Smoked BBQ Tofu Bowls will please vegans and meat lovers alike. This is an easy, delicious, and healthy(!) vegan and gluten-free recipe for the smoker or grill that everyone will love!
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Smoked BBQ Tofu for Meat Lovers, Vegetarians, and Vegans
My husband lives and breathes for meat. But he married a woman who, during the first few years of us dating, was a pseudo vegetarian (meaning I tried my best to follow the rules but cheated from time to time with seafood and occasionally poultry). It took a long time (around 10 years) for me to finally come around to trusting meat (read: we bought a smoker and started sourcing great and trustworthy meat and cooked it like a boss!). And, while we do cook a lot of meat around these parts, we also eat our veggies. It’s all about balance, folks!
We also have several friends and neighbors who are vegan or vegetarian, yet still wish to partake in the magic of smoked foods. So to be inclusive of all of our foodie friends (regardless of their dietary restrictions) while satisfying the die-hard carnivores, we have Smoked BBQ Tofu.
Seriously, the colors! The flavors! Plus it’s smoked! And HEALTHY!
Smoked Tofu
We’ve been smoking a lot of tofu trying to come up with more vegan and vegetarian recipes, and so far this is one of our favorite methods. We’ve done a few “burnt end” style tofu recipes to serve along traditional BBQ side dishes, and they’re great, but I loved the combination of the BBQ sauce with the grilled (or smoked) pineapple, veggies, and coconut rice.
That’s right, coconut rice. That’s just a fancy way of saying I used coconut water in place of regular water (or stock) to cook the rice in. It gives it a great (yet mild) tropical flavor to go with the fruit and sweet BBQ sauce.
How to Prepare Tofu for Smoking
- Start with Extra Firm tofu. The density and firmness are the best texture for a smoker.
- Any tofu lover knows that we start by pressing the tofu. If you’re unfamiliar with this process, it just means that we need to press out the excess water. Tofu comes packed in water, and you need to get out that bland liquid so that you can introduce good flavors (like a marinade, or BBQ sauce). Think of it like a sponge that you need to gently ring out the liquid before introducing new flavors, or otherwise when you cook it, it’s mushy and bland.
- Take your tofu and discard the water from the packaging. Then slice it down the middle, lengthwise, creating two pieces 1-inch thick. Lay out a baking sheet with a cookie drying rack, or large flat plate and line it with a few paper towels. This helps absorb the liquid.
- Place the tofu on cookie rack or the paper towels, then layer with some more paper towels. Place another plate or baking sheet over the top, then place something heavy on top of that plate/tray (like heavy books or a cast iron pan). Leave it for overnight or at the minimum an hour.
- When done draining, remove the pan and towels, then cut into 1-inch cubes, then place those pieces in your marinade.
Easy Tofu Marinade with Miso
Next we add flavor to our BBQ tofu by marinating it in some Miso. Our vegetarian neighbor gave us the Miso idea to add more savory/umami flavors. It totally works to add some additional flavor to the tofu. But if you don’t feel like buying this extra ingredient, then you can marinate it in your favorite BBQ sauce.
- We specifically bought a dry miso soup mix and then combined with water.
- Place the marinade in a plastic bag with the tofu, and let it sit in the fridge for one hour.
- After one hour, remove from bag and season with your favorite seasoning. We like our ultimate dry rub.
- Then it’s time to smoke those bad boys!
How to Smoke Tofu
- Prepare smoker to 250 degrees Fahrenheit. We like fruit wood for this (like cherry).
- Place the tofu directly on the smoker, or on a thin wired rack, for about two hours (up to three) or until you get a firm exterior with dark color.
- Next, dip the tofu cubes into the BBQ sauce and toss. Get them all nice and sauced up, and then place them back on the smoker to firm up. You can also brush the BBQ sauce on with a food-safe paintbrush, but you’ll have to rotate to get all 4 sides. The dipping method is super quick and easy.
- *Note that depending on the style of BBQ sauce you use, the tofu may caramelize sooner. We used a Carolina style sauce that isn’t too sweet. If you opt for a KC style, or sweeter style (tomato or ketchup based), then keep an eye on the tofu as it may caramelize sooner.
