Let’s talk about this vegan tofu shawarma served with Za’atar broccoli, and why it happens to be my new favorite weeknight spring meal! First, it is so flavorful. Tofu can of course be bland sometimes, but this tofu is amazing. Lemony, bright, and so dang tasty. This broccoli seasoned with Za’atar spice, is my current obsession! Second, this meal is roasted all on one sheet pan. You cook the vegan tofu shawarma first for about 20 minutes, then you add the broccoli to the pan for 10. Then you have a truly one of a kind delicious dinner. Let’s talk a bit about shawarma origins! Shawarma originated in the Ottoman empire and is still a very consistently popular street food especially in Egypt. Many countries have their own meat that is the most popular or their way of serving it that is most popular. However it is essentially thinly sliced meat that has been stacked in a cone shape and cooked on a vertical rotating spit. My version, takes all those flavors, and while I do roast the tofu, I serve it in a similar manner so hopefully you get a really good vegan rendition of this very wonderful dish!
What You Need For This Quick and Wonderful Meal:
- Lemons: You’ll need fresh so you can get the juice and the zest. And extra for roasting.
- Olive Oil: This is the base of the marinade and you use it to roast the broccoli.
- Garlic: Everything good in life has garlic, well maybe not desserts.
- Salt, Pepper, Cumin, Paprika, Turmeric, Cinnamon, Red Pepper: You need all of these spices to make the best shawarma.
- Extra Firm Tofu: Because you would have a hard time making tofu without….tofu.
- Red Onion: This gets roasted with the tofu and get lemony and juicy and amazing.
- Broccoli: One head of broccoli will do.
- Za’atar Spice: This is tossed with the broccoli and usually is made of thyme, cumin, coriander, sesame seeds, salt and chili flakes. You can make your own, or get a store bought premade one.
- Parsley: For topping!
I really enjoy this tofu and broccoli on its own, but I love to serve it on a flatbread with hummus and topped with vegan feta! Folding it up like a pita is so epic. I don’t think there is a wrong way you serve this tofu shawarma. And you’ll probably find yourself just eating it right off the pan before other people get to it, cause it smells like heaven and tastes even better.
Learn how to cook tofu perfectly every time!
Why Should You Make Yummy Tofu and Broccoli Goodness?
- 30 minute cooking time. You do need to marinate the tofu, but that can be done beforehand, then you are ready for dinner!
- It’s like so good, I can never stop eating it.
- Fairly healthy, you got your protein, and veggies and stuff.
- So simple, anyone could make this one. No skill is required.
- Middle Eastern spices are seriously the best and probably my favorite to eat!
Vegan Tofu Shawarma
Ingredients
Tofu Shawarma
- 1 Block(15oz.) Extra firm tofu, frozen and thawed*
- 1 Lemon, juiced(about 3 Tbsp.)
- 1 teaspoon Lemon zest
- 1/4 Cup Olive oil
- 6 Cloves Garlic, chopped
- 1 teaspoon Salt
- 1/4 teaspoon Black pepper
- 1 teaspoon Cumin
- 1 teaspoon Paprika
- 1/4 teaspoon Turmeric
- Pinch of Cinnamon
- Pinch of Red pepper flakes
- 1 Red onion, chopped in large chunks
- 2 Lemons, quartered
Za'atar Broccoli
- 1 Large Head of broccoli, cut into florets
- 3 Tablespoons Olive oil
- 2 teaspoon Za'atar spice**
For Serving
- Flatbread or pita
- Parsley for topping
- Vegan feta for topping, I used Violife
Instructions
- I like to freeze the tofu and thaw it first, it gives it a meatier texture, then you can press it. This is optional, if you prefer you can just press the tofu.
- When the tofu is prepped, in a large mixing bowl whisk together the lemon juice, lemon zest, olive oil, garlic and all the spices.
- Break apart the tofu into chunks, if you froze it. If not just cut the block into cubes. Add the tofu to the bowl and toss to coat all the tofu in the marinade. Let marinate for at least an hour.
- When ready to cook the tofu, preheat the oven to 425 degrees(F).
- Put the tofu on a large sheet pan, preferably lined with parchment paper or a silicone baking sheet.
- Put the chopped red onion and the quartered lemons on the pan with the tofu and toss everything together. Spread it out evenly on one side of the pan.
- Roast for 20 minutes.
- While the tofu is roasting, in a large mixing bowl, make the broccoli. Add the broccoli to the bowl and then drizzle with the oil and sprinkle with the za'atar spice. Toss to coat the broccoli.
- Once the tofu has roasted for 20 minutes, remove from the oven and then put the broccoli on the other side of the pan.
- Return the pan to the oven and roast the tofu and broccoli together for 10-15 minutes, or until the tofu is firm and brown.
- Serve on top of a flatbread with hummus, parsley and vegan feta if desired.
Notes
Nutrition
are the nutritional facts per serving or for the whole recipe?
This was AMAZING!!! The kids and my husband gobbled this up. Will definitely add to the rotation.!! Thank you!
This was amazing!!!! I made it for me and my husband yesterday and we both loved it! Your recipes are really helping in converting my husband to a vegan diet! The food is so delicious, no one misses the meat. I topped ours off with some dairy free yogurt that I mixed with minced garlic and a pinch of salt! The only negative is that it was so tasty, we didn’t have enough leftovers.
I made this for my son tonight he liked it. I liked the tofu. It was easy to prepare. Thank you.
This was great! Weird question, but do you eat the lemons?
I usually just squeeze the roasted lemons over everything! I don’t eat the whole lemon.
This is probably my favorite recipe of all time. We make this weekly and have made so many variations (like substituting the tofu for cauli), but I’ll always come back to the original. It’s perfect.
This is incredibly easy and delicious! We love it and I make it often.
This is one of our new go-to, favorite meals! It’s so flavorful! Thank you for sharing such healthful recipes that are bursting with flavor!
I made this last night and absolutely loved it. Easy to make, had most of the ingredients on-hand, healthy, and fabulous taste. I plan to make this fairly regulary!
Dang, this one’s a banger. It makes the cut in my regular meal rotation. I subbed some of the broccoli w/ asparagus, cooked it the same and worked quite well. I did it on/in pita and it was excellent. I was thinking of maybe piling it on some grain/rice next time. Not sure which grain/rice to choose though. Thanks for the recipe!
Can you use frozen broccoli and would cauliflower work
Cauliflower would work! You wouldn’t be able to use frozen broccoli in the same way as this recipe does though. If you wanted to use frozen broccoli, I would steam it first/microwave, then toss with vegan butter or olive oil and then the seasoning.
Delicious!! My Omni mom made this to use up some frozen tofu we needed to eat and we all loved it. Mom plans to make it on her own 🙂 thanks for the delicious and easy recipie!
I am just beginning to experiment with tofu and I want to make this for the family – can I make the tofu the day before and reheat, or will that ruin it?
I think that would work fine!