Almond, Rosemary, and Lemon Crusted Tofu

This glorious summer tofu recipe is packed full of fresh flavors from the rosemary and lemon with a satisfying crunch from ground almonds to create a vegan dinner that will impress even the most suborn meat-eaters!

The delicious blend of flavors and fresh ingredients make this dish wonderfully tasty and healthy, plus it’s totally meat-and-dairy-free! So you can be doing your part while you chow down on one of the best dinners we’ve had in a long time.

The main takes just 15 minutes to prep and around 20 minutes to cook and is incredibly served with greens and potatoes. Alternatively, use your almond, rosemary, and lemon-crusted tofu pieces to garnish a fragrant salad. The possibilities are endless! 

Preparing tofu

As with any tofu dish, this dinner is all about preparing the tofu properly to ensure it can crisp up and absorb all the yummy flavors and textures of the almond, rosemary, and lemon crust.

We generally prefer using extra-firm tofu in our dishes.

This type of tofu retains its shape better and is less likely to fall apart during cooking.

Softer tofu will produce a silkier texture when you bite into it.

The trick with tofu is to ensure all the excess liquid has been pressed out before cooking.

If you don’t press your tofu, you’ll end up with a flavorless white blob (which is usually why many people claim not to like tofu!).

If you cook with tofu regularly, it’s well worth investing in a proper tofu press.

This will dramatically increase the time it takes to remove the liquid from your tofu and reduce any messes! 

If you don’t have or want a tofu press, you can press your tofu using the DIY method of placing the block between two cutting boards over a sink, then piling on heavy objects such as books or cans to force out the water. This takes a little longer but is generally just as effective if you don’t have a proper press.

Almond, Rosemary, and Lemon Crusted Tofu Recipe

Serves: 8 slices of tofu

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 18-23 minutes

Total Time: Approximately 35 minutes

Ingredients

1 block (350g) extra-firm tofu, drained, pressed, and cut into 8 slices

½ cup raw almonds

2 tbsp fresh rosemary, stems removed

½ cup breadcrumbs

1 tsp lemon zest

½ tsp salt

¼ tsp garlic powder

¼ tsp black pepper

½ cup all-purpose flour

1 cup full-fat coconut milk

Lemon wedges (to serve)

Method

Use your tofu press or DIY tofu pressing method to squeeze any excess liquid from your tofu, then cut into 8 slices.

Preheat your oven to 400’F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Place the almonds and rosemary into a food processor and grind until everything is finely chopped with a few larger chunks remaining.

Add the breadcrumbs, lemon zest, garlic powder, and black pepper to the food processor and pulse to combine.

Pour the almond-rosemary mixture into a medium bowl and set up two additional bowls.

Pour all of the coconut milk into the second bowl. Add the all-purpose flour to the third bowl.

Take one slice of tofu at a time and prepare it as follows:

Dredge the tofu through the flour, shaking off the excess. 

Dip the floured tofu into the coconut milk.

Coat the coconut-milk-covered tofu with the almond-rosemary mixture.

Place the coated tofu piece on the parchment paper and repeat with the remaining slices.

Once all 8 tofu slices have been coated and laid on the parchment paper, place the baking tray and tofu slices into the preheated oven and bake for 18-23 minutes until the crust is lightly golden and crispy.

Serve the crusted tofu slices hot with a lemon wedge to squeeze over.

Serving suggestion

We love these almond, rosemary, and lemon-crusted tofu pieces served with a fresh summer salad or grilled veggies and roast potatoes for a warmer dinner option.

The fresh taste of the squeezed lemon brings these tofu pieces to a whole new level, while the delicious vegan crust offers plenty of bite and flavor in every mouthful.

This is one of our all-time favorite tofu recipes, and we’re sure your family will love it as much as ours does!