- During this final round you can add your pineapple chunks that have been skewered. You can also do this separately on a hot grill. Leave the pineapple chunks to cook about 3-5 minutes per side, depending on how hot the grill is. Just look for some grill marks and some mild caramelization on the fruit.
- After your tofu is done setting with the glaze (about 20 more minutes on the smoker), remove from the smoker and let them take one more happy dive into the BBQ sauce before serving, just for a nice sheen.
- Assemble your smoked tofu bowls, and you’re good to go!
Smoked Tofu is a BBQ dish that everyone can agree on! Feel free to add more BBQ sauce at the end for the tasty coconut rice to soak up.
Tofu Bowl Ingredients
We use rice that we make in coconut water (not coconut milk). It adds an additional flavor we love.
For the remainder of the ingredients we prep all the fresh veggies while the tofu is smoking so it’s ready to construct.
For garnishes we love fresh cilantro and some sesame seeds. Add more of your barbecue sauce as desired.
*Note this tofu is also great in a sandwich, or served alongside your favorite BBQ side dishes. But seriously, look at these bowls? So nutritious AND deeeeelicious!
Wine Pairing for BBQ Tofu
We’ve got some fun flavors going on with these smoked tofu bowls, from the BBQ sauce, the sweet pineapple, the flavorful rice, crunchy veggies, and creamy avocado. We’re really focusing on the style of BBQ sauce you choose and something that will stand up to any sweetness of the sauce along with the tropical flavors from that pineapple.
While a fruity rosé is ever and always a good standby for these BBQ flavors, I also think it’s a great match for refreshing fruity whites like Riesling or a sweeter style Müller-Thurgau.
While I would avoid most reds because of those dominant pineapple flavors, I do think it would be pretty awesome with Lambrusco — The very mildly sparkling red from Italy’s Emilia-Romagna region — but not the sticky-sweet kind you may be thinking of. I’m talking a dry or perhaps one with a touch of sweetness. Good fruit, good acidity, good potential with these awesome flavors. Yum.
More Vegetarian BBQ Recipes
- Grilled Vegetables
- Shishito Peppers with Lemon Yogurt Dipping Sauce
- Grilled Green Beans
- Smoked Marinara Sauce
- Grilled Broccolini with Lemon and Parmesan
This recipe was originally published in June of 2016, and updated in April of 2021 with more detailed recipe directions. The recipe remains the same.
If you like this recipe we’d truly appreciate it if you would give this recipe a star review! And if you share any of your pics on Instagram use the hashtag #vindulge. We LOVE to see it when you cook our recipes.
Nora B. says
I love-love the idea of adding miso + bbq sauce! I’m definitely going to try that, as well as using coconut water in my marinades. It all sounds so delicious that my dinner seems sort of sad in comparison… lol, oh well, I’m super happy to have found some really-different from my typical “one pan no plan” stuff that might look like garbage, but still tastes incredible… always happy to learn new stuff! I’ve been a little bit afraid of bbq sauce marinades since last summer when I completely ruined dinner (& all sorts of $#!+ hit the fan on the same day…but but but, when it comes to dinner, what fears are there, honestly? Dinner & general kitchen time is THE TIME for experiments, mistakes, utter ruinations…). There’s no such thing as “afraid of this or that…” in the kitchen! (& bc my kitchen I saw tiny, there’s just no room for any anxiety. So yeah, here’s a really good reason to try bbq sauce marinated tofu again, yay! Thx for the creative ideas!
Rima Desai says
What do you do if you don’t have a smoker? Can I use miso paste instead of miso soup mix for the marinade?
Mary says
Yes you can use miso paste instead. And if you don’t have a smoker, you can cook the tofu at a low temperature in the oven, or pan fry.
Roger says
I want to try this dish, look delicious! Question – do you cook your veggies at all, or do those go into the bowls raw? Thanks!
Mary says
Roger great question, we tend to eat the veggies raw, sliced really finely. But steaming or blanching some of them works too, depends on how you like the texture or flavor!
