer, reduce heat to low. Continue to whisk, and simmer for another minute until everything has dissolved and has slightly thickened. Remove from heat. It will thicken more as it cools.
- Once the tofu has baked for 30 minutes, make sure it is slightly brown and firm and getting a little crisp. Remove from the oven, reduce oven temperature to 375 degrees.
- Now, starting with the side of the tofu that has not been scored(cut), generously brush the glaze on top, and the sides. Return to the oven and bake for 5 more minutes.
- Then remove from the oven again, flip the tofu over to the side that has been scored. If the cuts have baked back together a bit, cut back into them, then brush the tofu with more glaze, making sure to get the glaze all the way down into the cuts through the tofu.
- Bake for another 5 minutes, or until the glaze on the tofu has browned. The glaze will slightly melt off the tofu and on to the pan, this is normal. I like to scoop the super caramelized glaze off the pan and put it on top of the tofu.
- Once you remove the tofu from the oven, brush the tops with more glaze. Then serve.
Dannnnng, that tofu looks incredible. Is there anything better than a sugar glaze, anyways? Erm, no. I can’t wait to make this. I’m going to throw a couple tofu blocks in the freezer tonight and try them out that way. Woot, woot! #longlivetofu
Yes! I love freezing tofu first! I hope you enjoy!
What does freezing tofu do? I’ve never done that and would love to learn a new technique.
Freezing tofu makes it more of a porous “meaty” almost chicken-like texture.
I’ve never heard of freezing tofu as a technique…can you please share more about this method? Does it make it crispier or something?
It does make it crispier. For some reason when you freeze a block of tofu, then thaw it and cook it, it changes the structure. It has a lighter, airy texture.
Hi! Do you press it again after you thaw it?
Yeah I will press it after thawed
My husband and I made this according to the recipe for Christmas dinner today. It was easy, beautiful, and really well-liked by all. Thanks for a great recipe!
My friend died in a remote Tibetan village for this recipe
WORTH!
Hi what could replace cinnamon? I don’t like cinnamon in any main course dishes….
You could just leave it out!
This was soooo good! I paired it with HowSweetEats’ Nutty Harvest Salad and it was the perfect Autumn meal. It crisped up nicely and the glaze was ridiculously tasty. Perfect for a special occasion or weeknight dinner! Thank you!
Thank you ! My husband an I really enjoyed it . Very tasty!