This flavor-packed vegan satay is made with skewered tofu cubes that are soaked in zesty lemongrass marinade, baked and served with luscious peanut dipping sauce!
Have you ever had satay before? If you're a long-time vegan or vegetarian, chances are you haven't! Meatless satay isn't easy to come by, with most restaurant versions being made from chicken.
I was fortunate enough to find tempeh satay on one dining excursion, and let me tell you: it's delicious. I had to recreate the stuff in my own kitchen. I've made a few versions of vegan satay over the years, and nowadays, this tofu-based recipe is my favorite.
What is satay, you ask? Basically food on a stick. It's an Indonesian dish that's made by soaking your food in a flavorful marinade and then grilling it.
Satay Ingredients
Lemongrass is one of the predominant flavors in satay. I usually buy mine at a local produce shop, or occasionally at the supermarket if I'm able to spot it there. Asian markets will usually have it as well. Whatever you do, please don't skip it, because it really makes the dish!
You'll also need some shallots, garlic, ginger, coconut milk, lime juice, soy sauce, and brown sugar for the marinade.
Satay is served with a creamy peanut dipping sauce, for which you'll need some peanut butter, soy sauce, brown sugar, garlic, ginger, lime juice, and coconut milk.
And of course, you'll need your tofu and some skewers!
How to Make Vegan Satay
Start by making the marinade. Place all of your ingredients into a food processor bowl. I really like to use my mini food processor here, since the volume of ingredients is small. If your food processor is especially large, consider doubling the batch size (you can freeze any extra marinade).
Blend everything until relatively smooth.
Next, dice your tofu and place it in a shallow dish. Pour the marinade over it and stir gently to distribute. Let the tofu marinade for at least 30 minutes on the counter, or up to 24 hours in the fridge.
Place 4 or 5 pieces of marinated tofu on each skewer, then arrange your skewers on a baking sheet.
Bake until the marinade dries up a bit and you get some nice dark spots.
How to Serve Tofu Satay
Serve your satay with peanut sauce on the side, and any garnishes or accompaniments you like. I went with some fresh mint, scallions and chopped peanuts.
FAQ & Tofu Satay Making Tips
- Feel free to add your favorite veggies to your skewers. I really like red bell peppers and mushrooms. Leave them plain, or make some extra marinade and brush it over them just before baking.
- Prefer a gluten-free satay? Just substitute gluten-free tamari for the soy sauce.
- Can I grill my satay? I think so, but I haven't broken out the barbecue grill for the season yet, so I haven't tested a grilled version. I think 10 to 12 minutes on each side over a low flame should do it though!
- Tofu satay will keep in a sealed container in the fridge for 2-3 days.
- Both the marinade and the peanut sauce for this recipe are freezer-friendly. I like to make a double batch of each and freeze half for later!
Like this recipe? If so, be sure to follow me on Facebook, Pinterest or Instagram, or subscribe to my newsletter. And please stop back and leave me a review and rating below if you make it!
📖 Recipe
Tofu Satay with Peanut Sauce
Ingredients
For the Tofu Satay
- 1 (4 inch) lemongrass stalk
- 1 small shallot, peeled and quartered
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 (1 inch) piece fresh ginger, peeled
- ¼ cup full-fat coconut milk
- 3 tablespoons fresh lime juice
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon sambal oelek, or to taste
- ½ teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 (14 ounce or 400 gram) package extra firm tofu, drained, pressed and cut into 1-inch cubes
For the Peanut Sauce
- ¼ cup creamy natural peanut butter
- 2 tablespoons lime juice
- 1 ½ tablespoons soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon freshly grated ginger
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- 3 tablespoons full fat coconut milk, plus more as needed
Instructions
To Make the Tofu Satay
- Cut a slit lengthwise down the lemongrass stalk, and then peel off the tough outer layer. Cut the inner stalk into 4 or 5 pieces, then place them into the bowl of a food processor fitted with an s-blade.
- Add the shallot, garlic, ginger, coconut milk, lime juice, soy sauce, brown sugar, sambal oelek and cumin to the food processor.
- Blend everything until relatively smooth (it won't get perfectly smooth), stopping to scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed.
- Place the tofu into a shallow dish, then pour the marinade over it. Gently stir with a spoon to distribute the marinade.
- Allow the tofu to marinate for at least 30 minutes at room temperature, or up to 24 hours (refrigerate if marinating longer than 2 hours).
- Preheat the oven to 400°F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Skewer the tofu cubes, placing 4-5 pieces of tofu on each skewer.
- Arrange the tofu skewers on the baking sheet and bake for about 50 minutes, gently turning halfway through, until the tofu dries up a bit and browns in spots.
To Make the Peanut Sauce
- Place all ingredients into a small bowl and whisk them together.
- Taste-test and adjust any seasonings to your liking, and thin the mixture with as much coconut milk as you need to reach your desired consistency.
To Serve
- Serve the tofu skewers with the peanut sauce on the side, for dipping. Garnish with accompaniments of choice, such as scallions, fresh mint, crushed peanuts, or cucumber slices.
Would you like to save this?
We'll email this post to you, so you can come back to it later!
Nutrition
I made these for dinner tonight and served with Thai style rice, steamed broccoli, and plenty of fresh mint. OMG-so delicious! Thanks so much for the recipe! I’ll be making it regularly.
I was only able to find the lemongrass in a paste, do you know about how much of the paste would be equivalent? Thank you!
Hmmm...I'd have to guess, but I'm thinking about a tablespoon. I'd start with a bit less than that and taste-test the sauce, then add a little more if you think you can.
Thank you Alissa! These were so yummy. I grilled mine and it worked just fine. Served them with your curry fried rice. Probably a weird combo, but me and the other cobbled it up :0)
That actually sounds like a wonderful combo! I'm so glad you enjoyed it!
Amazing! I ended up cooking them for 25 minutes, rotating, lowered the temp to 350, and only cooked them for another 10 minutes. In the future I might cook for the full 50 minutes at 325 or 350. I also put some mushrooms and peppers on the skewers. It was really, really delicious!
Yay! Glad you enjoyed them!
Have you made this with tempeh? Seems like it should work well, just require some more marinating time, perhaps?
Thanks.
I've made a very similar version with tempeh! No need to increase the marinating time. :) And it actually doesn't need as much baking time with tempeh - 25 to 30 minutes is plenty, followed by a few minutes under the broiler until the tempeh just starts to char. Enjoy!!