Classic and comforting Vegan Penne alla Vodka with a smoky tofu crumble twist
I am half Italian so pasta was a huge part of my life growing up. This is my take on vodka sauce. While the smoky crumbled tofu are optional I would not skip making it! You would be surprised just how flavorful the tofu is.
How to make vegan penne alla vodka
What you will need
Smoky Tofu Ingredients
Full recipe with measurements in recipe card below
- Tofu
- Reduced sodium soy sauce
- Liquid smoke
- Maple syrup
- Smoked paprika
- Garlic powder
- Onion powder
- Black pepper
- Cayenne pepper
- Salt
Vodka sauce
- Onion
- Garlic
- Olive oil
- All purpose flour
- Tomato paste
- Non-dairy milk
- Nutritional yeast
- Red pepper flakes
- Vodka
- Salt
- Black pepper
- Pasta
Method
Smoky Tofu
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
- Wrap tofu in a clean kitchen towel and add a weighted object on top.
- Let tofu sit for about 5 minutes to get the excess water out.
- Add all other ingredients to a bowl.
- After 5 minutes crumble the tofu into small pieces and add to the marinade mixture, coat well. Once well coated, arrange on top of a parchment lined baking sheet in a single layer.
- Cook for 15 minutes then flip and cook for another 15 minutes. It may need to cook for another 5-10 minutes depending on your oven. The tofu should be golden brown and slightly dry.
Vodka Sauce
- Generously salt a pot of water.
- Cook pasta according to maker’s instructions. Make sure to save ½ cup of the pasta cooking water to use in case the sauce needs to be thinned out.
- Add 2 tbsp of olive oil to a medium size saucepan and add diced onions and cook until translucent. Add minced garlic and cook for another 1-2 minutes.
- Add tomato paste and stir. Next add 3 tbsp. of flour to the mixture. The mixture at this point will be very clumpy. Cook for about 1 minute constantly stirring to ensure it doesn’t burn. Slowly add in the non-dairy milk and stir. Add the nutritional yeast. Stir until incorporated.
- Add milk mixture to a blender. To the same saucepan add in red pepper flakes and vodka let simmer on low while you blend the non-dairy milk. Once the mixture is smooth and creamy add it back to the saucepan with the vodka. Add in ¼ tsp of black pepper and ¾ tsp salt. Simmer on low until the mixture thickens and the alcohol cooks out of the vodka. About 6 minutes.
- Add pasta back to the pot and pour in the vodka sauce. If the sauce has become too thick and needs to be thinned use the reserved pasta cooking water a little at a time. Once desired consistency is achieved add in the smoky tofu pieces and top with vegan parm.
If you are looking for more pasta recipes I think you love this Vegan Ricotta Stuffed Shells.
Vegan Penne alla Vodka with Smoky Tofu Crumbles
Creamy vegan vodka sauce with smoky tofu
Servings 5
Calories 700kcal
Ingredients
Smoky Tofu Ingredients
- 14 oz package of tofu
- 2 tbsp reduced sodium soy sauce
- 1 tsp liquid smoke
- 1 tbsp maple syrup
- 1 tsp smoked paprika
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp onion powder
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
- 1/2 tsp salt
Vodka sauce
- 1 medium onion diced
- 4 cloves of garlic minced
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 3 tbsp AP flour
- 3 tbsp tomato paste
- 1 2/3 cup non-dairy milk
- 1 tsp nutritional yeast
- 1/4-1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
- 1/4 cup vodka
- 3/4 tsp salt plus more for salting the pasta water
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 1 lb pasta of choice
Instructions
Smoky Tofu
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Wrap tofu in a clean kitchen towel and add a weighted object on top, like a cast iron pan. Let tofu sit for about 5 minutes to get the excess water out. Add all other ingredients to a bowl.
- After 5 minutes crumble the tofu into small pieces and add to the marinade mixture, coat well. Once well coated, arrange on top of a parchment lined baking sheet in a single layer.
- Cook for 15 minutes then flip and cook for another 15 minutes. It may need to cook for another 5-10 minutes depending on your oven. The tofu should be golden brown and slightly dry.
Vodka Sauce
- Generously salt the pot of water to maximize the flavor of the pasta. Cook pasta according to maker's instructions. Make sure to save ½ cup of the pasta cooking water to use in case the sauce needs to be thinned out.
- Add 2 tbsp of olive oil to a medium size saucepan and add diced onions and cook until translucent. Add minced garlic and cook for another 1-2 minutes. Add tomato paste and stir. Next add 3 tbsp of flour to the mixture. The mixture at this point will be very clumpy. Cook for about 1 minute constantly stirring to ensure it doesn't burn. Slowly add in the non-dairy milk and stir. Add the nutritional yeast. Stir until incorporated.
- Add the milk mixture to a blender. To the same saucepan add in red pepper flakes and vodka let simmer on low while you blend the non-dairy milk. Once the mixture is smooth and creamy add it back to the saucepan with the vodka. Add in ¼ tsp of black pepper and ¾ tsp salt. Simmer on low until the mixture thickens and the alcohol cooks out of the vodka. About 6 minutes.
- Add pasta back to the pot and pour in the vodka sauce. If the sauce has become too thick and needs to be thinned use the reserved pasta cooking water a little at a time. Once desired consistency is achieved add in the smoky tofu pieces and top with vegan parm.
If you love this Vegan Penne alla Vodka with Smoky Tofu Crumbles
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[…] If you are looking for more dinner recipes I think you will also love this Ground Tofu and Walnut Taco “Meat”, this Vegan Ricotta Stuffed Shells, and this Vegan Penne Alla Vodka with Smoky Tofu Crumbles. […]