Tofu Lettuce Wrap Tacos
Crumbled tofu is baked with spices to become the filling in these Tofu Lettuce Wrap Tacos and we loved them with the avocado-tomato salsa. And this tasty recipe is such a unique way to cook tofu; check it out!
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When I went to Kenya and Istanbul with my blogging friend Donna earlier this year, one of the nights in Nairobi we cooked a Mexican food dinner for a bunch of ex-pats who were friends of Donna’s daughter Kate. Apparently good Mexican food is impossible to get in Kenya, and we made a huge Mexican feast for the crowd.
Donna is not only a good traveling companion and a very creative food blogger, but she’s also a prolific cookbook author, and for the vegetarians attending the dinner she made amazing tofu tacos using a recipe from the book 101 Things to do with Tofu (affiliate link) that she wrote with her daughter Anne. I was intrigued by the process that turned extra-firm tofu into taco filling that really did taste great, and I liked the tofu tacos so much I got permission from Donna to share the recipe with my readers.
I actually made these Tofu Lettuce Wrap Tacos in early June, shortly after Donna and I returned from our trip, but the crumbled tofu has to be baked for nearly an hour, and I didn’t think a recipe like that would be a hit in the summer! So I’ve been waiting eagerly to share this recipe with you.
And even though I am kind of known for never following a recipe the way it’s written, I didn’t change Donna’s ground tofu filling recipe much at all. I have a few favorite tofu recipes, but overall I’m not a very experienced tofu cook, so I can’t wait to try some of the other ones from Donna’s book.
How to Make Tofu Lettuce Wrap Tacos:
(Scroll down for complete recipe with nutritional information.)
- You will need 14-16 ounces of extra firm tofu, which has to be frozen and thawed to use in this recipe. Cut the thawed tofu into two slices.
- Then press the tofu to remove most of the water (we used a heavy cast-iron pan to press out the water.)
- Crumble the pressed tofu, and mix together the softened peanut butter, soy sauce or Gluten-Free Soy Sauce (affiliate link), ground cumin (affiliate link), garlic powder, ground Ancho chile (affiliate link), and Cholula Hot Sauce (affiliate link).
- Put the crumbled tofu into the bowl with the sauce and stir until all the tofu is coated.
- Brush a baking sheet with oil, spread out the crumbled seasoned tofu, and bake about 50 minutes (or slightly longer if you’re using a small baking sheet to fit into a toaster oven like I was. I recommend using a large baking sheet!) You can see how the tofu gets darker as it bakes.
- While the tofu bakes, combine avocado, lime juice, diced tomato, green onions, olive oil and a pinch of ground cumin to make the avocado-tomato salsa.
- Prepare the lettuce cups.
- Fill lettuce cup with a scoop of the tofu mixture and top with the salsa.
Jake and I gobbled these up at the end of a long day of recipe testing when we weren’t even that hungry! For more tasty dinners with lettuce wraps, check out Delicious Low-Carb and Keto Wraps with Lettuce, Collards, or Cabbage.
More Delicious Recipes with Tofu from Kalyn, Donna, and Anne:
Spicy Vegan Peanut Butter Tofu with Sriracha ~ Kalyn’s Kitchen
Tamarind Glazed Grilled Tofu ~ Apron Strings
Easy Baked Tofu with Sesame and Soy Sauce ~ Kalyn’s Kitchen
Eggless Low-Carb Tofu Scramble ~ Apron Strings
Vegan Red Cabbage Bowl with Tofu and Peanut-Sriracha Sauce ~ Kalyn’s Kitchen
Tofu au Vin ~ Apron Strings
Tofu is pressed, crumbled, and baked with spices to become the filling in these Tofu Lettuce Wrap Tacos and they're served with delicious tomato-avocado salsa. Some packages of tofu are 14 oz, that will be fine for this recipe. I like Adams 100% Natural Peanut Butter (affiliate link) which is low in sugar. If you don't have ground Ancho chile (affiliate link) use any ground chile or chili powder you have on hand. If you don't have Cholula Hot Sauce (affiliate link) use any hot sauce you have on hand. You can skip the hot sauce if you want it to be less spicy. This ground tofu filling recipe is from 101 Things to do with Tofu (affiliate link), written by my friend Donna and her daughter Anne. Nutrition information is automatically calculated by the Recipe Plug-In I am using. I am not a nutritionist and cannot guarantee 100% accuracy, since many variables affect those calculations.