Angela says
This looks like possibly one of the best vegan recipes I’ve seen. Grilled pineapple is just delicious. Only problem is……I don’t have a bbq. Would the tofu cook in a semi-similar way in the oven or fried in a pan? I’m actually going shopping to get what I need, right now!
Mary says
Hi! Thanks so much for the comment! Yes, this would totally work pan fried. The tofu isn’t going to have that true “smoked” flavor, but you can still achieve a delicious flavor with this dish. Prep the tofu the same way, but when it comes time to cook it just toss some olive oil in a wok or non-stick pan and cook up your tofu on med-med/high heat until it starts to get a nice crust. Then toss in your BBQ sauce and let it cook a few more minutes. It will then start to caramelize, so pay close attention to it. When it forms a nice crust, pull it off and serve the same way.
Aarika says
I am in LOVE with the idea of smoked/barbecue tofu. It sounds amazing! You always come up with the most deliciously delightful creations. I have some hard tofu in the fridge, so you know what I am making this weekend. Wahoo! Thank you. Cheers!
Mary says
Wohooo! Thanks so much 🙂 You can also add some delicious roasted beets to the mix. In fact, that’s something we’ve never smoked…. yet…. hmmmm… 😉
Create/Enjoy says
Gorgeous photos!! Coconut rice sounds delicious, great idea to make it at home! Could serve it with mango like they do at Thai places. We often cook rice in homemade bone broth for extra nutrients but I hadn’t though to do it in any other liquids!
I don’t eat soy or processed foods for health reasons but I love the idea of mixed bowls like this! I should get more creative with fun things to add like you did with the sides!
Funny, my husband got me to change my longtime vegetarian and vegan ways with local, high quality, healthy meats, too–thank goodness!
Mary says
Awesome! Nice to meet a fellow former-vegetarian-turned-local-good-quality-meat-eater 😉
And I wouldn’t tell anyone if you subbed the tofu for organic chicken 😉
Erin says
How have I never thought of making rice with coconut water?! That is a genius idea. I also really like the idea of using a wired rack on the grill so the tofu doesn’t fall through. Does any wired rack work or do you have to find specific ones to handle that much heat?
Mary says
Thanks! I used to just use chicken or veggie stock for cooking rice but I tried coconut awhile back and it worked like magic. It adds some great flavor and cooks the rice just like water or stock. So good! As far as the wired rack, I just use a regular wired cooling rack. Since we’re smoking the meat at a lower heat it didn’t really matter what rack we used. Just one that isn’t too wide, so the tofu actually stays on the rack (and doesn’t fall through the gaps). But any oven safe rack should work just fine.
Greta says
A great recipe just in time for dinner!
Greta | www.gretahollar.com
Erin @ Platings and Pairings says
That shimmering tofu is calling my name – You captured these bowls beautifully. What a great BBQ dish for the non-meat lovers out there!
Mary says
Thanks so much!! They were almost too pretty to eat…. almost 😉
Pech says
What a great recipe for those who can’t enjoy meat, and even as a meat eater the combination of pineapple and smoky bbq and coconut rice sounds super appealing
Mary says
Thanks! Like I mentioned, we have a lot of friends who come over for bbq’s, and while we do still usually provide some meat items, it’s always nice and welcoming to have some other offerings that people can actually eat (besides store-bought stuff or generic things). It’s also nice for us to take a break from meat every week, and finding nutritious and delicious things to nourish our bodies.
Meredith {MarthaChartreuse} says
This glaze (and the wine) seems like my best friend!! Thanks so much for sharing your BBQ recs for #thursdaytourspdx
Mary says
Thanks!! And thanks for having me over on #thursdaytourspdx!!
Kari says
You’ve made tofu look absolutely delicious!!!
Kari
www.sweetteasweetie.com
Mary says
Thanks. It tastes absolutely delicious too 🙂
Leah Herring says
Your pictures are gorgeous. I’ve never tried tofu before but this makes it look good!
Mary says
Thank!!! It’s pretty easy to work with, and is like a blank canvass, you can make it taste like whatever you want. And filled with protein!