Tofu Lettuce Wrap Tacos
Ingredients
Ground Tofu Filling Ingredients:
Taco and Avocado-Tomato Salsa Ingredients:
Instructions
Notes
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
6
Serving Size:
1
Amount Per Serving:
Calories: 267Total Fat: 20gSaturated Fat: 3gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 16gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 667mgCarbohydrates: 15gFiber: 8gSugar: 6gProtein: 12g
Low-Carb Diet / Low-Glycemic Diet / South Beach Diet Suggestions:
Tofu is a good Low-Carb choice that’s recommended for all phases of the South Beach Diet and Spicy Tofu Lettuce Wrap Tacos should be suitable for most low-carb eating plans.
Find More Recipes Like This One:
Use Lettuce Wraps to find more recipes like this one. Use the Recipes by Diet Type photo index pages to find more recipes suitable for a specific eating plan. You might also like to Follow Kalyn’s Kitchen on Pinterest to see all the good recipes I’m sharing there.
27 Comments on “Tofu Lettuce Wrap Tacos”
I’ve been eyeing this recipe for awhile now, and I finally had a chance to make it! Wow, it was so delicious! I’ve made tofu so many times in the past and have been severely disappointed. This was the first time it actually absorbed the sauce!
I substituted sunflower seed butter for peanut butter since my nephew has a peanut allergy, and everyone really loved it! Thank you, Kalyn! You continue to be one of the few sources that have amazing SBD Phase 1, vegetarian dishes!
Thanks for the very kind feedback! So glad you enjoy this and are enjoying the recipe in general.
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This is seriously beyond delicious. One of my favorite recipes ever! I have tried it both frozen and thawed and just straight out of the package (and drained VERY well) and they’re both great. I prefer just out of the package honestly because it saves me time and texture is still fine for me with the baking and the sauce. Love it!
SO happy you are enjoying it! All credit to my friend Donna who let me share the recipe here!
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how much garlic powder did you use in the sauce? It's not listed in ingredients .. I'm guessing about 1/2 tsp?
Good catch, so sorry about that. Just checked my notes which say 1 tsp. garlic powder, but you could certainly use less if you're not that into garlic. I will edit the post right now.
thanks… love garlic. making this tonight. thanks!
UPDATE: I made this a couple evenings ago. Who would think of such a technique for tofu … the texture comes out so spongy after freezing it but it was so delicious when it was all baked up! We loved it. I used parchment paper instead of oiling the pan and it made it easy to flip the tofu over by picking up the edges of the paper; plus easy clean up. The leftover tofu was yummy in eggs the next morning too. This could easily win over a tofu hater 😉
So glad you enjoyed it! I was just as impressed with the recipe; that's why I asked Donna if I could share it here.
Looks fantastic Kalyn! I'm a tofu fan, but my hubby could pass, but I bet he'll eat his tofu in this tasty recipe.
Thanks so much; hope you will try it out on him.
We made these last night for the vegetarian son and it was a hit. I thought I got the tofu a little dry, like kibble almost. I think the last 20 minute round was unnecessary and I think it was so because we used our 23lb lead brick as a weight to dry out the tofu and I think it did a really good job! The spice seasoning was stellar. And the avo salsa kept everyone happy. I prepared a can of veg refried beans for those that wanted a tostado shell instead of lettuce…the tofu was able to stick int he beans and stayed on the shell. There wasn't a morsel left over with just three people eating. We added grated cheese and shredded lettuce. Thanks Kalyn, another hit recipe!
So glad to hear it was a hit! And I think you're right that if the tofu is drained particularly well you might not need to cook so long.
The email that arrived with this recipe had a McDonald's ad at the top. Couldn't help but laugh seeing a photo of a Big Mac above your recipe for tofu lettuce wraps.
Yes, I have no control over the ads that show up in the e-mails, but the ads do keep the e-mail service free for me! Pretty funny!
As you might expect, I love this recipe–and that you put the filling in lettuce cups!!
Thanks Letty! Such a brilliant idea from our friend Donna!
I am so excited about these!! I crave tacos pretty much all the time and these look awesome.
Thanks Joanne! Hope you like it as much as I did!
Your spin on this recipe is beautiful – love the lettuce cups. I made this last night for our weekly family dinner and was reminded of how much I love this recipe! I can't tell you what a thrill it is to have you love one of my recipes!
Donna, thank you again for letting me share it, and I do love it!
I have never frozen tofu before, I didn't know about the texture thing. And have never cooked it like this either, so I am really curious about this. I will give it a try.
Adina, I was intrigued when Donna made this, and I was really thrilled with how tasty it was; hope you enjoy!
I love the combination of flavors and method of cooking the tofu. What's the reason for freezing and thawing?
Lydia, freezing changes the texture of tofu, making it "meatier." I've seen this technique in other recipes as well, although I'm not sure what would happen if you tried this without freezing the tofu.